Egypt's media regulator prohibits positive discussion of homosexuality and enforces a widespread crackdown on LGBT rights activism. There are also reports of forced anal examinations to determine if the accused engaged in same-sex sexual activity despite the practice being wholly denounced by human rights group as not only torturous and inhumane but inconclusive. The Penal Code of 1937 contains Article 178 of Law No. 58 which punishes anyone who trades or distributes material that are deemed "in violation of public morals" with imprisonment. This has been consistently used against LGBTIQ+ people especially since 2013.

Under the authoritarian regime of Carol II homosexuality was banned and a punishment of imprisonment from 6 months to 3 years.

Egyptian law does not explicitly criminalize same-sex sexual acts. However, the state uses several morality provisions for the de facto criminalization of homosexual conduct. These public morality and public order laws have been used to target the LGBT community and reports of prison sentences for homosexual activity range from 3 months to 10 years. There were also reports of police officers assaulting LGBTQIA people and "forcibly soliciting bribes to avoid arrest, and forcing them to provide information concerning other LGBTQI+ individuals.". Furthermore, there are several reports of police using dating apps like Grindr or Tinder to lure LGB people into arrest on charges of debauchery or prostitution.