International Human Rights Treaties to Which Antigua and Barbuda is a Party

Antigua and Barbuda is a party to multiple international human rights treaties, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR). 

The ICCPR is a United Nations treaty implemented to protect the civil and political rights of the civilians in Member States. The ICCPR contains several Articles of relevance to the protection of LGBTQI+ rights in Antigua and Barbuda, including Article 2, which provides that States must respect and ensure the rights of all individuals within their jurisdiction without distinction (including with regard to sex), Article 7, which states that individuals are protected from torture and cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment, including non-consensual medical and scientific experimentation, and Article 26, which provides that all persons entitled to equal protection under the law without discrimination (including on the basis of sex). Critically, the prohibition against discrimination on grounds of “sex” under Article 26 of the ICCPR has been interpreted by the UN Human Rights Committee in the landmark case of Toonen v Australia (1994) (as well as subsequently by a number of national courts) to include a prohibition against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. 

The ICESCR is a United Nations treaty implemented to protect the economic and social rights of the civilians in Member States. These include ensuring that Member States guarantee the rights within the treaty ‘without discrimination based on race, sex, gender or other status.’ The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) confirmed in its 2009 General Comment No. 20 on non-discrimination that this non-discrimination provision should be interpreted to include sexual orientation and gender identity. The CESCR also confirmed that member states should “ensure that a person’s sexual orientation is not a barrier to realizing Covenant rights, for example, in accessing survivor’s pension rights” and clarified that “gender identity is recognized as among the prohibited grounds of discrimination“.

Antigua and Barbuda’s Compliance with International Human Rights Instruments

Despite Antigua and Barbuda being a signatory to the ICCPR and ICESCR, development of LGBTQI+ rights in the country appears to fall short of its international human rights obligations. 

In 2021, prior to the ruling in Orden David et al v The Attorney General of Antigua & Barbuda (David), the United Nations Human Rights Council delivered a Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of Antigua and Barbuda, in which several recommendations were submitted with the view of improving the state of human rights in the country. Several recommendations related to LGBTQI+ rights, including (but not limited to): 

1. Prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity; 
2. Introducing legislation to prohibit the discrimination of individuals on the basis of sexual identity or sexual orientation;  
3. Repealing and reform of the Sexual Offences Act of 1995; and 
4. Decriminalising consensual adult same-sex relationships. 

However, these recommendations were only ‘noted’ as opposed to ‘accepted’ by the country in March 2022 when reporting on its adoption of the UPR recommendations. Antigua and Barbuda’s next UPR is tentatively scheduled to take place in late autumn 2026. 

Further, a 2025 report from The Advocates for Human Rights which was published after the ruling in David, stated that Antigua and Barbuda had ‘failed to uphold its obligations under the ICCPR with respect to members of the LGBTQ+ community’. The report mentions that Antigua and Barbuda has been inadequate in protecting the LGBTQI+ community from violence by State and by non-State actors as directed under Article 7 of the ICCPR, which encompasses the right not to face cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment. For example, individuals have noted that when reporting crimes that are motivated or aggravated by their sexual orientation and / or gender identity, the police are ‘slow to respond’ and fail to take the matter seriously. Whilst the report notes that this may be due to a lack of comprehensive sensitivity training, it prevents individuals from reporting crimes and hence further perpetuates violence towards the community.

The 2025 report also states that members of the LGBTQI+ community in Antigua and Barbuda continue to face significant discrimination by State and non-State actors due to their sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression, in direct violation of Article 27 of the ICCPR. Whilst it was noted that sections 12 and 15 of the Sexual Offences Act had been repealed, the report concluded that individuals still face discrimination as other legislation has not been reformed to properly protect against discrimination in other areas of life, such as housing.

Same-sex sexual activity

Antigua and Barbuda’s Constitution (Constitution) is the supreme law of Antigua and Barbuda as per Article 2 of the same. The Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (ECSC) is the superior court for Member States in the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), including Antigua and Barbuda, with a primary role of providing and administering justice and interpreting the Constitution.

Prior to July 2022, same-sex intimacy was criminalised in Antigua and Barbuda under sections 12 and 15 of the Sexual Offences Act 1995 (the Act). Section 12 of the Act criminalised, among other things, the offence of buggery – anal sexual intercourse – between two consenting persons over the age of sixteen and stipulated that “a person who commits buggery is guilty of an offence and is liable on conviction to imprisonment … for fifteen years, if committed by an adult on another adult.” Section 15 of the Act criminalised, among other things, ‘serious indecency’ between two consenting persons over the age of sixteen and stipulated that “a person who commits an act of serious indecency on or towards another is guilty of an offence and is liable on conviction to imprisonment“. Section 15 of the Act defined ‘serious indecency’ as “an act, other than sexual intercourse (whether natural or unnatural), by a person involving the use of the genital organ for the purpose of arousing or gratifying sexual desire.” Acts committed in private between husband and wife or between a male person and a female person over the age of sixteen, were expressly excluded from the scope of the section 15 offence.

Since 5 July 2022, same-sex sexual activity has been legal in Antigua and Barbuda, following the decision of the ECSC in the case of Orden David et al v Attorney General of Antigua and Barbuda (2022) (David), which declared the criminalisation of same-sex sexual activity in Antigua and Barbuda as being unconstitutional. The ECSC found the relevant provisions of sections 12 and 15 of the Act to violate the rights to liberty, protection of the law, freedom of expression, protection of personal privacy and protection from discrimination based on sex – as enshrined in sections 3, 12 and 14 of the Constitution. The Court therefore held that sections 12 and 15 of the Act were void to the extent that they criminalised consensual acts in private between persons aged sixteen or older. 

Same-sex marriage

Same-sex unions or marriages are not legally recognised in Antigua and Barbuda.  Marriages in Antigua and Barbuda are governed by the Marriage Act 1925 (the Marriage Act). Although the Marriage Act does not explicitly define marriage as the union between a man and a woman, to the exclusion of other possible unions, the structure and language of the Marriage Act appear to indicate that only male-female unions are permitted. For example, Form B in the First Schedule of the Marriage Act (the marriage licence) refers to the parties as “Bachelor” and “Spinster”, or “Widower” and “Widow”. Similarly, section 3(1) of the Matrimonial Causes Act 1948 stipulates that a “petition for divorce may be presented to the Court either by the husband or the wife”. 

As of early 2026, there have been no court cases brought to test whether the Marriage Act could apply to unions other than those between a man and a woman. Further, the Government has explicitly opposed the legalisation of same-sex marriage as recently as 2019. For example, it was reported in the Antigua Observer that Attorney General Steadroy Benjamin expressed that, despite receiving requests to consider legalising same-sex marriage from various groups, Antigua and Barbuda was ‘not going down that road‘.  

Right to change legal gender

Individuals in Antigua and Barbuda are unable to change their legal gender. Whilst individuals can legally change their name on legal identification, they are unable to change their gender marker on birth certificates or other forms of identification. Unlike the procedure to change one’s legal name, there is no mention of an application to change one’s gender in the Civil Registration (Vital Statistics) Act 2020 (Civil Registration Act) or in any other legislation. 

Notably, pursuant to section 25(1) of the Civil Registration Act, an application to change one’s name may involve a hearing before the Registrar. The Registrar may also without hearing the application themselves refer it to a Judge. As of early 2026, there have been no reports of any cases in Antigua and Barbuda where an applicant applied to change their name to reflect their gender identity.

Ultimately, the Registrar (or Judge where applicable) is granted broad powers to refuse an application to register a change of name. Specifically, section 26(2) of the Civil Registration Act sets out that the “Registrar may refuse to register a change of name if the name to be registered is offensive or against public order or is sought for an improper purpose”.

LGBTQI+ discrimination

There are no explicit anti-discrimination laws or policies in place to protect members of the LGBTQI+ community with regards to matters like employment or housing.

Hate crime protections

Antigua and Barbuda does not have specific hate crime laws. However, targeting a victim because of their sexual orientation or their gender identity is considered an aggravating factor under the ECSC Sentencing Guidelines. These Guidelines are published by the ECSC and are binding on the courts of Antigua and Barbuda. 

Pursuant to Rules 7(1) and 8(1) of Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (Sentencing Guidelines) Rules, 2019, the Sentencing Guidelines are to be followed when sentencing defendants in cases involving homicide offences. Similar provisions apply in the case of other violence offences. The relevant guidelines must be applied unless doing so would not be in the interests of justice. If the court chooses not to apply the guidelines, it must provide explicit reasons when passing sentences.

In the Sentencing Guidelines for Homicide Offences, under section 1 ‘Sentencing for the Offence of Murder’, paragraph 5(l) stipulates that the seriousness of the offence could be considered exceptionally high in cases where the murder is “motivated by hatred for or prejudice against a group of people to which the offender believed the victim belonged (e.g. people of a particular religion, race, or ethnic origin, language, or sexual orientation or age or having a particular disability)”. 

Under section 3 ‘Sentencing for the Offence of Manslaughter by Reason of an Unlawful Act’, aggravating factors of the offence include the offender being motivated “by or demonstrating hostility based on any of the following characteristics or presumed characteristics of the victim: religion, race, disability, sexual orientation or transgender identity”. 

A search of the ECSC’s database using keywords such as “gender,” “gender identity” and “sexual orientation” reveals little evidence that these aggravating factors or circumstances have been consistently applied by the courts in Antigua and Barbuda when sentencing defendants. For a discussion of the only case tried by the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court which references these factors, see below in the Case Law section.

Same-sex adoption

Same-sex adoption is prohibited in Antigua and Barbuda. The Children (Care and Adoption) Act 2015 (Care and Adoption Act) defines a “couple” as a “man and a woman” who are either married to each other or in a cohabiting relationship of some permanence. 

However, LGBTQI+ singles can still adopt – section 93 of the Care and Adoption Act states that a single person may apply for an adoption order, subject to being a resident of Antigua and Barbuda for at least six months and being at least 18 years older than the child. To date, there are no available reports of prospective adoptive parents being denied their adoption request because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. 

Blood donations

LGBTQI+ people are not explicitly prohibited from donating blood. In particular, a news article dated 28 January 2025 entitled ‘Senators Joseph and Newton Urge Public to Become Blood Donors‘, sets out some of the eligibility criteria for being a donor. Sexual orientation or gender identity do not appear in the list. If you wish to donate blood, you should check the most recent guidance from the Ministry of Health.