Federal law

The U.A.E. Federal Penal Code was originally enacted in 1987 (House of Commons Library). In 2021, the entire 1987 Penal Code was redacted and replaced (Federal Law by Decree No. (31) of 2021). Some of the changes appear to relax the laws and penalties applicable to consensual sexual activity (in both heterosexual and same-sex contexts). However, the current Penal Code retains a number of provisions which are sufficiently broad as to criminalise same-sex activity, in particular Articles 409 and 411.

Article 409 allows a husband or tutor of an individual in the U.A.E. to file a criminal complaint if their wife or dependent engages in:

1. (consensual) sexual intercourse outside their marriage; or
2. sodomy with another male.

This offence attracts a minimum penalty of 6 months’ imprisonment for anyone engaged in the relevant conduct.

Article 411 criminalises:

1. any public acts of indecency; or
2. saying anything or committing any act that is against public morals.

This conduct is punishable by a fine of up to 100,000 AED, or 3 months’ imprisonment (plus an additional fine) for a repeat offence.

In addition to the above, the Penal Code also imposes (under Article 411) a 1-year minimum jail term for any non-public indecent acts with a woman or boy under 18. Article 362 also states that “approving, instigating or promoting sin” is punishable by a fine and/or imprisonment.

The US Department of State’s Human Rights Report on the U.A.E. 2023 states that      “LGBTQI+ identity, real or perceived, could be deemed an act against ”decency or public morality”, but there were no reports during the year of persons prosecuted under these provisions.  There were no reports of police or other government violence against LGBTQI+ individuals or of non state actor violence targeting LGBTQI+ individuals or those reporting such abuse… There were no known reports of arrests or prosecutions for consensual same-sex sexual conduct.’

Notwithstanding the apparent zero-prosecution record for 2023, there have been a number of reports of historical prosecutions for same-sex conduct in the U.A.E. Radha Stirling, founder of Detained in Dubai said:

“I am surprised to see the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA), reporting that only 21 people in the UAE were prosecuted for this between 2004 and 2021. It is impossible for ILGA to have this information since the UAE does not share this. These numbers must only represent people who have deliberately contacted this organisation. I know it doesn’t include the many clients we have helped over the past 15 years. We have seen a number of visitors arrested for alleged cross-dressing (skinny jeans or similar) as well as sharing a hotel room with someone of the same sex. An Australian man who reported an assault and robbery was jailed for years for having the assailants in his room in the first place. Outrageously, a teenage male rape victim was jailed for sodomy…It is risky to live in a country under these circumstances and the community is blasé about the threat they face, largely due to social media. It’s easy to be persuaded that Dubai doesn’t enforce existing laws but that simply isn’t the case. The laws are arbitrarily enforced which makes the city even more of a trap. Gay visitors and expats are overconfident in a country where breaking the law can lead to death or imprisonment.”

A publication from the UK House of Commons Library notes that “There have been numerous cases of state persecution of LGBT+ people in the UAE in recent years. Human Rights Watch reports anal examinations that led to sentences of imprisonment for homosexuality and obscene acts under Sharia law have been brought to the attention of the UN Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment“.

Some examples of such reported prosecutions are as follows (noting this is not an exhaustive list):

2017 – Police detained two Singaporeans in a shopping mall. One was a cisgender male photographer and the other a trans woman. They were sentenced to one year in prison ‘for attempting to resemble women.’ After spending three weeks in custody, they were deported.

2017 – A British man was sentenced to three months’ imprisonment for ‘indecency’ for touching another man’s hip in a bar in an apparent effort to avoid spilling a drink.

2014 – Two men were sentenced to six months’ imprisonment and deportation for ‘sodomy’ charges, which reportedly involved the use of ”forensic” tests.

2013 – Two men were sentenced to three years in prison for posting photos of cross-dressing and offering sexual services. They were entrapped by police officers posing as clients.

2011 – A transgender waiter faced deportation after a sixth month prison sentence in 2011. He was convicted of ”cross dressing” and “enticing men to sin”.

2011 – A transgender woman was refused entry to the Emirates.

2010 –  An 18-year-old male student was sentenced to one year in prison on charges of prostitution in the U.A.E. Authorities seized his laptop, alleging that he was using it to lure men into having sex with him in exchange for money over the Internet. The student was apprehended when he unknowingly attempted to entice a 23-year-old police sergeant. The sergeant claimed he was conducting an online security patrol and engaged in a chat with the defendant, leading to the student’s arrest.

2010 – In January, charges were brought against a man in the U.A.E. who was accused of prostitution, engaging in consensual homosexual sex, possession of pornographic material, cross-dressing, and insulting religion.

2008 – Police arrested 17 tourists for “homosexual behaviour” though they did not specify what this behaviour constituted.

2007 – Authorities threatened to charge a 15-year-old male victim of gang rape with homosexual acts. Eventually, the perpetrators were sentenced when it was disclosed that one of the men was HIV positive.

2005 – 26 men were arrested for attending a ”gay wedding party”. 11 were imprisoned for six years. All were “encouraged” to accept hormone treatment in exchange for a shorter sentence.

Local Emirati law

The penal codes of Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah (three of the Emirates comprising the U.A.E.) also deal with LGBTQI+ rights. English versions of these penal codes are difficult to access, however the relevant provisions are summarised in a publication by the UK House of Commons:

1. Abu Dhabi – Article 80 of the Penal Code punishes “consensual sodomy” with a penalty of up to 14 years in prison.
2. Dubai – Article 177 of the Penal Code punishes “unnatural crimes (sodomy)” which is defined as “sexual intercourse with another person in contravention of the laws of nature”. The punishment is imprisonment of up to 10 years.
3. Sharjah – Article 176 of the Penal Code punishes “unnatural crimes (Sodomy)”—defined as “sexual intercourse with another person in contravention of the laws of nature” or “allowing a male to have intercourse with them in contravention of the laws of nature”. The penalty is up to 10 years in prison.

Sharia law

Consensual same-sex activity is considered a violation of Sharia law (Omar, 2012). The traditional Islamic viewpoint on non-heterosexual sexuality is one of strong disapproval (Rehman and Polymenopoulou, 2013). The Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission of the Organization of the Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has stated that “all schools of Islamic thought and jurisprudence consider homosexual acts to be unlawful”.

ILGA has noted that consensual same-sex activity could be punishable by death in the U.A.E. under Sharia law. However, the position is not clear. Sharia courts could in theory punish the crime of “zina” (i.e. adultery; sex outside of marriage) with death, which would include all same-sex sexual acts on the grounds that same-sex marriage is prohibited in the U.A.E. However, there have been no recorded cases of the death penalty being imposed for same-sex acts in the U.A.E. The Federal Penal Code states that Sharia law will apply only to crimes punishable by retribution (Qisas) and blood money (Diya) (Article 1).

Discrimination

The LGBTQI+ community in the U.A.E. are not protected against discrimination, hate and extremism.

The U.A.E. introduced new legislation under Federal Law by Decree No (34) of 2023 which protects against discrimination, hatred, and extremism. However, the protected classes under this legislation are limited to religion, creed, sect, race, colour, ethnic origin, gender, or sex.

Transgender persons

Historically, it was illegal in the U.A.E. for men to dress as women in any context, however Article 412 of Federal Law by Decree No. (31) of 2021 limits this offence to men disguising themselves as women to enter a space reserved for women or a place accessed only by women at the time. This offence is punishable by up to a year in prison and a fine of up to AED 10,000.

Human Rights Watch has observed that, in practice, transgender women have been arrested under this law even in mixed-gender spaces.

Sex reassignment surgery is now permitted in the U.A.E., albeit in limited circumstances, under Article 7 of Federal Decree-Law No. (4) of 2016. The law differentiates between “sex change“, defined as the change of the sex of someone who is clearly male or female and where their sexual aspects are identical to their physiological, biological, and genetic characteristics, and “sex reassignment” which is defined as where the person’s sexual orientation is ambiguous. Under Article 5, ”sex change” surgery is not permitted and any practitioner who carries out such surgery is subject to imprisonment of between three and ten years under Article 31. The distinction between ”sex change” and ”reassignment” is derived from Sharia law, which is interpreted to permit the remediation of a medical issue, but not elective treatment based on the person’s self-identification.

The requirements to qualify for reassignment surgery are two-fold: the person’s sexual orientation must be ambiguous; and the person’s “sexual aspects” are different from their physiological, biological and genetic characteristics. These criteria must be confirmed by medical reports and by the approval of a medical committee formed by the health authority for the purpose of approving reassignment surgery. There is also a legal requirement that the person must be referred to a psychologist to facilitate the necessary mental adaptation.

However, that is not to say that the law of the U.A.E. will always recognise transgender people as their identified gender. The U.A.E.’s highest court rejected three female-to-male transgender individuals’ applications to amend their legal documents, including their passports, medical insurance and ID cards in 2019 after they had undergone surgery outside the U.A.E. The denial of legal gender recognition can have severe implications for transgender individuals, as it restricts their access to healthcare, education, and employment opportunities.

HIV

Foreign nationals hoping to live or work in the U.A.E. must be screened for HIV under Articles 31-34 of Federal Law No. (14) of 2014 and may be detained and deported if they test positive. There are also reports of people with HIV being detained and refused treatment. The U.A.E. Health Ministry also imposes restrictions on the medicines which can be brought into the U.A.E.

Barriers to freedom of expression

Free speech

There are various, indeterminate restrictions on and barriers to the LGBTQI+ community to exercising their freedoms of speech, expression and assembly. The most transparent is Article 37 of Federal Decree-Law No. (34) of 2021, which imposes a penalty of imprisonment and/or a fine of between AED 200,000 and AED 2 million for using any network or website to offend Islamic principles or condoning, inciting or promoting sins. Articles 368-371 of Federal Law by Decree No. (31) of 2021 states that anyone involved in an organisation aiming to challenge or raise doubts about the principles of Islam can be imprisoned for five to ten years and anyone attending a meeting with such an aim can be imprisoned for up to five     years. The ILGA has observed that “This legal framework—compounded by criminalisation of consensual same-sex sexual acts and the possible imposition of the death penalty under Shariah Law—appears to pose severe barriers to the registration of an organisation working on sexual and gender diversity issues“.

A similar provision is included in Article 12 of Federal Law by Decree No (34) of 2023, which imposes imprisonment for a minimum of one year and a fine of AED 50,000-200,000 for the possession of materials which show contempt for religion. Materials promoting LGTBQI+ rights may well fall within this category given that same-sex activity is criminalised under Sharia law. The broadly cast nature of Articles 411 and 362 of the Penal Code, discussed further above, means that these laws may similarly be taken to capture anything said or done in relation to same-sex relationships.

Internet censorship

The Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority sets out an Internet Access Management Policy which requires internet service providers to restrict content which is contrary to public interest, public morality, or Islamic morality. Included in the prohibited categories are “bypassing blocked content“, “supporting criminal acts“, “contempt of religion” and “illegal activities“.

The U.A.E.’s two internet service providers, both government-affiliated, use a proxy server to block materials deemed inconsistent with the country’s values as defined by the Ministry of Interior, which includes LGBTQI+ issues. Certain dating sites, such as Grindr, are also banned in the U.A.E.

Any attempt to circumvent such bans with the intention of committing, or avoiding detection of a crime, such as by using a VPN, is a criminal offence under Article 10 of Federal Decree-Law No. (34) of 2021.

There have also been high-profile instances of the U.A.E. pressuring international corporations to align their content with the nation’s values. Examples include:

1. In 2022, the U.A.E. required Amazon to restrict search results relating to LGBTQI+ with many searches for items and books now returning no results in the country. The U.A.E. government threatened penalties, leading Amazon to remove listings and hide over 150 keywords, including “LGBTQ” and “pride.”
2. Also in 2022, the Gulf Cooperation Council released a statement requesting that LGBTQI+ content was removed from Netflix in their countries with a threat of legal action if Netflix failed to comply.
3. The 2022 Disney animated film ”Lightyear” was banned in the U.A.E. for “violation of the country’s media content standards“. This was particularly significant as it came shortly after the U.A.E. claimed it would stop censoring movies and instead introduced a new age rating for those aged 21+.
4. In 2020, the first gay romantic comedy in Bollywood was reportedly banned in the U.A.E.

International legal framework

The U.A.E. is part of the Gulf Cooperation Council and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), both of which have expressed concerns over a number of international treaties which protect LGBTQI+ rights. In particular, the U.A.E. has refused to sign any of the following treaties:

1. 2014 UN Human Rights Council resolution on combating violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity;
2. Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (1984);
3. Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) (1979); and
4. International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966).

The U.A.E. voted against the 2014 UN Human Rights Council resolution on combating violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Pakistan gave a statement on behalf of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation explaining that its members are against any violence or discrimination but that the sexual orientation implications did not align with their religious and cultural values. Saudi Arabia provided a similar statement on behalf of the Gulf Cooperation Council, indicating that their members opposed the effort of certain countries to promote their own model of culture.

The UAE constitution makes no reference to protection from gender or sexuality-based discrimination.

Of the treaties with articles pertaining to discrimination based on sexual orientation, the UAE has not signed the following: International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966); Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (1984); Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) (1979).