Global InformationLGBT rights in Australia information
LGBT rights in Australia | |
|---|---|
 Location of Australia | |
| Status | Always legal for women; legal for men in all states and territories since 1997. Equal age of consent in all states and territories since 2016 |
| Gender identity | Change of sex recognised in all jurisdictions (NSW requires sexual reassignment surgery since 1996)[1] |
| Military | LGBT personnel allowed to serve openly |
| Discrimination protections | Federal protections for sexual orientation, gender identity and intersex status since 2013; LGBT protections in all state and territory laws |
| Family rights | |
| Recognition of relationships | Same-sex marriage since 2017 |
| Adoption | Equal adoption rights for same-sex couples in all states and territories since 2018[a] |
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in Australia rank among the highest in the world; having significantly advanced over the latter half of the 20th century and early 21st century.[2][3] Opinion polls and the Australian Marriage Law Postal Survey indicate widespread popular support for same-sex marriage within the nation.[4][5] A 2013 Pew Research poll found that 79% of Australians agreed that homosexuality should be accepted by society, making it the fifth-most supportive country surveyed in the world.[6][7] With its long history of LGBT activism and annual Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras festival, Sydney has been named one of the most gay-friendly cities in the world.[8]
Australia is a federation, with most laws affecting LGBT and intersex rights made by its states and territories. Between 1975 and 1997, the states and territories progressively repealed anti-homosexuality laws that dated back to the colonial era.[9] Since 2016, each jurisdiction has an equal age of consent for all sexual acts. All jurisdictions offer expungement schemes to clear the criminal records of people charged or convicted for consensual sexual acts that are no longer illegal. All jurisdictions of Australia have legally abolished the gay panic defence, based within common law, since 1 April 2021.[10][11] Since March 2024, conversion therapy is legally banned in jurisdictions representing approximately 75% of the Australian population: Queensland, New South Wales, the Australian Capital Territory and Victoria.[12]
Australia legalised same-sex marriage on 9 December 2017. States and territories began granting domestic partnership benefits and relationship recognition to same-sex couples from 2003 onwards, with federal law recognising same-sex couples since 2009 as de facto relationships. Alongside marriage, same-sex relationships may be recognised by states or territories in various ways, including through civil unions, domestic partnerships, registered relationships and/or as unregistered de facto relationships.[13]
Joint and stepchild same-sex adoption is legal nationwide, with the Northern Territory the last jurisdiction to pass an adoption equality law in March 2018. Discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity or expression is prohibited in every state and territory, with concurrent federal protections for sexual orientation, gender identity and intersex status since 1 August 2013. Transgender rights in Australia and intersex rights in Australia vary between jurisdictions, from the Australian Capital Territory banning intersex surgery on children in 2023[14] to with NSW since 1996 – being the only jurisdiction within Australia that still legally requires an individual to undergo "sex reassignment surgery" before changing sex on an official birth certificate.[15][16][17] Non-binary Australians can legally register a "non-specific" sex on federal legal documents and in the records of some states and territories.
- ^ "Change of sex". NSW Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages. 31 December 2023. Archived from the original on 18 March 2024.
If you have had a sex affirmation procedure you can apply to register a change of sex.
- ^ "The 20 most and least gay-friendly countries in the world". Public Radio International. 26 June 2013. Retrieved 31 December 2017.
- ^ Glover, Richard (4 September 2017). "Australia's strange vote on same-sex marriage". The Washington Post. Retrieved 31 December 2017.
- ^ "House of Representatives Committees". Retrieved 26 July 2015.
- ^ Karp, Paul (7 December 2017). "Marriage equality law passes Australia's parliament in landslide vote". The Guardian. Retrieved 10 December 2017.
- ^ "The Global Divide on Homosexuality". Pew Research. 4 June 2013. Retrieved 16 May 2014.
- ^ "The 20 most and least gay-friendly countries in the world". Global Post. 26 June 2013. Retrieved 16 May 2014.
- ^ Maguire, Danielle (1 March 2024). "When is Sydney Mardi Gras? What time does the parade start and how can I watch it?". The Independent. Archived from the original on 18 March 2024. Retrieved 18 March 2024.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
carberywas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "'Gay panic' defence to murder abolished Australia-wide". Equality Australia. 2 December 2020. Retrieved 28 June 2021.
- ^ "South Australia becomes final state to abolish 'gay panic' murder defence". www.abc.net.au. 1 December 2020. Retrieved 28 June 2021.
- ^ "NSW bans conversion therapy". 2 April 2024.
- ^ Sheldrick, Drew (4 February 2016). "Overseas same-sex marriage recognition back in the spotlight". Special Broadcasting Service. Archived from the original on 4 April 2019. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
- ^ "ACT passes landmark bill for individuals with variations in sex characteristics". www.thelawyermag.com. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
- ^ Gillespie, Eden; Hinchliffe, Joe (14 June 2023). "Anguish gives way to relief as Queensland allows trans people to change birth certificates". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
- ^ "Trans and gender-diverse Queenslanders can now change birth certificate without sexual reassignment surgery - ABC News". amp.abc.net.au. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
- ^ Wiggins, Nick (25 August 2016). "Transgender, intersex people call for birth certificate reforms". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 17 September 2016.
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