- Homosexuality
- ⚢✔ Legal
- Gay Marriage
- ⚭✔ Legal
- Censorship
- ✖ State-enforced
- Changing Gender
- ✖ Legal, but requires medical diagnosis
- Gender-Affirming Care
- ✖ Restricted
- Non-Binary Gender Recognition
- ✖ Not legally recognized
- Hate Crime Protections
- ✖ No protections
- Discrimination
- Varies by Region
- Employment Discrimination
- ✔ Sexual orientation and gender identity
- Housing Discrimination
- Varies by Region
- Adoption
- ✔ Legal
- Intersex Infant Surgery
- ✖ Not banned
- Military
- ✖ Lesbians, gays, bisexuals permitted, transgender people banned
- Donating Blood
- ✔ Legal
- Conversion Therapy
- ✖ Not banned
- Age of Consent
- ✔ Equal
Public Opinion
Surveys in North Carolina have shown mixed views towards LGBTQ+ rights and issues.
Perception of LGBTQ+ People
Survey results from 13 LGBTQ+ Equaldex users who lived in or visited North Carolina.
Overall
Perceived Safety**Survey results represent personal perceptions of safety and may not be indicative of current actual conditions.
Equal Treatment
Visibility & Representation
Culture
Services
History
Same-sex marriage in North Carolina is legal.
Censorship of LGBT issues in North Carolina is state-enforced.
Instruction on gender identity and sexuality is forbidden from k-4, and schools are legally required to alert parents if a minor wants to change their name or pronouns at school.
NC passed House Bill 755 restricting mention of LGBT-related topics in public schools. Also teachers are required to tell students' parents if they are gay. However, the bill was stalled because of a potential veto from Gov. Roy Cooper.
Right to change legal gender in North Carolina is legal, but requires medical diagnosis.
Gender-affirming care in North Carolina is restricted.
Additionally, GAC ban for minors is still in effect.
Legal recognition of non-binary gender in North Carolina is not legally recognized.
Hate crime protections in North Carolina is no protections.
However, if a case is transferred to the federal courts, federal law applies which provides hate crime protections on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.
LGBT discrimination in North Carolina is varies by region.
LGBT employment discrimination in North Carolina is sexual orientation and gender identity.
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has ruled that “[A]llegations of discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation necessarily state a claim of discrimination on the basis of sex”, and are barred by the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This ruling applies at both the state and federal levels. No statewide protections exist.
LGBT housing discrimination in North Carolina is varies by region.
Additionally, HUD's 2012 Equal Access Rule prohibits discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation for housing programs, shelters and other HUD-funded providers.
Same-sex adoption in North Carolina is legal.
Single adoption, joint adoption by married couples and second parent adoption by married couples are legal.
Two unmarried individuals cannot adopt jointly. North Carolina does not explicitly protect LGBT individuals from discrimination.
Intersex infant surgery in North Carolina is not banned.
Serving openly in military in North Carolina is lesbians, gays, bisexuals permitted, transgender people banned.
On February 10th, 2025, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth filed in court a memo relating to President Trump’s executive order from the previous month.
From then until March 18th, 2025, The U.S. military prohibited transgender individuals from enlisting and ceased providing or supporting gender transition procedures for service members.
Blood donations by MSMs in North Carolina is legal.
Equal age of consent in North Carolina is equal.