- Homosexuality
- ⚢✔ Legal
- Gay Marriage
- ⚭✖ Not legal
- Censorship
- ✖ State-enforced
- Changing Gender
- ✖ Legal, but requires surgery
- Non-binary gender recognition
- Unknown
- Discrimination
- ✖ Illegal in some contexts
- Employment Discrimination
- ✖ No protections
- Housing Discrimination
- ✖ No protections
- Adoption
- ✖ Illegal
- Military
- ✖ Illegal
- Donating Blood
- Ambiguous
- Conversion Therapy
- ✖ Not banned
- Age of Consent
- ✔ Equal
Public Opinion
Surveys in South Korea have revealed a prevalence of resistance towards LGBTQ+ rights.
South Korea Surveys
Support for Transgender Inclusion in the Military
History
Homosexual activity in South Korea is legal.
Article 92-6 of the Military Criminal Act penalizes "anal intercourse" and other so-called “indecent acts” in any military setting with up to two years in prison — and all able-bodied men must serve about two years in the military. No law criminalizes heterosexual intercourse in the South Korean military.
Censorship of LGBT Issues in South Korea is state-enforced.
Right to change legal gender in South Korea is legal, but requires surgery.
These guidelines include abusive or discriminatory requirements, such being at least 19 years old themselves, as well as being unmarried, diagnosed with “transsexualism” and having undergone hormone therapy and been sterilized.
Legal recognition of non-binary gender in South Korea is unknown.
LGBT discrimination in South Korea is illegal in some contexts.
to obtaining permission from the family court under Article 104 of the Act on the Registration, Etc. of Family Relationships.
LGBT employment discrimination in South Korea is no protections.
LGBT housing discrimination in South Korea is no protections.
Same-sex adoption in South Korea is illegal.
Serving openly in military in South Korea is illegal.
However, there are some signs that restrictions on LGBTQ service members may be easing: In 2022, the South Korean Supreme Court overturned the conviction of two soldiers for gay sex, and in 2021, a district court posthumously reinstated a transgender soldier who died by suicide after being dismissed from the army.
Blood donations by MSMs in South Korea is ambiguous.
Conversion therapy in South Korea is not banned.
Equal age of consent in South Korea is equal.
LGBT Rights by province
View the LGBT laws in each individual province of South Korea.
- Jeju
- North Jeolla
- South Jeolla
- Busan Gwang'yeogsi [Pusan-Kwangyokshi] (metropolitan city)
- Daegu Gwang'yeogsi [Taegu-Kwangyokshi] (metropolitan city)
- Daejeon Gwang'yeogsi [Taejon-Kwangyokshi] (metropolitan city)
- Gwangju Gwang'yeogsi [Kwangju-Kwangyokshi] (metropolitan city)
- Incheon Gwang'yeogsi [Inch'n-Kwangyokshi] (metropolitan city)
- Ulsan Gwang'yeogsi [Ulsan-Kwangyokshi] (metropolitan city)
- Seoul Teugbyeolsi [Seoul-T'ukpyolshi] (capital metropolitan city)