Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people in the United Arab Emirates face discrimination and legal challenges.

While there have been no known arrests or prosecutions for same-sex sexual activity in the UAE since at least 2015 (as of 2022[update]), with no upper limit to penalties codified, capital punishment is a theoretical outcome for (married) participants.

[1][4][5] Some have claimed the laws of homosexuality in the UAE are unclear, referring to the ambiguous English translation of the Arabic text of the country's penal code.

There have been reports of mistreatment in detention such as beatings,[13] and forced rectal examinations,[14]: 479  amounting to torture,[13][15] have been consequences of such suspected or established same-sex sexual conduct.

Retained from the 2020 amendment is the requirement that criminal proceedings for non-marital sexual conduct are only instigated at the behest of (male) spouses or guardians, rather than police or other state authorities.

[1][16] The law against "voluntary debasement", variously rendered in English as 'indecent assault', 'indecency', or 'carnal knowledge'[7]: 82  may be enforced against consensual same-sex (and heterosexual, if outside marriage[17][18][19]) activities.

[13] Since 2022, this provision, Article 356, is only invoked upon the complaint of the husband or male guardian of a participant in same-sex or extramarital sexual conduct.

The effect of the 2021 amendment which updated Article 1 to: "The provisions of the Islamic Shari'a shall apply to the retribution and blood money crimes.

There were no known reports of arrests or prosecutions for consensual same-sex sexual conduct.Article 80 of the Abu Dhabi Penal Code makes sodomy punishable by imprisonment of up to 14 years.

[23] In discussing the raid, Mohammed bin Nukhaira Al Dhahiri, Minister of Justice, Islamic Affairs and Auqaf stated, "There will be no room for homosexual and queer acts in the UAE.

[24] Initial reports suggested that some of the men were ordered to accept hormone "treatments" in exchange for lighter sentences, although the government subsequently backed off from these statements.

[27][29] Initially, the police treated the victim as a suspect and the fear of being charged under Article 177 prompted the boy and his family to leave the country.

[28] His mother accused the UAE authorities of not notifying her family that one of the rapists was HIV-positive, thus delaying the seeking of medical attention for her son.

The story generated international media attention with government representatives defending the criminal laws against homosexuality, saying: "This is a conservative society.

Canadian YouTuber and model Gigi Gorgeous, who is a transgender woman, was detained for five hours at Dubai International Airport in August 2016 due to authorities not recognizing her gender as legitimate.

Gay men from over 120 countries were asked about how they feel about society's view on homosexuality, how they are treated by other people and how satisfied they are with their lives.

Social attitudes towards homosexuality and varied gender expression, together with the likelihood of state repression, prevents the establishment of such organisations or community education on related issues.

[5][12] There are no protections under any UAE law or policy against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or sex characteristics.

[5] The Government in the United Arab Emirates has restricted access to various websites and monitors chat rooms, instant messages and blogs.

[48] Later that month, Majid, a popular Arabic-language comic book series for children, came under investigation by the UAE authorities for allegedly promoting homosexuality.

[51] Also in June 2023, the Amazon company complied with the Emirati government's requirement to impose restrictions on its product listings and site-search capabilities.

Under threat of penalties to the company, Amazon blocked search results for 150 terms on its UAE site, according to the New York Times.