LGBT Asylum in the EU: Problems and Perspectives

The European Union has moved progressively towards better protections of the rights of LGBT people—notably since the adoption of the 2000 Charter of Fundamental rights which includes sexual orientation (but not gender identity) in its anti-discrimination provisions. In particular, the European Court of Justice has made some important rulings concerning the rights of LGBT asylum seekers (such as the 2014 decision ruling out tests to ‘prove’ homosexuality for asylum seekers) and common asylum procedures adopted in 2011 and 2013 contain specific directives concerning LGBT asylum seekers. Yet, as the recent refugee crisis in Europe has shown, asylum procedures and indeed political positions of states on accepting asylum seekers vary enormously across the EU. This paper will examine the current situation for LGBT asylum seekers. Where do they come from, where do they seek asylum, and how are they received by EU member states? How do member state law and policy align to EU-level law and policy? What factors impact on the answers to these questions? (Such factors might include the effects of former colonial relationships, the impacts of national and transnational social movement activism, which political parties are in power in host countries, the host country’s economic situation, and of course existing policies, infrastructure and legal institutions within host countries concerning asylum more generally.) Part of the difficulty in answering these questions accurately is due to a relative lack of empirical research, although both the EU and civil society actors have increasingly paid attention to this issue in recent years. This paper will take stock of the information produced by this research and suggest possible future perspectives for LGBT asylum in the EU.