LGBT rights in Mongolia

LGBT rights in Mongolia
Mongolia
Status	Legal since 1993
Gender identity	Transgender people permitted to change legal gender marker following a medical procedure to affirm their gender
Military	Lesbians, gays, bisexuals permitted, transgender people banned[1]
Discrimination protections	Some level of protection for both sexual orientation and gender identity
Family rights
Recognition of relationships	No
Restrictions	Same-sex marriage constitutionally banned since 1992
Adoption	No

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in Mongolia face legal and social challenges not experienced by non-LGBT people, though there have been substantial improvements since the 1990s. Homosexuality was criminalised in Mongolia in 1961 through its Criminal Code. Following the Mongolian Revolution of 1990 and the peaceful transition to a democracy, homosexuality was legalised and awareness about LGBT people has become more prevalent. Hate crimes on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity result in additional legal penalties. Hate speech based on these two categories has been outlawed in the country since 1 July 2017.^[2] Households headed by same-sex couples are, however, not eligible for the same legal protections available to opposite-sex couples.

The LGBT Centre (active since 2007) states "advocacy for the human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in Mongolia" to be its mandate. It is the main engine behind the policy and legislative changes in the country around LGBT rights.^[3] Historically, the first gay men's human rights organisation was established in March 1999, and was called Tavilan (meaning "destiny" in Mongolian).