LGBT rights in the Netherlands

Law regarding same-sex sexual activity

Between 1730 and 1811, sodomy was considered a capital crime by the Dutch Republic, resulting in widespread panic throughout the Netherlands and the persecution of hundreds of homosexuals. After the French invaded and installed the Napoleonic Code in 1811, all laws against same-sex sexual activity between consenting in adults in private were repealed. After the Dutch received independence in 1813, no new sodomy laws were enacted. The Christian based political parties enacted Article 248bis of the Penal Code in 1911, which raised the age of consent for same-sex sexual activity to 21 whilst the age of consent for heterosexual activity remained at 16. Laws citing public indecency were also often used against homosexuals.

During World War II, the German Nazis introduced Paragraph 175 into Dutch law, which prohibited any same-sex sexual activity once again. The law was repealed after the end of the war.

During the mid-20th century, Dutch psychiatrists and clergy began viewing homosexuality less critically and in 1973, homosexuality was no longer treated as a mental illness. Article 248bis was repealed in 1971 and the age of consent for same-sex sexual activity was equalized.

Recognition of same-sex relationships

The Dutch parliament began granting same-sex couples domestic partnerships benefits on 1 January 1998 as an alternative for marriage, which were also allowed for opposite-sex couples. The Netherlands became the first country in the world to legalize same-sex marriage in 2001, with the law coming into effect on 1 April. During that day, Job Cohen, the Mayor of Amsterdam, married four same-sex couples after becoming a registrar specifically to officiate weddings. The bill had passed the House of Representatives by 109 votes against 33. Although same-sex marriages can be performed in the European territory of the Netherlands and the Caribbean Netherlands territory including Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba, same-sex marriages performed in Aruba, Curaçao and Sint Maarten, which are constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, are not officially valid. As a result of article 40 of the Charter for the Kingdom of the Netherlands, same-sex marriages performed anywhere else in the Kingdom must be recognized in all territories, however, they are not authorized to guarantee equal treatment of same-sex couples with valid marriage licenses.

Before 2014, civil servants (marriage officiant) could refuse to marry gay couples as long as the municipality ensured that other civil servants were available to solemnize the marriage. In 2014 a law was passed that made it illegal for all marriage officiants to refuse their services to gay couples.

Public opinion

According to a poll conducted in May 2013, Ifop indicated that 85% of the Dutch population supported same-sex marriage and adoption. A European Union member poll conducted in 2015 indicated that 91% of the Netherlands supported same-sex marriage, which was the highest amount of support during that time. In the Caribbean territories of the Kingdom, the citizens are mostly religious, resulting in larger opposition of same-sex marriage in comparison to the European territories.

Discrimination protections

The Dutch parliament enacted the Equal Rights Act in 1993, which bans discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation in employment, housing, and both public and private accommodations. Transgender people are protected under the category 'gender'.

In 2014 the Ministry of BZK started exploring how the ban on discrimination based on gender identity and gender expression can be made explicit in the Equal Rights Act. The results where published on June 23, 2016. The report states that although discrimination against transgender people is forbidden, it is recommended to explicit prohibition in the Equal Rights Act, in order to raise awareness of this ban. The report also recommends to ban discrimination of people with an intersex condition. On January 16, 2017 the political parties D66, PvdA and GL published a bill to amend the Equal Rights Act. The bill will explicit the ban on discrimination on the grounds of sexual characteristics, gender identity and gender expression. The bill now awaits the advice from the Council of State, before it can move to the House of Representatives.

Recently a loophole was fixed in the Equal Rights Act. Before this religious schools financed by the government, were not allowed to fire or deny teachers on the "single fact" of someone's sexual orientation. However, some schools had interpreted this, that they could fire a teacher for behaviours outside of the facility that went against the ethos of the school. This resulted in the termination of a teacher in 2005 for being in a same-sex relationship. This law was called 'de enkelefeitconstructie' (the 'single fact' construction). A bill that removed the 'single fact' rule and ensures that LGBT students and teachers can not be fired because of their sexual orientation, was debated in parliament. On May 27, 2014 this bill was approved by the vast majority of the House of Representatives (141-9) and on March 10, 2015 the bill was approved by the Senate (72-3). The bill went into full effect on July 1, 2015.

Adoption and parenting

Same-sex adoption was legalized alongside same-sex marriage in 2001, which includes joint and step adoption. The Dutch parliament also began allowing same-sex couples to adopt children overseas in 2005. Lesbian couples can get access to IVF treatment, as well as parentage rights for their children.

Blood donation

In the Netherlands, as in many other countries, men who have sex with men (MSM) were not allowed to donate blood. The MSM population in developed countries tends to have a relatively high prevalence of HIV/AIDS infection, so a blanket ban was enforced until 2015. In April 2012, the House of Representatives voted on a motion that would make an end to this ban and would make sexual risk behaviour the criteria for blood donation; in response the government has asked the blood bank Sanquin and Maastricht University to investigate whether there is a possibility to allow MSM to donate blood. On March 6, 2015, the report was presented. It showed that there are medical scientific grounds to adjust the donor selection policies around men who had sex with other men. This takes away the main argument of safety risks. On 28 October 2015, the Minister of Health, Welfare and Sport announced that a 12-month deferral on donating blood would replace the existing lifetime ban.

Living conditions

The Netherlands has frequently been referred to as one of the most gay friendly countries in the world, on account of its early adoption of LGBT rights legislation, and tolerance perception.

Amsterdam has been referred to as one of the most gay-friendly cities in the world by publications such as The Independent. The annual gay pride festival has been held in Amsterdam every year since 1996. The festival attracts several hundred-thousand visitors each year and thus one of the largest publicly held annual events in the Netherlands. Amsterdam has also been host city of the Europride twice, in 1994 and 2016. With the latter attracted more than 560,000 visitors.