Spain

Spain’s laws regarding LGBTIQ people are progressive, although social acceptance varies depending on the region. Same-sex couples can marry and adopt. A comprehensive law expanding legal protections for LGBTIQ people was adopted in 2023, allowing trans people to change their legal gender markers on the basis of self-determination and prohibiting nonconsensual medical intervention on intersex children. It also makes conversion practices a “very serious” administrative violation, punishable by a fine of 100,000 to 150,000 euros, even if carried out with the consent of the person concerned.

There are annual Pride marches in many cities, and Spain has had numerous openly LGBTQ politicians. Surveys show that a large majority of people in Spain believe that lesbian, gay, and bisexual people should have the same rights as others and that trans people should be allowed to change their legal gender markers. However, hate crimes and anti-LGBTIQ rhetoric remain serious issues and are on the rise. A 2025 study by Spain’s federation of LGBTIQ organizations, shows that 42.5 percent of LGBTI+ people in Spain (almost 2.9 million) had been subjected to “LGBTI-phobic hate” in the previous year, including in the form of discrimination (25.3 percent), harassment (16.4 percent), and physical or verbal assaults (16.2 percent, or roughly 812,000 people). The percentage experiencing physical or verbal assaults rose precipitously from 6.8 percent the previous year. The Federation warns that this systemic violence, “far from decreasing, is perpetuated through new forms of discrimination,” fueled by “hate speech, political polarization, and an insufficient institutional response.”