LGBTQI+ Refugees Caught in a Global Attack on LGBTQI+ and Asylum Rights
Expelled and Unwelcome: LGBTQI+ Refugees Caught in a Global Attack on LGBTQI+ and Asylum Rights
We're sharing key insights from our work last year. Read more about the rollback of rights for LGBTQI+ refugees and asylum seekers globally in our 2024 Annual Report: Understanding the State of Global LGBTQI+ Persecution
In recent years, we have witnessed a steady rise in laws and policies that specifically target LGBTQI+ individuals, even as many countries have taken meaningful steps forward in their legal and policy frameworks. In 2022, Russia expanded its 2013 "gay propaganda" law to ban any public expression of LGBTQI+ identities. Uganda passed the Anti-Homosexuality Act in 2023, introducing some of the harshest criminalizations on LGBTQI+ identity, expression, and organizing in the world. Last year, Ghana passed the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill, criminalizing LGBTQI+ advocacy, and Georgia followed suit, passing its own Family Values Bill banning LGBTQI+ “propaganda”. And, at the time of writing this report in 2025, the Trinidad and Tobago Court of Appeal reversed the 2018 decriminalization ruling in the lower court, and reinstated pre-independence sodomy laws in the country.
These laws reflect a broader wave of state-sponsored repression driven by the global anti-gender movement. The influence of anti-gender rhetoric, funding, and policy has produced a rising tide of legislative changes that undermine a broad spectrum of rights, contribute to democratic backsliding, and lead to increased instances of forced displacement. Around the world, attacking LGBTQI+ persons and dismantling their fundamental rights has become a part of the authoritarian playbook.
Backtracking on Asylum
At the same time, anti-asylum sentiment is growing, with notable backtracking by countries of asylum on refugee protection and resettlement. In 2024, the EU signed their Pact on Migration and Asylum which allows for faster application processing and deportations. This could force LGBTQI+ asylum seekers to go through faster border procedures without in-depth analyses into their protection needs, putting them at greater risk for deportation. EU countries have also been pushing to externalize the asylum process. Italy finalized an externalization deal with Albania, which led to a joint call by 15 EU-member States for the outsourcing of asylum procedures.
Externalizing asylum processes is an evasion of international responsibilities, and undermines the international protection system — putting LGBTQI+ asylum seekers at risk. Although the EU’s Pact on Migration and Asylum has not yet come into effect, we are already witnessing the impact. For those who were able to successfully reach their destination, we witnessed an increase in refusals and attempted deportations, and longer detention periods. With our advocacy and intervention and support of local partners, we were able to stop deportations and win cases on an appeals level. We anticipate a continued increase in these challenges as these new policies are implemented.
Externalizing asylum also comes in the form of carrier sanctions — financial and legal penalties by States against airlines who transport asylum seekers. Last year, RR published findings that airline officials routinely arbitrarily deny boarding to LGBTQI+ persons suspected of having an intent to seek asylum, even when they meet all travel requirements.
“Our analysis of failed travel attempts via ETS revealed that some of Europe’s largest airlines, including KLM, Lufthansa, and Air France, have developed screening practices to deny boarding to passengers deemed potentially ‘inadmissible’ by destination countries. These practices frequently encode homophobic, transphobic, and racist heuristics to select those for boarding denial.”
Carrier sanctions result in arbitrary boarding denial by private actors, severely impeding access to asylum and posing a foreseeable risk of refoulement.
Targeting LGBTQI+ Refugees in the United States
LGBTQI+ refugees are also being targeted within the United States, through attacks on both queer and trans populations and refugees and asylum seekers. In 2024, 30 states attempted to restrict access to critical healthcare for LGBTQI+ people. More recently, the new Administration proclaimed that binary sex is assessed at birth and immutable. The U.S. government also removed mention of transgender people from federal websites and documents, and banned them from serving in the military.
The Administration has also declared that the country is suffering an invasion of immigrants. Within 24 hours of taking office, the President signed an executive order suspending the US Refugee Admissions Program, halting the processing of refugees already vetted and approved for resettlement, and leaving displaced LGBTQI+ refugees stranded in precarity. Significant foreign aid spending has also been paused, halting critical services to refugees worldwide, including those already resettled in the U.S. An individual impacted by the changes shared her experience with us:
"My CBP appointment got cancelled because Trump took office. I just had six days until I could contact U.S. customs and be in a system for asylum. This is beyond words unfair, all my hopes are just crushed because of six days. Right now I'm in Mexicali, near the border, I see the wall, but nothing I can do... I don't know what to do. My dismay could not be comprehended."
LGBTQI+ people in criminalized transit and displacement contexts, rely on asylum and third-country resettlement as life-saving protection. Safeguarding access to asylum is vital for LGBTQI+ asylum seekers for whom local integration or voluntary repatriation may not be possible. Despite this, last year, less than 5% of refugees in need of resettlement worldwide, actually received it. The combined pressures of rising anti-LGBTQI+ legislation and dwindling commitments on asylum leave LGBTQI+ forcibly displaced persons (FDPs) with few viable options. Addressing these challenges requires tailored solutions including dedicated resettlement pathways, and stronger multi-stakeholder coordination to address their unique protection needs.
Failed Travel and The Need for Emergency Travel Support
The global attack on asylum has a direct impact on Rainbow Railroad’s Emergency Travel Support (ETS) program. Last year, we saw trusted travel routes disappear due to changes in visa restrictions. In 2024, we experienced one of the highest number of annual travel failures on record. During the five year period between 2018-2022, we experienced 53 travel failures. In 2023 alone, we experienced 20 travel failures and another 20 in 2024. Over half of all travel failure cases last year were for individuals who were trans or intersex. In 95% of cases the individual was racialized — demonstrating the increased challenges for folks with intersecting vulnerabilities. We continue to support cases wherever possible after failed travel, and many are successful on subsequent attempts. Caseworkers are consistently researching and attempting new routes.
"The Emergency Travel Support team is committed to continuing to support folks in exercising their right to asylum, and we believe that this is needed now more than ever while queer rights are under attack globally. As we navigate these challenges, we are constantly adapting to new laws and changes in visa restrictions, researching new possible travel routes, and working collaboratively with individuals to prepare them for the barriers they will encounter on their journey to safety." - Brandon Pearl, Director, Intake, Emergency Travel Support and Cash Assistance
Despite these conditions, in 2024, the ETS team evacuated 242 individuals of 29 different nationalities. The majority were nationals of Afghanistan, Russia, Jamaica, Jordan, and Egypt. Since our founding in 2006, ETS has supported over 2,100 people from 79 different countries on their journeys to find safety. ETS allows people who are in imminent danger, typically still in their country of origin and who would otherwise not have access to typical refugee resettlement pathways, to exercise their right to claim asylum. Rainbow Railroad will always advocate for the right to claim asylum and our ETS program will continue to provide access for at-risk LGBTQI+ individuals in imminent danger.
You can read more about the rollback of LGBTQI+ and asylum rights globally in our 2024 Annual Report: Understanding the State of Global LGBTQI+ Persecution