LGBTQ+ traveller context — Madagascar
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Editorial notice
This is general public-knowledge framing sourced from ILGA, FCDO and State Department public records. Legal status, social acceptance, and local enforcement change. Verify current status with ILGA World before planning travel.
Legal context — Madagascar
Legal status changes; verify with ILGA World's annual report before relying on this for travel decisions.
Same-sex sexual activity
Legal only from age 21. Same-sex acts with anyone under 21 carry a prison sentence of 2-5 years (Penal Code Art. 331) — relevant if you or a partner are 18-20.
Relationship recognition
Anti-discrimination protections
Gender identity — legal recognition
Context
Same-sex sexual activity between people aged 21 and over is legal, but Penal Code Art. 331 sets an unequal age of consent — 21 for same-sex acts against 14 otherwise — and acts with a same-sex partner under 21 carry a prison sentence and a fine. Marriage between two people of the same sex is prohibited by Law No. 2007-022, and there are no anti-discrimination or relationship-recognition protections. Social attitudes are considerably more conservative than in the UK; the FCDO advises that public displays of affection may attract negative attention.
Same-sex activity is technically legal but socially highly stigmatised. No legal recognition of same-sex partnerships. Significant cultural conservatism, particularly outside Antananarivo. Verify with current FCDO / US State Department guidance.
Verify with the authoritative source
ILGA World publishes the most comprehensive annual review of laws and state-sponsored homophobia/transphobia globally. Check the current ILGA report →