Is Burkina Faso safe for LGBTQ+ travellers?
Significant restrictions
Burkina Faso carries significant legal restrictions for LGBTQ+ travellers — the clearest concern is same-sex relationships (criminalised).
What to know as an LGBTQ+ traveller
the sourced facts that weigh most for you · concerns first
The 2025 Persons and Family Code (Law No. 012-2025/ALT, in force 1 September 2025) criminalises same-sex acts and their promotion with 2 to 5 years’ imprisonment plus a fine.
Burkina Faso has no legal procedure for changing one’s gender marker, and no recognition exists for transgender, non-binary or intersex people.
LGBTQ+ people face a hostile legal environment — Equaldex scores 7/100 (2026); expect few or no protections, and in some places active criminalisation. Research local law and discretion carefully.
Article 1 of the 1991 Constitution (rev. 2015) bans discrimination on grounds such as race, sex, religion, caste and birth, but there is no comprehensive anti-discrimination statute and no protection for disability or sexual orientation.
Burkina Faso is a secular state and has no blasphemy or apostasy laws.
Identity & recognition
Same-sex relationships
Criminalised · 2-5 yrsThe 2025 Persons and Family Code (Law No. 012-2025/ALT, in force 1 September 2025) criminalises same-sex acts and their promotion with 2 to 5 years’ imprisonment plus a fine.
Legal gender recognition
Not possibleBurkina Faso has no legal procedure for changing one’s gender marker, and no recognition exists for transgender, non-binary or intersex people.
Anti-discrimination protection
Partial · constitutionArticle 1 of the 1991 Constitution (rev. 2015) bans discrimination on grounds such as race, sex, religion, caste and birth, but there is no comprehensive anti-discrimination statute and no protection for disability or sexual orientation.
Disability rights
CRPD 2009 + lawBurkina Faso ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities on 23 July 2009 and has domestic disability-protection legislation, though enforcement remains limited.
Women's legal rights
Mostly equal, some gapsWomen’s legal rights are mostly equal, with some gaps — the WBL index scores 83/100 (2023) across mobility, workplace, pay, marriage, parenthood and property.
LGBTQ+ legal equality
Few or no protectionsLGBTQ+ people face a hostile legal environment — Equaldex scores 7/100 (2026); expect few or no protections, and in some places active criminalisation. Research local law and discretion carefully.
Body & health
Abortion access
Life/health, rapeThe Penal Code permits abortion to save the woman’s life or protect her health and, in the early weeks, in cases of rape, incest or serious fetal impairment; otherwise it is a criminal offence.
Cannabis & personal drug law
Illegal · severeCultivation, sale and possession of cannabis are illegal in Burkina Faso, with penalties reaching around 10 years’ imprisonment, heavy fines and property seizure.
Faith & conscience
Government restriction of religion
Moderate (est.)Burkina Faso is a constitutionally secular state where religious freedom is generally respected; government restrictions on religion sit in roughly the moderate band on Pew’s Government Restrictions Index, though jihadist violence drives high social hostilities.
Blasphemy & apostasy law
No blasphemy lawBurkina Faso is a secular state and has no blasphemy or apostasy laws.
Speech & press
Freedom of expression
Not free · 20/100Rated Not Free, 20/100, by Freedom House (2025).
Your obligations on arrival
Address / residence registration
Foreign nationals staying more than 90 days must hold a long-stay visa or residence permit (carte de sejour), obtained via local police/immigration services; any change of residence must be declared to police migration services at least 72 hours in advance.
Student work rights
A Burkina Faso student visa does not automatically grant the right to work; any part-time employment requires separate immigration and institutional authorization, and no standard weekly-hour allowance is defined.
Health insurance
Health or travel insurance is not a stated legal requirement to obtain a Burkina Faso visa or to enter for most nationalities, but it is strongly recommended given very limited medical facilities and the frequent need for medical evacuation.
Bringing medication
Travellers must carry a valid doctor’s prescription for personal medicines; importing medicines not registered or available in Burkina Faso requires prior import authorization from the national pharmaceutical directorate (DGPML).
Laws differ from lived experience and this is not legal advice. Each fact shows its evidence type, date and source. Full method & sources →
Emergency numbers
Travel-medical cover that works abroad with no local address, and a data eSIM so maps and messaging work the moment you land.