Homosexuality is illegal everywhere in Nigeria. Three separate legal regimes criminalize same-sex conduct and relationships: a 2014 federal statute that bans same-sex marriages and gay organizations, colonial-era criminal codes that punish the physical act with up to 14 years in prison, and sharia codes in twelve northern states that can impose death by stoning. The laws against homosexuality in Nigeria overlap, which means one incident can trigger charges under more than one framework at the same time.1Embassy of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Germany. Government – Judicial and Legal System
The Same-Sex Marriage Prohibition Act
President Goodluck Jonathan signed the Same-Sex Marriage (Prohibition) Act on January 7, 2014. It voids any marriage or civil union between people of the same sex and denies such unions any of the legal benefits of marriage.2International Center for Not-for-Profit Law. Same Sex Marriage Prohibition Act
Penalties under the Act depend on the role:
- Entering a same-sex marriage or civil union: up to 14 years in prison.
- Registering, operating, or participating in gay clubs, societies, or organizations: up to 10 years.
- Public display of a same-sex amorous relationship: up to 10 years.
- Witnessing, assisting, or encouraging a same-sex union, or supporting the operation of gay organizations: up to 10 years.2International Center for Not-for-Profit Law. Same Sex Marriage Prohibition Act
The definition of “civil union” in the statute is unusually broad. It covers any arrangement between people of the same sex to live together as sex partners, and it names domestic partnerships, civil partnerships, caring partnerships, civil solidarity pacts, and registered partnerships among the arrangements it prohibits.3ILGA World. Same Sex Marriage (Prohibition) Act, 2013 No formal ceremony or paperwork is required for the law to apply. Two people of the same sex living together as partners fall within its scope.
A 2014 challenge to the SSMPA was dismissed by the Federal High Court for lack of standing. No successful constitutional challenge has been mounted since.
The Older Criminal Codes
Same-sex conduct was already criminal in Nigeria before the SSMPA, and those older laws remain in force. They target the physical act rather than the relationship, so they operate independently of the 2014 statute. Southern Nigeria applies the Criminal Code Act; northern Nigeria uses the Penal Code. Both trace back to British colonial models built on the Queensland Penal Code of 1899.
Southern States: The Criminal Code
Section 214 of the Criminal Code classifies same-sex intercourse as an “unnatural offence” carrying up to 14 years in prison. It reaches anyone who engages in the act and anyone who permits it. Section 215 covers attempts, with a maximum of seven years.4Laws of the Federation of Nigeria. Criminal Code Act These sections apply regardless of whether the people involved are married or in a relationship.
Northern States: The Penal Code
Section 284 of the Penal Code criminalizes the same conduct in the north, with a maximum of 14 years and a possible fine. In the twelve states that have also adopted sharia criminal codes, this secular provision sits alongside the religious code, giving prosecutors a choice of framework.
Sharia Law in the North
Twelve northern states have reintegrated Islamic criminal law into their court systems.5U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom. Shariah Criminal Law in Northern Nigeria Sharia courts have jurisdiction over Muslim defendants, and the penalties they can impose for same-sex conduct are far harsher than anything in the secular codes.
In states such as Kano and Zamfara, the sharia penal codes prescribe 100 lashes for unmarried offenders and death by stoning for married ones. Some states criminalize sexual conduct between women as well, with penalties that include lashing and imprisonment.
Death sentences have been handed down. A court in Bauchi State sentenced a man to stoning for sodomy in 2003; an upper sharia court overturned the conviction because the defendant had no legal counsel and his confession did not meet the code’s procedural requirements. In 2022, three men in Bauchi State were again sentenced to stoning, with the sentence stayed pending appeal.6United States Department of State. 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Nigeria No sharia death sentence for same-sex conduct has been carried out since the modern codes took effect in 1999, in part because governors must sign off on executions and appeals have intervened. The sentences remain legally valid until overturned, and outcomes depend heavily on whether a defendant can appeal.
Several northern states also maintain a Hisbah, a religious enforcement body that patrols public spaces and investigates conduct it considers contrary to Islamic law. Kano formally established its Hisbah by legislation in 2003; Zamfara, Kaduna, and Jigawa operate similar bodies. Hisbah officers can effectively arrest when they witness an offense and are supposed to hand suspects over to the police.
How Enforcement Actually Works
Formal prosecutions under the SSMPA are relatively rare. What is common is arrest followed by detention, extortion, and release without charge. Police target people based on perceived sexual orientation, hold them without filing charges, and release them once payments are made. A recurring pattern in documented cases is that authorities do not bring the arrests to court, apparently because the allegations cannot be proven to legal standards.
Raids on social gatherings are a standard tactic. Police in Niger State raided a birthday party and detained 30 people on unsubstantiated claims of a gay wedding, holding them until each paid between ₦10,000 and ₦50,000. A similar raid in Lagos led to 13 arrests at a private party, with detainees held overnight without lawyers or medication until payments were made. The threat of prosecution under the SSMPA functions as leverage for extortion.
Between December 2023 and August 2024, one monitoring organization documented 556 cases of rights violations affecting 850 victims. Reported figures understate the real total, because filing a complaint means exposing yourself to further legal jeopardy.
Kito: Entrapment Through Dating Apps
A parallel danger sits outside the formal legal system. “Kito” is a pattern of violent entrapment in which criminals use dating apps such as Grindr, Romeo, and Tinder to lure people perceived as gay or bisexual into meetings, then kidnap, beat, extort, or sexually assault them. In 2023, roughly 70 percent of nearly 1,000 documented rights violations against people perceived as LGBTQ+ in Nigeria were kito cases.
The legal framework protects the attackers. Victims cannot report the crime without revealing conduct that is itself criminal. Perpetrators know this and often threaten to share intimate photos with families and employers, or to hand victims over to police. Police officers are sometimes part of the entrapment or receive a cut of the extortion.
What the Law Bans Beyond Relationships
The SSMPA reaches past relationships themselves. Registering or operating any gay club, society, or organization carries up to 10 years in prison, and the same penalty applies to anyone who supports the registration, operation, or continued existence of such a group.2International Center for Not-for-Profit Law. Same Sex Marriage Prohibition Act Organized advocacy, peer support networks, and community-based health outreach are effectively prohibited.
The ban on “public show of a same-sex amorous relationship” is written broadly. Law enforcement treats it as covering any visible behavior that suggests a romantic connection between people of the same sex. There is no clear boundary between public display and ordinary conduct, which gives police wide discretion to arrest based on perception.
Foreign NGOs that fund or support local groups working with sexual minorities also face legal exposure, because their activities could be characterized as supporting prohibited organizations. No international organization has been formally prosecuted, but the uncertainty pushes programming underground.
Finding a Lawyer
Getting legal representation is a serious problem for anyone charged under these laws. Lawyers who take same-sex conduct cases face professional retaliation and personal risk. The SSMPA’s language on “supporting” or “advocating” for LGBTQ+ rights creates a genuine argument that defense work itself could be treated as criminal.
Lawyers who represent these clients report being labeled the “gay lawyer” by opposing counsel, a tactic used to prejudice judges and audiences, particularly in religious courts. The label follows them into unrelated cases. They also describe threats of arrest from police who assume they share their clients’ identity, and social consequences that extend to their families. Most defendants navigate the system without competent counsel, and outcomes like the overturned Bauchi death sentence are the exception rather than the rule.