Iceland ranks top in 2026 map of most trans-friendly countries in Europe

A new 2026 ranking of the most trans-friendly countries in Europe and Central Asia has been released, and Iceland has come out on top.

The annual Trans Rights Index and Map, which comes from Transgender Europe, documents the protections and opportunities available for trans and non-binary people within each European and Central Asian country.

It comes in partnership with ILGA Europe’s Rainbow Map and is co-funded by the European Union.

The index scores countries in a number of different indicator categories, including
Legal Gender Recognition, Asylum, Hate Crime/Speech, Non-Discrimination, Health and Family.

Iceland scored 30 out of 32, with full marks in all but two categories. One point was deducted in both Asylum (Policy/other positive measures) and Hate Crime/Speech (Policy tackling hatred). The country has now scored the same for three years in a row, and has improved by 18 points since the index began in 2019.

In second place is Malta, with 28 out of 32 indicators met, and achieving full marks in the Legal Gender Recognition, Hate Crime/Speech, Health and Family categories. Spain comes in at number three, with 27.18 out of 32 and full marks in the Asylum and Health categories.

Following on from the top three, Belgium and Norway both scored 25.5 out of 32, while Germany scored 24.57. Notably, Austria, Germany, Iceland and Malta are the only countries to fully meet the criteria for non-binary recognition.

“The 2026 Trans Rights Index and Map shows more visible legal shifts than in recent years,” said TGEU in a statement. “However, most of these changes do not reflect new political commitment.”

It continued: “The developments mostly stem from the tireless work of activists and court rulings rather than governments taking proactive steps to advance rights. Despite visible public attacks on trans people across much of the region, the lack of political response is alarming.”

At the other end of the ranking is Russia, unsurprisingly meeting zero out of 32 of the indicators. Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Georgia and Azerbaijan all scored one point, and Romania, Armenia, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan scored two.

The United Kingdom met only 13.5 of the 32 indicators, and scored no points in the Asylum, Health and Family categories.

The Trans Rights Map also lists some key findings from the data, including the fact that 38 countries out of 54 in Europe and Central Asia have legal or administrative measures in place that make legal gender recognition available to trans people, which is down one country from last year. Five of the countries ban legal gender recognition, compared to four from last year.

Additionally, eight of the 54 reviewed countries offer explicit international protection on grounds of gender identity for asylum seekers, while nine countries have a legal gender recognition procedure for refugees that is accessible.

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