Gay and lesbian Koreans still face difficulties at home and work, and many prefer not to reveal their sexual orientation to family, friends or co-workers. Harisu is South Korea's first transgender entertainer, and in 2002 became the second person in South Korea to legally change sex. Transgender people are allowed to undergo sex reassignment surgery in South Korea after the age of 20, and can change their gender information on official documents.
Article 31 of the National Human Rights Commission Act states that "no individual is to be discriminated against on the basis of his or her sexual orientation." LGBT people are excluded from military service, although a law criminalizing sodomy within the armed forces was recently struck down by the Supreme Court. Homosexuality in South Korea is not specifically mentioned in either the South Korean Constitution or in the Civil Penal Code. South Korea provides no anti-discrimination protections for LGBT people, nor does it prohibit hate crimes based on sexual orientation and gender identity. While male and female same-sex sexual activity is legal in South Korea, marriage or other forms of legal partnership are not available to same-sex partners.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender ( LGBT) people in South Korea face legal challenges and discrimination not experienced by non- LGBT individuals. All male citizens are conscripted into service and subject to military's policies regarding homosexuality People who identify as transgender are allowed to change legal sex