Dutch attitudes towards LGBTQIA+ people remain broadly supportive, but the latest monitor points to a worrying reversal for transgender, non-binary and intersex people. The findings matter because acceptance isn't just a survey result: it shapes whether people feel safe, recognised and able to live openly in everyday life.

Essential takeaways

  • Support remains strongest for gay and lesbian people: More than 80 per cent of respondents say they accept them.
  • Public discomfort is rising: More than a quarter now object to two men kissing in public, up from around a fifth in 2024.
  • Transgender acceptance has slipped: Just under two-thirds report a positive attitude towards transgender people.
  • Recognition of trans women remains contested: More than a third of respondents don't consider trans women to be women.
  • Well-being remains a serious concern: LGBTQIA+ people report suicidal thoughts and mental-health difficulties more often than heterosexual and cisgender people.

Acceptance is still broad, but the direction has changed

The headline figure is reassuring at first glance. Gay and lesbian people remain the most accepted LGBTQIA+ groups in the Netherlands, with more than four in five respondents saying they accept them, according to the monitor reported by Het Parool.

But the mood is no longer moving steadily in one direction. More people now say they find it offensive when two men kiss in public, rising from roughly 20 per cent in 2024 to more than a quarter in the latest findings. That shift is small in percentage terms, but it signals a change in the social climate.

Karijn van den Berg, senior researcher at Movisie, said the long-running improvement in attitudes towards homosexuality appears to have stalled, as reported by Het Parool. For many people, public affection is an ordinary part of daily life. For others, the same moment still becomes a visible test of belonging.

Transgender and non-binary acceptance is slipping

The decline is sharper when the monitor turns to gender identity. Positive attitudes towards transgender people have fallen by three percentage points, leaving just under two-thirds of respondents expressing support, according to the report covered by Het Parool.

Views of non-binary and intersex people have also weakened. Acceptance of non-binary people fell from 54 to 52 per cent, while acceptance of intersex people dropped from 68 to 66 per cent. The research also suggests that many respondents know relatively little about intersex and asexual identities.

Those figures show why visibility alone isn't enough. People can encounter new language and identities more often while still lacking the knowledge to understand them. That gap creates room for stereotypes to settle in, particularly when public debate becomes louder and less patient.

Why public recognition matters for trans women

More than a third of respondents said they don't regard transgender women as women, a finding that sits at the heart of the report's concern. It isn't an abstract disagreement for the people affected: recognition influences everyday interactions, access to services and the simple feeling of being seen accurately.

The figures also underline a wider divide between different parts of the LGBTQIA+ community. Support for gay and lesbian people remains high, yet transgender, non-binary and intersex people face more uncertainty and resistance.

Earlier research from the Trimbos Institute and Utrecht University, highlighted in the coverage, found that positive views of homosexuality among young people nearly halved between 2021 and 2025, falling from 40 to 22 per cent. That younger shift is especially significant because today's attitudes often become tomorrow's social norms.

The well-being gap is impossible to ignore

The monitor also examined the well-being of LGBTQIA+ people. Respondents from LGBTQIA+ groups reported suicidal thoughts more often than heterosexual people and people whose gender identity matches the sex assigned to them at birth, according to Het Parool.

Other mental-health difficulties were also more common among several groups. The exception was gay and lesbian respondents, whose mental health was described as comparable with that of heterosexual respondents. Researchers cautioned that findings for transgender and intersex people should be treated as indicative because relatively few people from those groups took part.

That qualification matters, but it doesn't erase the warning. When acceptance weakens, the effects can be felt in schools, workplaces, families and healthcare settings. A survey can't capture every quiet moment of exclusion, but it can show when those moments are becoming part of a broader pattern.

What the findings mean beyond the percentages

The monitor is conducted every two years by Movisie, Ipsos I&O and Panteia using a cross-section of the Dutch population, according to the research organisations' published material. Earlier editions provide a useful comparison, allowing researchers to distinguish a temporary wobble from a more meaningful change.

The results don't suggest that the Netherlands has suddenly become uniformly hostile to LGBTQIA+ people. Most respondents still express acceptance towards several groups. But the widening differences between identities are hard to dismiss, especially when public discomfort and negative beliefs are rising at the same time.

A more useful response may begin with everyday habits: challenge casual slurs, avoid treating someone's identity as a debate topic and make room for people to describe themselves in their own words. Those actions won't fix every structural problem, but they can make ordinary spaces feel less hostile.

Small shifts in public attitudes can carry a surprisingly heavy human cost.

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