492 parliamentarians voted in favor and 141 against.
The decision can be seen as a response to tendencies towards increased homophobia in several parts of the Union, including the "htbq-free" zones proclaimed in some parts of Poland.
This weekend, Hungarian Prime Minister Orbán spoke about the "LGBTQ madness" that characterizes the EU.
- It is about standing up for basic values that are threatened right now.
LGBTQ rights are threatened in countries such as Hungary and Poland.
In Poland, there are even LGBTQ-free zones, says EU parliamentarian Evin Incir (S).
"Absurd"
However, not everyone agrees.
Ryszard Legutko, from Poland's Conservative government party Law and Justice (PIS), calls the free zone declaration "absurd" and urges parliament to "calm down".
Bulgarian Angel Dzhambazki goes even further.
"You should know that deviant sexual practices and LGBTQ ideology can and will open the door to child abuse and pedophilia, and we will never allow that," Dzhambazki, from the far-right IMRO party, said in the European Parliament's debate.
Others are not as drastic, but say that the EU should not interfere in what is called the countries' internal affairs.
"A promise to intensify the work"
That the EU becomes a "zone of freedom" is a symbolic act that has no immediate concrete consequences.
Those who voted for hope that in the longer term it will lead to change.
-It is about a promise to intensify the work for LGBTQ rights, to not only talk, but also implement all the decisions we have actually made.
We have an LGBTQ resolution, we have a gender equality resolution with an intersectional perspective, says Evin Incir (S)