Recognition of same-sex unions in Germany

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Laws regarding same-sex partnerships in Europe

  Same-sex marriage

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Since 1 August 2001, Germany has allowed registered partnerships (Eingetragene Lebenspartnerschaft) for same-sex couples. These partnerships initially provided many but not all of the rights of marriage, and currently provide all except joint adoption and full tax benefits. As of 22 October 2009, the Federal Constitutional Court of Germany has ruled that all the rights and obligations of marriage be extended to same-sex registered partners.^[1]

History

The Life Partnership Act of 2001 was a compromise between proponents of marriage equality for gays and conservatives from the Christian parties, whose interpretation of marriage exclude gays. The act grants a number of rights enjoyed by married, opposite-sex couples. It was drafted by Volker Beck from The Greens and was approved under the Green/Social Democratic coalition government.

On 17 July 2002, the Federal Constitutional Court of Germany upheld the act.^[2] The Court found, unanimously, that the process leading to the law's enactment was constitutional. The 8-member Court further ruled, with three dissenting votes, that the substance of the law conforms to the constitution, and ruled that these partnerships could be granted equal rights to those given to married couples. (The initial law had deliberately withheld certain privileges, such as joint adoption and pension rights for widow(er)s, in an effort to observe the "special protection" which the constitution provided for marriage and the family. The court determined that the "specialness" of the protection was not in the quantity of protection, but in the obligatory nature of this protection, whereas the protection of registered partnerships was at the Bundestag's discretion.)

On 12 October 2004, the Gesetz zur Überarbeitung des Lebenspartnerschaftsrechts (Life Partnership Law (Revision) Act) was passed by the Bundestag, increasing the rights of registered life partners to include, among other things, the possibility of stepchild adoption and simpler alimony and divorce rules, but excluding the same tax benefits as in a marriage. By October 2004, 5,000 couples had registered their partnerships.^{[citation needed]} By 2007, this number had increased to 15,000, two thirds of these being male couples.^[3] By 2010, this number had increased to 23,000.^[4][5]

In July 2008, Federal Constitutional Court of Germany ruled that a transsexual person who transitioned to female after having been married to a woman for more than 50 years could remain married to her wife and change her legal gender to female. It gave the legislature one year to effect the necessary change in the relevant law.^[6]

On 22 October 2009, the Constitutional Court ruled that a man whose employer had given him and his registered partner inferior pension benefits on account of his not being married was entitled to the same benefits he would receive were he and his partner married and of opposite sexes.^[7] The court's decision mandated equal rights for same-sex registered couples not just in regard to pension benefits, but in regard to all rights and responsibilities currently applying to married couples.^[1]

On 25 October 2009, the Government Programme of the new Christian Democratic-Free Democratic coalition was released. It stipulated that any inequality of rights between (same-sex) life partners and (opposite-sex) married couples would be removed. This would essentially codify into law the Constitutional Court's ruling of 22 October 2009. However, the Government Programme did not mention adoption rights.^[8]

On 17 August 2010, the Federal Constitutional Court ruled that the surviving partners of registered partnerships are entitled to the same inheritance tax rules as the survivors of mixed-sex marriages. Surviving marital partners paid 7—30% inheritance tax while surviving registered partners paid 17—50%.^[9]

Same-sex marriage

The CDU/CSU, the senior member party of Germany's coalition Government is strictly opposed to the legalisation of same-sex marriage. The Green Party and The Left have acknowledged their support of the legalization of same-sex marriage. The Greens, in opposition, released a draft law on same-sex marriage in June 2009.^[10]

In March 2010, the Senate of Berlin announced its intention to introduce a same-sex marriage bill in the Bundesrat, the federal representation of the German states. According to the Senate, this law would best fit the Constitutional Court's ruling that same-sex couples must be equally treated as heterosexual ones.^[11] The Bundesrat rejected the law. Only Berlin, Brandenburg, Bremen and Northrhine-Westphalia voted in favour of the marriage equality bill. The other 12 Länder didn't vote in favour of the bill.

In June, 2011, the Senate of Hamburg, following CDU losses in state elections around the country, also announced its intention to introduce a same-sex marriage bill in the Bundesrat, the federal representation of the German states.^[12]

Recognition of same-sex partners for purposes of immigration

Non-EU citizens who are same-sex partners of EU-citizens are considered on the same standing as spouses for the purposes of immigration rights.

Public opinion

In December 2006, a poll conducted by the Angus-Reid Global Monitor, seeking public attitudes on economic, political, and social issues for member-states of the European Union found that Germany ranked seventh supporting same-sex marriage with 52% popular support, behind the Netherlands (82%), Sweden (71%), Denmark (69%), Belgium (62%), Luxembourg (58%), and Spain (56%) (sharing this position with the Czech Republic); German support for same-sex marriage is above the European Union average of 44%.^[13]

See also

• LGBT rights in Germany
• Civil union
• Same-sex marriage
• Recognition of same-sex unions in Europe

References

1. ^ ^{a b} (German) Verfassungsgericht zu Homo-Ehe - Ehe, Partner, Kinder
2. ^ (German) Leitsätze zum Urteil des Ersten Senats vom 17. Juli 2002
3. ^ (German) 68 000 gleichgeschlechtliche Lebensgemeinschaften in Deutschland
4. ^ (German) Deutschlandweit rund 23 000 eingetragene Lebenspartnerschaften
5. ^ (German) [http://www.bpb.de/themen/8NBKK8,0,0,Gleichgeschlechtliche_Lebensgemeinschaften.html Gleichgeschlechtliche Lebensgemeinschaften in Deutschland In absoluten Zahlen, 1996 bis 2009]
6. ^ (La Presse)
7. ^ "High court backs equal rights for gay marriages". Thelocal.de. 2009-10-25. http://www.thelocal.de/national/20091022-22757.html. Retrieved 2010-12-13. 
8. ^ (German) Die FDP hat ihre Wahlversprechungen gehalten!
9. ^ "German court: gay couples entitled to equal treatment on inheritance tax". The Canadian Press. Associated Press. 2010-08-17. http://www.google.com/hostednews/canadianpress/article/ALeqM5i47qav85cAhzZA0CT7xm8qBmWlgg. Retrieved 2010-08-17. 
10. ^ (German) Entwurf eines Gesetzes zur Einführung des Rechts auf Eheschließung für Personen gleichen Geschlechts
11. ^ (German) Berliner Senat für Öffnung der Ehe
12. ^ (German) [1]
13. ^ "Eight EU Countries Back Same-Sex Marriage". Angus-reid.com. http://www.angus-reid.com/polls/index.cfm/fuseaction/viewItem/itemID/14203. Retrieved 2010-12-13. 

External links

• Act on Life Partnerships
• Lifetime Partnership Act of Germany