Current State of Marriage Equality

There are currently 34 countries where same-sex marriage is legal: Andorra, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Denmark, Ecuador, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, the United Kingdom, the United States of America and Uruguay.

* Estonia's parliament passed on June 20, 2023, a law legalizing same-sex marriage that will come into effect January 1, 2024.

Processes of Legalization

• 23 countries have legalized same-sex marriage nationally through legislation. Among these, Australia, Ireland and Switzerland legalized same-sex marriage through legislation only after nation-wide votes.
• 10 countries have legalized same-sex marriage nationally through court decisions — Austria, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Mexico, Slovenia (followed by national legislation), South Africa, Taiwan and the United States of America.
• 2 countries, South Africa and Taiwan, enacted legislation legalizing same-sex marriage after courts mandated them to do so.

Countries that Legalized Marriage Equality in 2022

Cuba: On September 25, 2022, in a national referendum, Cubans approved a Family Code that included provisions allowing same-sex couples to marry.

Andorra: On July 21, 2022, the unicameral legislature of Andorra, the General Council, voted unanimously to amend the country's civil union law to include marriage equality for same-sex couples.

Slovenia: On July 8th, 2022, the Constitutional Court of Slovenia ruled that the ban on same-sex marriages violated the constitution of Slovenia and gave the Slovenian parliament 6 months to pass legislation accordingly, which it did on October 4. The ruling took effect immediately after the court decision.

Countries that Legalized Marriage Equality in 2021

Chile: On December 9, 2021, the president of Chile signed into law a marriage equality bill that passed in the Senate on December 7 and the lower house on Nov. 23. Same sex civil unions had been legal since 2015. Slovenia: On July 8th, 2022, a ruling from the constitutional court of Slovenia decided that the ban on same-sex marriages violated the constitution of Slovenia.

Switzerland: On December 16, 2020, the Swiss Parliament overwhelmingly passed legislation extending marriage to same-sex couples. A public referendum held in September 2021 overwhelmingly confirmed support for marriage equality by 64%.

Countries that Legalized Marriage Equality in 2020

Costa Rica: The Supreme Court of Costa Rica ruled in November 2018 in support of the historic January 2018 advisory opinion of the InterAmerican Court of Human Rights that marriage equality was consistent with Costa Rica's obligations under the American Convention on Human Rights. The Supreme Court set May 26, 2020 as the deadline for the National Assembly to enact such legislation, but it did not meet that deadline, and marriage equality came into effect on that date.


Countries that Legalized Marriage Equality in 2019

Austria: The Constitutional Court of Austria ruled on December 4, 2017 that denial of marriage equality was discriminatory, legalizing same-sex marriage. Marriage equality took effect January 1, 2019.

Taiwan: The Taiwan Constitutional Court ruled in 2017 that marriage could not be restricted to opposite-sex couples and gave parliament two years to enact legislation legalizing same-sex marriage. Parliament passed legislation to legalize same-sex marriage which went into effect May 24, 2019, making Taiwan the first country to enact marriage equality in Asia.

Ecuador: Legalized after Ecuador’s Constitutional Court found on June 12, 2019 that its ban was unconstitutional, marriage equality took effect in Ecuador on July 8, 2019.

International Institutions & Marriage Equality

The Inter-American Court of Human Rights is an independent judicial institution of the Organization of American States. In 2018, it issued an advisory opinion to Costa Rica that signatories of the American Convention on Human Rights are obliged to make same-sex marriage legal. The Court’s guidance applies to 20 signatory countries and has proven a powerful tool in advocating for marriage equality in these countries.

The European Court of Justice (ECJ) serves as a high court in the European Union. In 2018, the ECJ determined that all EU countries were required to recognize the same-sex marriages of EU and non-EU citizens for purposes of immigration, regardless of whether same-sex marriage is legal in those countries. In recognition of this decision, the Supreme Administrative Court of Bulgaria affirmed in 2019 that the country would recognize such same-sex marriages for the purposes of immigration.

Places to Watch for Marriage Equality in 2023

This list includes a few of the many countries where HRC Global is tracking developments in support of marriage equality.

• Czech Republic
• India
• Japan
• Philippines
• Thailand

Methodology
This page is based on a review of legislation and judicial decisions recognizing same-sex marriage. It does not identify countries that recognize other kinds of relationships between same-sex couples, such as civil unions, registered partnerships or domestic partnerships.

We note that processes for obtaining a marriage license for same-sex couples in some countries differ across localities, such as in Mexico where, in light of a constitutional court ruling, some states have enacted marriage equality while, in other states, same-sex couples must seek an amparo from a federal court to obtain a license.

Same-sex married couples in many countries do not share all of the same rights and benefits as different-sex married couples, such as the right to adoption. In some countries, same-sex couples also experience additional restrictions. For example, in Taiwan same-sex marriage is only available to Taiwanese citizens or a citizen of a foreign country that recognizes same-sex marriage who seeks to marry a Taiwanese citizen.

For more information about HRC’s work around the world, subscribe to our quarterly newsletter and visit hrc.org/Global.