On July 9, 2024, an amendment to the Marriage Act (Ehegesetz, EheG) that allows same-sex couples to enter into marriages was published in the Legal Gazette of Liechtenstein. The Partnership Act (Partnerschaftsgesetz, PartG) was likewise amended to reflect the change. The parliament of Liechtenstein had adopted the amendments on May 16, 2024. They will enter into force on January 1, 2025.
Content of the Amendments
The legislation amends article 1 of the Marriage Act to state, “Marriage is created by contract and constitutes a full and undivided life partnership of two people.” Previously, article 1 stated that it had to be two people of the opposite sex. The amendment does not affect rules for religious marriages. (EheG, art. 3 (new).)
Same-sex couples who are currently in a same-sex registered partnership may convert their registered partnership into a marriage or continue their current registered partnership. (PartG, arts. 32a, 32b (new).) No new partnerships may be registered after the amendment of the Marriage Act enters into force. (Art. 1 (new).) In January 2024, there were a total of 62 registered partnerships in Liechtenstein. (Report and Proposal of the Government, at 16.)
Context
Liechtenstein is the last of the primarily German-speaking countries to allow same-sex marriage. Germany legalized it in 2017, Austria in 2019, and Switzerland in 2022.
Jenny Gesley, Law Library of Congress
August 14, 2024
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