| Now the Civil Partnership has become live, what difference will these new laws make to you? Is it the same as gay marriage? Will these new rights enable gay couples to adopt children? What's the fuss all about?
For updates on the Civil Partnership and the changes happening as they unfold Click here
What is the Civil Partnership Act?
How does Civil Partnership differ from marriage?
How will people be able to register?
What formal requirements have to be met before the registration can take place
What will it mean?
What are these new rights?
Will the UK recognise partnership schemes for same-sex couples that exist across Europe and beyond?
What if my partner and I have registered a relationship that isn't one of the ones listed in Schedule 20? Does this mean that we won't be treated as civil partners?
Can my partner and I form a civil partnership in the UK even if we've already formed an overseas relationship that would be recognised in the UK?
Immigration section
Does this mean that there's going to be such a thing as gay divorce?
Will straight couples be able to become civil partners?
What about same-sex couples who live in Scotland and Northern Ireland ?
Is this the same as gay marriage?
So everyone's happy about this new law?
So what does this mean to our wills?
What is the Civil Partnership Act?
The first Civil Partnerships will take place before Christmas 2005, with the government announcing an official implementation date of December 5th.
Announced today 21st Feb to the delight of same-sex couples looking to make use of the new legislation, the Civil Partnership Act will come into force on the 5th, allowing for ceremonies to take place on 21st December.
To read more about the Civil Partnership Act and the journey then click here
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How does Civil Partnership differ from marriage?
Civil Partnership is a completely new legal relationship, exclusively for same-sex couples, distinct from marriage.
The Government has sought to give civil partners parity of treatment with spouses, as far as is possible, in the rights and responsibilities that flow from forming a civil partnership.
There are a small number of differences between civil partnership and marriage, for example, a civil partnership is formed when the second civil partner signs the relevant document, and a civil marriage is formed when the couple exchange spoken words. Opposite-sex couples can opt for a religious or civil marriage ceremony as they choose, whereas formation of a civil partnership will be an exclusively civil procedure.
top » How will people be able to register?
The range of places you can register your civil partnership will be broadly similar to those available for civil marriage.
Every local authority will be required to provide a facility for the registration of a civil partnership. It will also be possible to register a civil partnership at a venue elsewhere, for example at a hotel, as long as they are approved for this purpose. It will be for you to approach a premises to make arrangements if you want to register the civil partnership there.
Any premises that are presently approved for marriage will, with effect from 5 December, be deemed to also be approved for the purposes of civil partnership registrations until the current approval is renewed or expires. After 5 December, premises will be approved for hosting both civil partnerships and marriages, but the approved ve nues will still have the ablity to choose if the wish to hold a Civil partnership, not quite equal
It will also be possible for a civil partnership to be registered at the residence of someone who is housebound or seriously ill and not expected to recover.
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What formal requirements have to be met before the registration can take place
You and your partner will need to each give notice in the area(s) where you have resided for at least seven days. When you give notice, you will be asked to state where you wish the civil partnership registration to take place.
If a civil partnership is to be registered outside of the area of residence, you and your partner will still need to give notice in the area(s) where you live. When you each give notice, you will be asked to give the date and place where the civil partnership registration is to take place so these details will need to have been first agreed with the local authority where the registration is going to take place.
Example :
If you live in Brighton and your partner lives in Eastbourne, but you want to register a civil partnership in a country house hotel in Kent, you will have to give notice to your local register office in Brighton and your partner at Eastbourne register office. When you give this notice, you will both have to be able to give the date and the place where the civil partnership is to be registered, which means that you will have to have arranged this already with the venue and the Kent registration authority.
top » What will it mean?
Basically it is for adult same-sex couples, which are not in an existing registered partnership, or married and are not closely related. Gay and lesbian couples will be able to sign an official document at a registry office in front of the registrar and two witnesses. Registered couples will have new legal status as ”registered Civil Partners” and will be protected by a package of rights. This brings the UK along side other European countries that recognise same sex couples, including Canada, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Germany, The Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain and Sweden.
top » What are these new rights?
Partners will access joint treatment for income-related benefits, joint state pension benefits, they will have the ability to gain parental responsibility for each others children, and they will be recognised for immigration purposes and will be exempt from testifying against each other in court. In addition, if one partner dies the other will have the right to register their death, the right to claim a survivor pension. They will be eligible for bereavement benefits and compensation for fatal accidents or criminal injuries. Surviving partners will be recognised under inheritance and intestacy rules and will have tenancy succession rights.
Civil partners will be able to accrue survivor pensions in public service schemes and contracted-out pension schemes from 1988.
Civil partners will be treated in the same way as spouses for tax purposes. These changes will be dealt with in the first available Finance Bill.
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Will the UK recognise partnership schemes for same-sex couples that exist across Europe and beyond?
Same-sex couples who form certain "overseas relationships", that is certain legal relationships registered under the law of another country or territory, will automatically be treated as having formed a civil partnership and will not need to register in the UK as well, so long as they and their overseas relationship meets the requirements set out in the Civil Partnership Act.
These include requirements that the overseas relationship is either (a) one of the specified relationships listed in Schedule 20 to the Act, or (b) a relationship that meets the "general conditions" contained in section 214.
Contact us for the list
New relationships will be added to Schedule 20 from time to time as more countries or territories bring in legislation, which meets the requirements of the Act and which allows same-sex couples to register their relationship. The content of Schedule 20 will be reviewed before the Civil Partnership Act is commenced and any appropriate additions to the Schedule will be made.
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What if my partner and I have registered a relationship that isn't one of the ones listed in Schedule 20? Does this mean that we won't be treated as civil partners?
Not necessarily. If the overseas relationship meets the “general conditions” in section 214 it would be capable of being treated as a civil partnership, so long as the other relevant requirements of Chapter 2 of Part 5 of the Act are also met.
In order for an overseas relationship to meet the general conditions it must, under the law of the country or territory in which it was formed,
a) be exclusive in nature (in other words the law must prevent a person from registering a relationship where they are already in a relationship of that kind or are lawfully married);
b) be indeterminate in duration (this would exclude an arrangement whereby the parties agreed to live together for a fixed period of time); and
c) result in the parties being treated as a couple or treated as married (this would exclude schemes like some local registers which have no legal effects under the law of that country or territory).
Schedule 20 or meets these general conditions, they will be treated as having formed a civil partnership if they meet the other requirements which can be found in section 212 and sections 215 to 218 of the Act.
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Can my partner and I form a civil partnership in the UK even if we've already formed an overseas relationship that would be recognised in the UK ?
It will not be necessary to form a civil partnership in the UK if your existing overseas relationship is treated as a civil partnership.
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IMMIGRATION SECTION
The following section has been prepared in conjunction with the Home Office Immigration and Nationality Directorate. If your query about the impact of civil partnership on your individual circumstances is not addressed in any of the answers below, you should contact the Home Office Immigration and Nationality Directorate on 0870 606 7766 or visit their website at www.ind.homeoffice.gov.uk .
Can my partner and I register as civil partners of each other even if s/he isn't a UK or EU citizen?
There are restrictions affecting the formation of a civil partnership in the UK where either of the proposed civil partners is subject to UK immigration control. A person will be subject to immigration control if they are not an EEA national and they require permission to enter or remain in the United Kingdom .
These restrictions mean that, unless the person subject to immigration control is exempt from these requirements (the classes of individuals who will be exempt will be set out in regulations which will be made during the coming year), they must have either entry clearance for the purpose of enabling them to form a civil partnership in the United Kingdom or the written permission of the Secretary of State to form a civil partnership. These provisions are contained in Schedule 23 to the Act.
How would I go about applying for entry clearance?
Generally, you should apply for an entry clearance at the UK Embassy or Consulate in the country where you are normally and legally resident. It may also be possible to apply from a country where you are only temporarily resident. To find out where your nearest UK Overseas mission is and for more information about Visa Applications visit the UK Visas website at www.ukvisas.gov.uk
What immigration rights will my non-EU citizen partner have if we form a civil partnership?
Under the Civil Partnership Act couples that form a civil partnership will have similar immigration rights to married couples. This will mean that the non-EU citizen civil partner of a British Citizen or person settled here will be able to apply for two years' leave to enter or remain in the UK . If the civil partnership is still subsisting at the end of this period then an application for indefinite leave to remain may be made.
These rights will apply whether they have become civil partners by registering in the UK or by forming one of the recognised overseas relationships. These changes to immigration law will only apply from the time the Act comes into force. Detailed guidance on immigration rights for civil partners will be provided by the Immigration and Nationality Directorate in due course.
Can my same-sex partner join me in the UK before the Civil Partnership Act comes into force?
Until the Civil Partnership Act comes into force, the same-sex partner of a UK national or person with settled status in the UK may be able to apply for leave to enter or remain as an unmarried partner. To qualify, the parties must meet the requirements laid down in paragraphs 295A-H of the Immigration Rules which can be found on the IND website at http://www.ind.homeoffice.gov.uk/ by clicking ‘Laws & Policy' and then ‘Immigration Rules'. These requirements include that the parties must have been living together in a relationship akin to marriage for two years or more, that they intend to permanently live together and that they are able to maintain and accommodate themselves without recourse to public funds. Where such an application is successful, the foreign national partner will be granted leave to enter or remain in the UK for two years. At the end of this period, settlement will normally be granted, provided the relationship is still subsisting and the rules relating to unmarried partners continue to be met.
For those who cannot qualify under the unmarried partners rules it is possible to apply for leave to remain in the UK under a different category. Further details of other categories can be obtained on the Home Office's Immigration & Nationality Department on the contact details given above.
top » Does this mean that there's going to be such a thing as gay divorce?
Yes dissolution. They will be a court-based process where the partner applying for the dissolution will have to show that there has been an irretrievable break down in the relationship. The dissolution will involve fair arrangements for property division, financial relief, residence arrangements and appropriate contact with children.
top » Will straight couples be able to become civil partners?
No only same sex couples.
top » What about same-sex couples who live in Scotland and Northern Ireland ?
The civil partnership Act covers all parts of the UK and Northern Ireland and civil partnership will become available in all parts of the UK at the same time.
Is not Scottish marriage law different?
The Scottish Executive worked closely with the UK government throughout 2004 to ensure that the parts of the civil partnership Act that deal with Scotland introduced a civil partnership that mirrors Scots marriage law, which is different from English law, For example, in Scotland 16 and 17 year olds don't need parental consent to marry or to enter a civil partnership.
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Is this the same as gay marriage?
No, there is no religious element at all and registration cannot at present take place at a place of worship. But you can arrange to have your signing at the register office and move onto a church or blessing, click here for more information
top » So everyone's happy about this new law?
Well.... Whilst the government is hailing it as a breakthrough in social justice, many gay commentators believe that it's a second-best option. Being able to walk up the aisle, like any married straight couples, remains the big dream for them.
top » So what does this mean to our wills?
You will need to create a new will after your Civil Partnership, any exisiting Wills will become void.
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Change of name or by Deed Poll
Changing your name after you register
People who want to change their surname after they register a civil partnership, whether to take their civil partners name, or hyphenate, will be able to use a civil partnership certificate as evidence in the same way as married people can do so using their marriage certificate.
Deed Poll
People change their name for many reasons and the UK law allows us to do this. It is perfectly acceptable for a UK adult (over 18) to change their name simply by using a new one. No official notification is necessary for this to happen and it is usual for a person to use this method to try out a new name.
If you are looking to completly change both surnames. At some point however, organisations such as Banks, the Inland Revenue and the Passport agancy will need to be notified. In this case a legal document stating the details regarding a name change called a Change of Name by Deed Poll is required..
It's simple to do, find out more
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