GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT CIVIL PARTNERSHIP
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What is civil partnership?
Civil partnership is a legal status similar to marriage but for two people of the same sex. It allows same sex couples to get legal recognition of their relationship. The responsibilities and rights that flow from civil partnership are broadly similar to those that flow from marriage.
The rights and responsibilities of civil partners include:
- A duty to provide financial support for your civil partner and any children of the family;
- Equitable treatment for the purposes of assessment for child support, life assurance, employment and pension benefits and inheritance of a tenancy agreement;
- Recognition under succession (inheritance) rules;
- Recognition for immigration and nationality purposes
How does civil partnership differ from marriage?
The main difference is that marriage is for opposite-sex couples and civil partnership is for same-sex couples.
The Government has tried to give civil partners parity of treatment with spouses. However, 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 civil partnership document. A civil marriage is formed when the couple exchange spoken words. Opposite-sex couples can choose to have a religious or civil marriage, whereas formation of a civil partnership is an exclusively civil procedure.
What are the eligibility requirements for forming a civil partnership?
In order to form a civil partnership in the UK, the couple must:
- both be of the same sex
- not already be in a civil partnership or marriage
- be 16 years of age or older; and
- not be within the prohibited degrees of relationship (more on this below)
In Scotland, someone aged 16 or over can register their partnership without the need for parental consent. This follows the Scottish rules for marriage. In England and Wales and Northern Ireland, individuals aged 16 and 17 need the written consent of their parent(s) or legal guardian(s) before forming a civil partnership.
The prohibited degrees of relationship
The law says that someone is not allowed to enter into a civil partnership with certain other people that they are related to. These relationships can be by:
consanguinity (blood relationships, such as father)
affinity (through marriage or civil partnership, for example, son of former civil partner)
adoption (for example, adoptive mother)
You can find the prohibited degrees of relationship for Scotland in Schedule 10 of the Civil Partnership Act. For England and Wales, see Schedule 1, and for Northern Ireland, see Schedule 12. The schedules list the people who are absolutely prohibited from forming a civil partnership with each other, or who are prohibited from forming a civil partnership with each other unless certain conditions are met.
Will I have equal survivor pension rights as a civil partner?
Civil partners will be able to accrue survivor pensions in public service schemes and contracted-out pension schemes from 1988.