Tokyo issues same-sex partnership certificates amid marriage equality debate

Source: Agence France-Presse

Tokyo issues same-sex partnership certificates amid marriage equality debate

Agence France-Presse
Tue 1 Nov 2022 00.08 EDT
Last modified on Tue 1 Nov 2022 00.09 EDT

Tokyo’s metropolitan government began issuing partnership certificates to same-sex couples who live and work in the capital on Tuesday, a move that’s been long-awaited in a country that still does not allow equal marriage.

The status does not carry the same rights as marriage, but allows LGBTQ partners to be treated as married couples for some public services in areas such as housing, health and welfare.

More than 200 smaller local authorities in Japan have already made moves to recognise same-sex partnerships since Tokyo’s Shibuya district pioneered the system in 2015.

As of Friday last week, 137 couples had applied for a certificate, Tokyo governor Yuriko Koike said.

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Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/nov/01/tokyo-issues-same-sex-partnership-certificates-amid-marriage-equality-debate

Alternate AFP link: https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20221101-tokyo-starts-recognising-same-sex-relationships