Same-sex marriage in Australia
States Official relationship status Year of enactment
ACT Domestic relationship 1994
ACT Civil partnership 2008
New South Wales Registered relationship 2010
Queensland Civil partnership 2012
Tasmania Significant relationship 2004
Victoria Domestic relationship 2008
South Australia Registered relationship 2017
State and territory recognition schemes -- Registered relationships
Same-sex couples have access to domestic partnership registries ( otherwise known as registered relationships ) in the Australian Capital Territory , New South Wales , Tasmania , Victoria and South Australia . New South Wales Main article : LGBT rights in New South Wales § Recognition of same-sex relationships New South Wales , Australia 's most populous state , has recognised domestic partnerships since July 2010 . The Relationships Register Act 2010 was passed by the Parliament in May and came into effect on 1 July 2010 . [ 130 ] The Act provides conclusive proof of the existence of a relationship and ensures participants gain all the rights afforded to de facto couples under state and federal law . [ 131 ] Previously , in June 2008 , the Parliament passed the Miscellaneous Acts Amendment ( Same Sex Relationships ) Act 2008 . [ 132 ] The Act amended several other state laws to recognise co-mothers as legal parents of children born through donor insemination and ensure birth certificates allow both mothers to be recognised . [ 132 ] Additionally , the Act amended 57 pieces of state legislation to ensure de facto couples , including same-sex couples , are treated equally with married couples . [ 132 ] Finally , the Act amended the New South Wales Anti-Discrimination Act 1977 to ensure same-sex couples are protected from discrimination on the basis of their `` marital or domestic status '' in employment , accommodation and access to other goods and services . [ 132 ] [ 133 ] New South Wales has also sought to legislate with respect to same-sex marriage . In November 2013 , a bill was introduced to the Legislative Council to legalise same-sex marriage at a state level , thought it was narrowly defeated . [ 134 ] [ 135 ] The external territory of Norfolk Island has , since 1 July 2016 , been incorporated into New South Wales legislation . Victoria Main article : LGBT rights in Victoria § Recognition of same-sex relationships Victoria has recognised domestic partnerships since December 2008 . The Parliament passed the Relationships Act 2008 on 10 April 2008 and came into effect on 1 December 2008 . [ 136 ] This allowed same-sex couples to register their relationships with the state Registry of Births , Deaths and Marriages and provide conclusive proof of a de facto relationship , allowing them to receive all the benefits and rights of such a couple under state and federal law . [ 137 ] In 2016 , the Victorian Parliament passed reforms to the state 's domestic partnerships legislation , allowing for the recognition of overseas same-sex marriages on official documents and also allowing couples the option of having an official ceremony when registering for a domestic partnership . [ 138 ] The earliest legislative reform in the state designed to provide equal treatment of same-sex couples came in August 2001 , in the form of the Statute Law Amendment ( Relationships ) Act 2001 and the Statute Law Further Amendment ( Relationships ) Act 2001 . The acts amended 60 laws in Victoria to give same-sex couples , called `` domestic partners '' , many rights equal to those enjoyed by de facto couples , including hospital access , medical decision making , superannuation , inheritance rights , property tax , landlord/tenancy rights , mental health treatment and victims of crime procedures . [ 139 ] [ 140 ] South Australia Main article : LGBT rights in South Australia § Recognition of same-sex relationships In South Australia , the Statutes Amendment ( Domestic Partners ) Act 2006 ( Number 43 ) , which took effect 1 June 2007 , amended 97 acts , dispensing with the term `` de facto '' and categorising couples as `` domestic partners '' . [ 141 ] This meant same-sex couples and any two people who live together are covered by the same laws . [ 142 ] [ 143 ] In December 2016 , the Parliament passed a law which creates a relationship register for same-sex couples and recognises the relationships of same-sex couples who had married or entered into an official union in other states and nations . [ 144 ] This law went into effect on 1 August 2017 . [ 144 ] Prior to that reform , same-sex couples could make a written agreement called a `` domestic partnership agreement '' about their living arrangements . This may be prepared at any time and is legal from the time it is made , but must meet other requirements , such as joint commitments , before being recognised as domestic partners . [ 142 ] Tasmania Main article : LGBT rights in Tasmania § Recognition of same-sex relationships In Tasmania , beginning on 1 January 2004 , the state 's Relationships Act 2003 allows same-sex couples to register their union as a type of domestic partnership in two distinct categories , `` significant relationships '' and `` caring relationships '' , with the state 's Registry of Births , Death and Marriages . The new definition of partner or spouse , `` two people in a relationship whether or not it 's sexual '' , was embedded into 80 pieces of legislation , giving same-sex couples rights in making decisions about a partner 's health , provides for guardianship when a partner is incapacitated , and gives same-sex couples equal access to a partner 's public sector pensions . It also allows one member of a same-sex couple to adopt the biological child of their partner . [ 145 ] [ 146 ] In September 2010 , the Tasmanian Parliament unanimously passed legislation to recognise same-sex marriages performed in other jurisdictions as registered partnerships under the Relationships Act 2003 , making it the first Australian state or territory to do so . [ 147 ] In August 2012 , a bill was introduced into the Tasmanian Parliament to legalise same-sex marriage . The bill passed the lower house , but was later rejected by the upper house on 28 September 2012 . [ 148 ] [ 149 ] In October 2013 , the bill was re-introduced into the upper house and was defeated once more . [ 150 ] Registered partnership recognition in state governments
Same-sex marriage in Australia has been legal since 9 December 2017. Legislation to allow same-sex marriage, the Marriage Amendment (Definition and Religious Freedoms) Act 2017, passed the Australian Parliament on 7 December 2017 and received royal assent from the Governor-General the following day. The law came into effect on 9 December, immediately recognising overseas same-sex marriages. The first same-sex wedding under Australian law was held on 15 December 2017. The passage of the law followed a voluntary postal survey of all Australians, in which 61.6% of respondents supported legalisation of same-sex marriage. Other types of recognition for same-sex couples are also available. Under federal law, same-sex couples can also be recognised as de facto relationships, which provide most of the same rights and responsibilities afforded to married couples, although those rights may be difficult to assert and are not always recognised in practice. Although there is no national civil union or relationships register scheme in Australia, most states and territories have legislated for civil unions or domestic partnership registries. Such unions are recognised as de facto relationships under federal law. Prior to legalisation, 22 same-sex marriage related bills were introduced to Parliament between September 2004 and May 2017, none of which passed into law. These failed attempts came after the Howard Government amended the law in August 2004 to exclude same-sex marriages. The Australian Capital Territory passed a same-sex marriage law in December 2013, though this was struck down by the High Court on the grounds that such a law could only be introduced by the Commonwealth.