Recognition of same-sex unions in Monaco

Same-sex relationships are recognised in the microstate of Monaco. On 4 December 2019, the National Council passed a bill establishing "cohabitation agreements", which offer both same-sex and opposite-sex couples who enter them limited rights in the areas of inheritance and property. The law took effect on 27 June 2020.

Cohabitation agreements

Laws regarding same-sex partnerships in Europe¹

  Marriage

  Civil union

  Limited domestic recognition (cohabitation)

  Limited foreign recognition (residency rights)

  Unrecognized

  Constitution limits marriage to opposite-sex couples

¹ May include recent laws or court decisions that have not yet entered into effect.

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The legislative process leading to the recognition of same-sex couples started in the early 2010s. In November 2010, an interview mentioned that Jean-Charles Gardetto,[1] a member of the National Council and lawyer, was preparing a draft bill intending to legally define cohabitation, either for heterosexual or for homosexual couples.[2] On 18 June 2013, the opposition party Union Monégasque submitted a bill to Parliament that would establish gender-neutral cohabitation agreements.[3] The bill was immediately sent to the Women and Family Rights Commission for consideration. In July 2015, the commission's president stated that dialogue on the bill would begin in late 2015.[4] Originally submitted as pacte de vie commune, the bill was amended to establish a "cohabitation agreement" (French: contrat de vie commune; Ligurian: contràtto de vìtta comûne). The bill's rapporteur, Jean-Louis Grinda submitted his report on 7 September 2016.[5] It was noted that the Monegasque administration already recognises concubinage since 2008, and that the European Court of Human Rights considers non-recognition of same-sex relationships to be contrary to the European Convention on Human Rights per Oliari and Others v Italy. On 27 October 2016, the National Council unanimously approved the resolution, giving the Council of Government the mandate to draft a bill establishing such unions.[6] On 27 April 2017, it responded positively to the proposal, and said it would introduce a draft law by April 2018, following elections held in February 2018.[7]

The cohabitation agreement bill was finally introduced to the National Council on 16 April 2018. Under the bill, cohabiting same-sex and opposite-sex couples would be considered on par with siblings for inheritance taxes and not at the same level as married couples. The agreement, which is open to siblings and parents and children as well, also provides an enumerated set of property, social services and citizenship rights and reciprocal obligations. The contrat is signed in front of a notary and then deposited at a public registry.[8] On 4 December 2019, the National Council unanimously approved the bill.[9][10][11] The law was published in the official journal on 27 December 2019 and took effect six months later (i.e. 27 June 2020).[8] Several lawmakers criticized the "hypocritical" opposition of Catholic officials, notably Archbishop Bernard Barsi, who had written to all deputies urging them to vote against the bill, noting that the law concerned solely civil matters and not religious ones.[12] Many deputies called the law "long overdue", and president of the National Council Stéphane Valeri called it "great news for all couples".[13]

4 December 2019 vote in the National Council[12]

Party	Voted for	Voted against	Abstained or Absent
Priorité Monaco (Primo!)	19	-	2
Horizon Monaco	2	-	-
Union Monégasque	1	-	-
Total	22	0	2

Public opinion

According to a survey conducted in 2007 by the Union pour Monaco (UPM) party before the 2007 municipal elections, 51% of the respondents (only native Monegasque inhabitants asked) agreed that living in a registered partnership should be accepted. Monegasques being a minority in Monaco, the survey is not representative of the entire public's opinion.[14]

See also

• LGBT rights in Monaco
• Recognition of same-sex unions in Europe

References

1. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 1 April 2012. Retrieved 19 September 2011.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
2. Monacohebdo.mc, "Les cas de discrimination existent", question : "Vous aviez en projet de proposer un texte sur le concubinage ?", 8 November 2010 (French)
3. (in French) n°207 Proposition de loi relative au Pacte de vie commune
4. "Homosexual unions could be an option in Monaco from 2017 - The Riviera Times Online". web.archive.org. 10 October 2015.
5. "RAPPORT SUR LA PROPOSITION DE LOI, N° 207, RELATIVE AU CONTRAT DE VIE COMMUNE".
6. "Bientôt un pacs monégasque ?". Monaco Hebdo. 9 November 2016.
7. "" Je suis une indépendante " - Monaco Hebdo". Monaco Hebdo (in French). 2017-07-19. Retrieved 2017-09-01.
8. "n° 1481 - Loi du 17 décembre 2019 relative aux contrats civils de solidarité" (in French).
9. "Monaco institue un pacs pour tous les couples". Le Quotidien (in French). 6 December 2019.
10. "La principauté de Monaco autorise l'union libre pour tous les couples". Ouest France (in French). 6 December 2019.
11. "La loi sur le contrat de vie commune votée à l'unanimité hier soir". Monaco Tribune (in French). 5 December 2019.
12. Gehin, Nicolas (18 December 2019). "Contrat de vie commune: ils ont dit «Oui»". Monaco Hebdo (in French).
13. "Monaco reconnaît l'union civile pour tous les couples". BFM TV (in French). 12 December 2019.
14. "Study on Homophobia, Transphobia and Discrimination on Grounds of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity, Sociological Report: Monaco" (PDF). The Danish Institute For Human Rights.

External links