Family and Litigation

Civil Partnerships

Civil Partnership Act 2004

Frequently Asked Questions

This section provides answers to the most frequently asked questions about civil partnership.

General Information About Civil Partnership

Registering a Civil Partnership

Dissolving a Civil Partnership

Tax and Benefits

What is Civil Partnership?
Civil Partnership is a new legal relationship, which can be formed by two people of the same sex. It gives same sex couples the ability to obtain legal recognition for their relationship. Couples who form a civil partnership will have a new legal status - that of "civil partner".
Same-sex couples who form a civil partnership will have parity of treatment in a wide range of legal matters with those opposite-sex couples who enter into a civil marriage.
The rights and responsibilities of civil partners will have include:
  • A duty to provide reasonable maintenance for your civil partner and any children of the family;
  • Ability to apply for parental responsibility for your civil partner's child;
  • Equitable treatment for the purposes of assessment for child support; life assurance; tax, including inheritance tax; employment and pension benefits; inheritance of a tenancy agreement;
  • Recognition under intestacy rules;
  • Access to fatal accidents compensation;
  • Protection from domestic violence; and
  • Recognition for immigration and nationality purposes.
When will my partner and I be able to form a civil partnership?
This came into force on 5 December 2005. This enabled the first civil partnerships to be formed under the standard procedure on 21 December 2005.
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 similar rights 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 is an exclusively civil procedure.
Who is eligible?
You and your partner 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 (i.e. related) due to the closeness of their relationship with each other, are prohibited from registering a civil partnership with each other or, in certain cases, who are prohibited from registering a civil partnership with each other unless certain conditions are met.
In England and Wales and Northern Ireland, individuals who are aged 16 and 17 will have to obtain the written consent of their parent(s) or legal guardian(s) before registering a civil partnership.

Registering a Civil Partnership and Dissolution

What arrangements can I make for my civil partnership?
If you want to register a civil partnership, you have to give formal notice of your intention to do so.
Where can I register my civil partnership?
The range of places you can register your civil partnership is broadly similar to those available for civil marriage.
Every local authority provides a facility for the registration of a civil partnership. It is also possible to register a civil partnership at a venue elsewhere, for example at a hotel. Any premises that are presently approved for marriage is deemed to also be approved for the purposes of civil partnership registrations until the current approval is renewed or expires.
What formal requirements have to be met before 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 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.
What is the waiting period for civil partnership?
There is a 15 day waiting period once each person has given notice of intention to register, before the civil partnership can be registered. There is a procedure in place to reduce the 15 day waiting period in exceptional circumstances where there are compelling reasons to do so.
It is also possible for a civil partnership to be registered at the residence of someone who is housebound, detained or seriously ill and not expected to recover. There is also a procedure to allow couples to form a civil partnership quickly in the cases of former spouses, one of whom has changed gender under the provisions of the Gender Recognition Act 2004.
What time of day can a civil partnership be registered?
Civil partnerships can only be registered between 8am and 6pm (as is the case for marriage). However, where one of the couple is seriously ill and not expected to recover, then the civil partnership may be formed at any time.
What information will be made public about my civil partnership?
When you give notice of your intention to register a civil partnership, details from the notice will be available in a register office for public inspection (as for marriage) but the detail will not include the address of you or your partner.
It is important that these details are publicly available during the 15 day waiting period, to allow for objections to be made, just as is the case for marriage.
What happens at a civil partnership registration?
A Civil partnership is registered once the couple has signed the civil partnership document in the presence of a registrar and two witnesses.
There are words printed on the document which the couple will be able to say at the time of signing the document. Civil partnership registration is an entirely secular process, and the Civil Partnership Act prevents any religious service from taking place during the statutory steps leading to the formation of a civil partnership.
Can we have a ceremony?
Yes, you can arrange a ceremony in addition to the signing of the legal documentation if you wish, but a ceremony is not required under the Act. It is up to you to decide. Local authorities offer a ceremony but there are other organisations who also offer ceremonies too.
Can we change our names after registering a civil partnership?
After registering a civil partnership, some people might want to change their surname to that of their partner's, or a couple may choose to hyphenate their names. Government departments and agencies such as the Passport Agency and the DVLA will accept civil partnership certificates in the same way that they accept marriage certificates as evidence for changing their names.

Dissolving a Civil Partnership

How will dissolution proceedings work?
Registering as civil partners is a serious commitment, because a civil partnership ends only on formal dissolution or annulment, or on the death of one of the parties.
The process for dissolution is Court-based. The person applying for the partnership to be dissolved has to provide evidence that the civil partnership has broken down irretrievably.
The dissolution process begins with an application to the Court in the form required by the Court rules for civil partnership proceedings.
In order to prove irretrievable breakdown it will be necessary to provide evidence of one or more of the following facts to support the application for dissolution:
  • Unreasonable behaviour, that is behaviour such that the applicant cannot reasonably be expected to live with their civil partner;
  • Separation for two years, where the other civil partner consents to a dissolution order being made;
  • Separation for five years, where the other civil partner does not consent to a dissolution order being made;
  • That the other civil partner has deserted the applicant for a period of two years prior to the application.
The Court is required to inquire as far as is possible into the facts alleged by the applicant and into any facts alleged by their civil partner. If the Court is satisfied on the evidence that the civil partnership has broken down irretrievably, a dissolution order can be granted.
Do I have equal survivor pension rights a Civil Partner?
Civil partners will be able to accrue survivor pensions in public service schemes and contracted-out pension schemes from 1988.
The Department for Work and Pensions has just made amendments to the contracting out rules to ensure that pension schemes provide survivor benefits for civil partners on the basis of deceased member's rights accrued from 6 April 1988, to treat them on a part with widowers.
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