Second Polish city follows Warsaw’s lead in recognising foreign same-sex marriage

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Wrocław has become the second Polish city to recognise a same-sex marriage conducted abroad, following the example of Warsaw, which last week began transcribing such marriages into its civil registry in line with European and Polish court orders.

“This long-awaited change has become a fact,” celebrated Alina Szeptycka, Wrocław’s plenipotentiary for equal treatment. “After many years, and recently also months of intense struggle, same-sex marriages concluded abroad are also marriages under Polish law.”

However, given that Polish law still does not allow for any form of same-sex union to be formed domestically, it remains unclear what the legal consequences of recognising such marriages conducted abroad will be.

The couple in question are Ryszard Ziobro and Tomasz Kwietko-Bębnowski (pictured above), who have been together for almost 50 years. After marrying in Austria last year, they returned to Wrocław and filed a request to transcribe their marriage into the local registry.

Up until this year, registry offices and courts in Poland have rejected such requests, often pointing to the article of Poland’s constitution that says: “Marriage, being a union of a man and a woman, as well as the family, motherhood and parenthood, shall be placed under the protection and care of the Republic of Poland.”

However, last November, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ruled that Poland must recognise same-sex marriages conducted in other EU member states.

That led Poland’s Supreme Administrative Court (NSA) in March to order the Warsaw registry office to transcribe the marriage certificate of another Polish couple, Jakub Cupriak-Trojan and Mateusz Trojan, who fought a long legal battle to have their marriage, which took place in Germany, recognised in Poland.

Last week, Warsaw’s mayor, Rafał Trzaskowski, announced that the city had complied with the NSA order and transcribed the Cupriak-Trojan’s marriage certificate. He pledged that it would do the same for other same-sex Polish couples who have married in EU member states.

Unlike the Cupriak-Trojans and many other same-sex couples seeking to have their marriages recognised, Ziobro and Kwietko-Bębnowski did not go to court. Instead, they waited for Wrocław, which was keen to recognise their marriage, to be formally able to do so.

The city asked the interior ministry to issue a regulation introducing the necessary changes to the registry system to allow same-sex marriages to be entered into the system. Currently, it only recognises male-female marriages.

However, after Warsaw decided last week to recognise a same-sex marriage despite the government not changing the system, Wrocław has now followed suit.

Wrocław’s decision marks the first time a same-sex marriage has been recognised in Poland without a court order.

“This shows that the historic judgments of the Court of Justice of the European Union and Polish courts are beginning to truly change the reality for same-sex couples in Poland,” wrote Replika, a magazine covering LGBT+ issues.

It also indicates that Warsaw’s groundbreaking decision will prompt other places, especially more liberal larger cities, to do the same. Many have already made clear they wish to do so.

However, given the lack of recognition of same-sex relationships in Polish law, it remains unclear what the legal effects of transcription will be.

Speaking to Polsat News last week, interior minister Marcin Kierwiński confirmed that the transcription of marriage certificates “does not mean that marriages concluded abroad will have each and every right” available to other married couples.

The government is also working on changes to the registry system to allow same-sex couples to be more easily entered.

Last week, digital affairs minister Krzysztof Gawkowski, whose department is responsible for the civil registry system, announced that he had signed a draft regulation that would amend marriage certificates to allow recognition of same-sex marriages conducted abroad.

The regulation must also be approved by the interior ministry, and Kierwiński has pledged to do so “quickly”.

Their rush to action came in the wake of an order from Prime Minister Donald Tusk, who last week apologised to same-sex couples for the “years of rejection and humiliation” they have experienced due to Poland not legally recognising their relationships.

However, more significant moves to expand LGBT+ rights in Poland – such as allowing same-sex unions to be formed domestically – would require not just new regulations, which can be issued unilaterally by the government, but changes to legislation, which require the approval of parliament and the president.

Tusk’s ruling coalition, which ranges from left to centre right, has a parliamentary majority but includes conservative elements that have expressed reluctance towards expanding LGBT+ rights.

Even if parliamentary approval is obtained, President Karol Nawrocki, who is aligned with the right-wing opposition and regularly clashes with the government, is almost certain to veto any such bills.

Notes from Poland is run by a small editorial team and published by an independent, non-profit foundation that is funded through donations from our readers. We cannot do what we do without your support.

Main image credit: Krzysztof Zatycki / Agencja Wyborcza.pl

Olivier Sorgho

Olivier Sorgho is senior editor at Notes from Poland, covering politics, business and society. He previously worked for Reuters.