7
SAME-SEX PARENTS IN HUNGARY: LEGAL SITUATION AND POLITICAL DEBATES Tamás Dombos Háttér Support Society for LGBT People in Hungary

SAME-SEX PARENTS IN HUNGARY: LEGAL SITUATION AND POLITICAL DEBATES Tamás Dombos Háttér Support Society for LGBT People in Hungary

Embed Size (px)

Citation preview

Page 1: SAME-SEX PARENTS IN HUNGARY: LEGAL SITUATION AND POLITICAL DEBATES Tamás Dombos Háttér Support Society for LGBT People in Hungary

SAME-SEX PARENTS IN HUNGARY: LEGAL SITUATION AND

POLITICAL DEBATES

Tamás Dombos Háttér Support Society for LGBT People in Hungary

Page 2: SAME-SEX PARENTS IN HUNGARY: LEGAL SITUATION AND POLITICAL DEBATES Tamás Dombos Háttér Support Society for LGBT People in Hungary

Forms of partnership

Getting a child

Recognition of social parent

Current debates

FORMS OF PARTNERSHIP

• marriage– Family Code: marriage between adult woman and man– pre-2012: Constitution interpreted to prohibit– post-2012: Constitution explicitly prohibits

• registered partnership– since 2009– where legislation mentions marriage/spouse, it also

includes registered partnership/registered partner– exceptions: age limit, taking the partners name,

parenting (ART, joint or consecutive adoption)

• cohabitation– since 1996 (following 1995 Constitutional Court

decision)– optional registration since 2010– several rights (next of kin, social benefits, immigration;

BUT limited joint property, no inheritance)– unclear about child-partner of parent relationship

Page 3: SAME-SEX PARENTS IN HUNGARY: LEGAL SITUATION AND POLITICAL DEBATES Tamás Dombos Háttér Support Society for LGBT People in Hungary

Forms of partnership

Getting a child

Recognition of social parent

Current debates

GETTING A CHILD

• adoption– joint adoption: only for married couples– single adoption: available, but married couples to be

given preference

• assisted reproduction– only for married couples, straight cohabiting couples

and single women (if infertile or due to their age likely to become infertile soon)

– easy to circumvent: lie about partnership status (criminal offence)

– home insemination criminalized

• surrogacy– all forms banned, certain forms criminalized

• coparenting– lack of legislation, treated as separated parents

Page 4: SAME-SEX PARENTS IN HUNGARY: LEGAL SITUATION AND POLITICAL DEBATES Tamás Dombos Háttér Support Society for LGBT People in Hungary

Forms of partnership

Getting a child

Recognition of social parent

Current debates

RECOGNITION OF SOCIAL PARENT I.

• second parent adoption:– only for married couples

• step parent: – spouse (thus registered partner) of parent

– recognized in most fields of law (labor, criminal, tax and social benefits)

• „nevelőszülő”: unclear– foster parent? or cohabiting partner as well?

• social benefits– income based parental leave, childcare allowance,

tax benefits: only for registered partners

– basic parental leave, sick leave: for both cohabiting and registered partners

Page 5: SAME-SEX PARENTS IN HUNGARY: LEGAL SITUATION AND POLITICAL DEBATES Tamás Dombos Háttér Support Society for LGBT People in Hungary

Forms of partnership

Getting a child

Recognition of social parent

Current debates

RECOGNITION OF SOCIAL PARENT II.

• healthcare– visitation yes, decision making no for both registered

and cohabiting partners

• death of biological parent– appointment of legal guardian (in will or at

guardianship office)

• death of social parent– no automatic inheritance

– preferential inheritance tax for registered partners, unclear for cohabiting partner (v. no tax for biological or adopted children)

• breakdown of partnership– no duty to pay child allowance, no visitation right

Page 6: SAME-SEX PARENTS IN HUNGARY: LEGAL SITUATION AND POLITICAL DEBATES Tamás Dombos Háttér Support Society for LGBT People in Hungary

Forms of partnership

Getting a child

Recognition of social parent

Current debates

CURRENT DEBATES

• who counts as family?– Family Protection Act: family defined with reference

to marriage and filiation (challenged by ombuds at Constitutional Court)

– new Civil Code debate: cohabitation and registered partnership should be removed from Book on Family Law

• second parent adoption– Civil Code 2009 version: available for cohabiting

couples (not for registered partners) – strange compromise

– new Civil Code: amendments by opposition parties, unlikely to pass