As of tomorrow, 1 April 2017, registered partnerships in Austria will be concluded at the same place as marriages: in the wedding-halls of the civil registry offices ("Standesamt"). At the same time the European Court of Human Rights ruled that Austria has to pay compensation for the segregation.

Thus the relegation of same-sex couples from the wedding-halls of the registrar´s office to the regional administrative offices, normally competent for the issuance of driving licences, industrial licences, residence permits, prostitution licences and similar unromantic affairs, after seven years, will finally come to an end.   

The European Court of Human Rights has opened proceedings on the segregation in 2015 (http://www.rklambda.at/index.php/en/news-en/205-european-human-rights-court-opens-proceedings-on-austrian-sexual-apartheid) and, by yesterday´s ruling (litigated by ECSOL-member Helmut Graupner it obliged Austria to pay compensation to the applicants who rightly fought the wedding-halls-ban (Hörmann & Moser und Dietz & Suttasom v Austria 31176/13, 31185/13, dec. 30.03.2017).

Rechtskomitee LAMBDA (RKL)

The decision