Recognition of same-sex unions in Israel

The religious authority for Jewish marriages is the Chief Rabbinate of Israel, and there are parallel authorities for Christians, Muslims, and Druze, with a total of 15 religious courts. These regulate all marriages and divorces for their own communities. Currently, they all oppose same-sex marriages. If the views of one of these bodies were to change, however, it would be legal for members of that religious community to enter into same-sex marriages in Israel. Same-sex wedding ceremonies without legal significance can be conducted in Israel,[1] which, coupled with legally recognized foreign marriages, allows for both same-sex wedding ceremonies in Israel and legal recognition of same-sex marriages in Israel, on condition that the marriage license comes from another country. The first unofficial municipal wedding took place in August 2009, following the Tel Aviv Pride Parade; five couples were married by Mayor Ron Huldai. The traditional verse for wedding ceremonies from Psalm 137, "If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand wither...", was used, but replacing Jerusalem with Tel Aviv, Israel's most gay-friendly city.[4][5] On 4 June 2019, protesting the inability of same-sex couples to marry in Israel, 23 couples held an unofficial mass wedding ceremony in Tel Aviv.[6][7][8]

In Israel unmarried same-sex and opposite-sex couples have equal access to virtually all of the rights of married couples in the form of an "unregistered cohabitation" status,[lower-alpha 1] similar to common-law marriage The Israeli government does not perform civil marriage but does recognize civil marriage performed abroad. As a result,same-sex couples who desire to have their marriage recognized by the government must obtain a marriage license outside Israel, in a jurisdiction where such marriages are performed, and then register the marriage in Israel.

Laws regarding homosexuality in Asia
Same-sex sexual activity legal

  Marriage performed

  Other type of partnership

  Legal guardianships or unregistered cohabitation

  Limited foreign recognition (residency rights)

  No recognition of same-sex couples

  Restrictions on freedom of expression

Same-sex sexual activity illegal

  Prison but not enforced

  Prison

  Death penalty on books, but not enforced

  Enforced death penalty

---

Same-sex marriages performed abroad in a jurisdiction where such marriages are legal can be recorded with the Administration of Border Crossings, Population and Immigration, according to a November 2006 High Court of Justice ruling which defined such records as strictly "for statistical purposes", thereby avoiding official recognition of same-sex marriages by the state. The case was filed by five male Israeli couples married in Canada who sought recognition of their marriage back home in Israel. The court ruled 6–1 that the government must register same-sex marriages performed abroad. One of the plaintiffs said, "I am glad we won and got what we wanted to achieve in this petition, which was the basic right to be registered as married by the Israeli Ministry of Interior, just as any couple marrying abroad does and takes it for granted."[9] Lawyers for the couples cited a Supreme Court case from 1962 that the government must register civil marriages performed abroad.[10] LGBT advocates welcomed the court decision. It was strongly condemned by Orthodox Jewish politicians, however, including by United Torah Judaism MK Moshe Gafni, who called the ruling "the destruction of the family unit in the state of Israel".[11]

In December 2012, a family court in Ramat Gan granted a married same-sex couple a legal divorce.[12] This was the first decision of its kind, setting a non-binding precedent.

In December 2016, Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit instructed the Interior Ministry to consider applications for citizenship by same-sex and opposite-sex couples equally under the same terms. The same-sex spouse of an Israeli citizen will now be able to claim Israeli citizenship after the same interval as an opposite-sex spouse. Previously, same-sex couples had to wait up to seven years, and would generally only be granted permanent residency rather than citizenship. The process was far easier for opposite-sex couples.[13] The decision came in response to a lawsuit filed with the High Court of Justice by the Israeli Gay Fathers Association.

In June 2020, officials in Tel Aviv-Yafo Municipality announced they would register interfaith and cohabiting same-sex couples as married. Mayor Ron Huldai said the move makes those who register eligible for housing tax discounts as well as easing enrollment of their children in public daycares and schools. The move was widely regarded as a protest against the government's refusal to legalize civil marriage.[14] In November 2020, officials in Ramat Gan made a similar announcement. Mayor Carmel Sharma said the measure had been approved almost unanimously by the city administration, and that it would permit same-sex couples who married abroad to register as married on city documents and be treated on par with married couples for tax and other purposes.[15]

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, couples unable to legally marry in Israel could not travel overseas to marry because of restrictions on international travel. Around 500 couples decided to marry through an online civil marriage service established by the U.S. state of Utah. The marriage is officiated by Zoom and for an additional fee the couple can obtain an apostille validation stamp for the marriage license provided by Utah state authorities. In June 2021, the Population and Immigration Authority of the Interior Ministry, led by Minister Ayelet Shaked, who is opposed to civil marriage, announced it would not register the marriages, arguing that the weddings were performed in Israel, where there is no provision for civil marriage. Attorney Vlad Finkelshtein rejected this claim, telling The Jerusalem Post that "every aspect of the wedding was performed in Utah, the office of the marriage registrar was in Utah, and that the computer and the IP address from which the ceremony was broadcast were in Utah".[16] The Interior Ministry instructed to freeze the procedure after three marriages were recognized by the Population Authority, prompting dozens of couples to seek legal action.

Judge Efrat Fink of the Central District Court in Lod ruled on 7 July 2022 that the Interior Ministry must recognize all the online marriages. MK Yorai Lahav-Hertzanu welcomed the ruling, saying that it "is important and just, and it simply states the obvious – a couple who marries abroad (even via Zoom) must be recognized in Israel. I urge the state not to appeal this ruling." Rabbi Aaron Leibowitz said, "It is unthinkable to me that a country can allow any of its citizens to become dependent on a foreign entity for such a basic need and right as marriage. This is discriminatory, and causes tremendous pain and alienation, not to mention considerable expense. The rabbinate's position portrays a religion obsessed with controlling others even in the most personal of ways." MK Avi Maoz of the extremist Noam party, known for his violent anti-LGBT beliefs and opposing women serving in the Israel Defense Forces, said that the ruling was "ignoring policy that has been in effect for decades. It's unthinkable that judges in Israel undermine the Jewish state and carry out a quiet coup to make Israel a people's state. God willing, this will be rectified soon." Aryeh Deri urged Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara to intervene and seek a stay of the ruling.[2][17] The decision means that couples need not leave Israel to marry any longer;[18] they may be wed using the Utah online marriage service and then register their marriage with the state, allowing them to apply for government benefits offered to married couples. The decision was upheld by the Supreme Court on 7 March 2023.[19]

In 2018, more than 400 same-sex couples registered their foreign weddings in Israel.[20][21]

Signs supporting same-sex marriage in Israel

In February 2009, MK Nitzan Horowitz introduced a civil marriage bill which included provisions for same-sex marriages.[22] The bill was rejected by the Knesset in May 2012, in a 39 to 11 vote, with 70 MKs not attending.[23][24]

In March 2010, the Knesset passed the Civil Union Law for Citizens with No Religious Affiliation, 2010.[lower-alpha 2] The law allows opposite-sex couples, but not same-sex couples, to form a civil union in Israel if they are both registered as officially not belonging to any religion.[26] In October 2012, the Supreme Court upheld the validity of the law.[27] By 2016, only 121 couples had entered into civil unions.[28]

In June 2013, Hatnuah MKs, led by Justice Minister Tzipi Livni, introduced a bill to establish civil unions in Israel for both opposite-sex and same-sex couples.[29] In October 2013, Yesh Atid MKs, led by Finance Minister Yair Lapid, introduced a similar bill.[30] Meretz MK Zehava Gal-On introduced a civil marriage bill which included provisions for same-sex marriages.[31] On 8 July 2015, the Knesset rejected the civil union bill proposed by Yesh Atid, and the civil marriage bill proposed by Meretz. The Knesset voted 39–50 to reject the two bills.[31] Hatnuah's bill was rejected by the Knesset on 22 February 2016 in a 40–47 vote.[32] A same-sex marriage bill failed in the Knesset in June 2018 by three votes, 42 to 39. The bill's sponsor, MK Stav Shaffir from The Zionist Union, blamed its failure on MKs from the coalition government who promised publicly that they would vote in favor, but instead chose to vote against or abstain from voting.[33][34][35] The vote happened shortly after an estimated 250,000 people marched in the Tel Aviv Pride Parade, and an opinion poll found that a majority of Israelis supported same-sex marriage.[36]

In August 2022, Prime Minister Lapid urged the Knesset to legalize same-sex marriage. Citing opinion polls, he said, "If most of the public is with us, why did all our bills on the matters fall or get stuck? Why am I the first Israeli prime minister to arrive at an event for the gay community?" Lapid accused other politicians of being "scared" of supporting same-sex marriage.[37]

In November 2015, the National LGBT Taskforce of Israel petitioned the Supreme Court to allow same-sex marriage in the country, arguing that the refusal of the rabbinical court to recognize same-sex marriage should not prevent civil courts from performing same-sex marriages. The court did not immediately rule against the validity of the petition.[38] In January 2017, at a public hearing and in its capacity as the High Court of Justice, two justices of the court implied the issue of civil and same-sex marriage was the responsibility of the Knesset, rather than the courts.[39] The court handed down its ruling on 31 August 2017, determining that the issue was the responsibility of the Knesset, and not the judiciary.[40]

After the April 2019 elections and the election of a record five openly LGBT MKs, it was announced that the Knesset would replace the term "husband and wife" with "couple" on all its official documents, and would grant more rights to the partners of LGBT legislators, such as permanent entry passes to the Knesset, authorization to drive Knesset-issued cars assigned to their partners, and invitations to all official ceremonies and events.[41]