Where can same-sex couples legally marry in Europe? A 2026 guide
Marriage equality in 22 European countries, where visitors can actually marry, civil unions, and what the 2025 EU court ruling means.
In this note
We’re photographers, not lawyers. But “where can we actually get married?” is one of the first questions couples ask us, and the honest answer is more complicated than a map. A country can have full marriage equality and still make it very hard for visitors to marry there.
This guide sums up where things stand in 2026: where marriage is open to all couples, where visitors can realistically marry, which countries offer civil unions instead, and what changed after an important EU court ruling in late 2025.
Before you book anythingRules for foreign couples change, and documents and notice periods depend on your nationality. Always confirm with the registry office in the country where you want to marry, and with your own embassy or consulate about registering the marriage at home. This guide is a starting point, not legal advice.
The 22 countries with marriage equality
As of 2026, marriage is open to all couples in 22 European countries. Here they are, with the year it became law:
| Since | Countries |
|---|---|
| 2001 | Netherlands |
| 2003 | Belgium |
| 2005 | Spain |
| 2009 | Norway, Sweden |
| 2010 | Portugal, Iceland |
| 2012 | Denmark |
| 2013 | France |
| 2014 | United Kingdom (Northern Ireland from 2020) |
| 2015 | Luxembourg, Ireland |
| 2017 | Finland, Malta, Germany |
| 2019 | Austria |
| 2022 | Switzerland, Slovenia |
| 2023 | Andorra |
| 2024 | Estonia, Greece |
| 2025 | Liechtenstein |
Gibraltar, a British Overseas Territory, also allows same-sex marriage and is popular with visiting couples (more below).
Legal doesn’t always mean open to visitors
This is the part that catches people out. Many of the countries above only marry couples where at least one partner is a citizen or a resident. Others accept visitors but ask for long notice periods, an in-person appointment weeks ahead, or a stack of apostilled and translated documents.
So the useful question isn’t “is it legal there?” but “can people like us marry there, with our passports, in the time we have?”
Where visitors can marry: a rough guide
| Place | For visitors | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Denmark | Very straightforward | No residence requirement. Copenhagen and the island of Ærø are popular. Copenhagen limits slots for foreign couples, so apply early. |
| Gibraltar | Very straightforward | Special Licence route; a short stay before the ceremony is required, and ceremonies can be arranged at short notice. |
| Iceland | Possible | Documents are submitted in advance. Well suited to elopements. |
| Malta | Possible | Civil marriage for non-residents, with paperwork filed ahead of time. |
| Scotland | Possible | Notice to the registrar at least 29 days before. Some nationalities need a visa to marry in the UK. |
| Portugal | Possible, but slow | A preliminary process at the civil registry, plus apostilles and translations. |
| Greece | Ask first | The law dates from 2024; practice for foreign couples is still settling. |
| England and Wales | Difficult | Notice must be given in the UK after a period of residence; visa rules apply. |
| Ireland | Difficult | Three months’ notice and an in-person meeting with the registrar. |
| Spain, France, Netherlands, Belgium | Usually not | Normally at least one partner must be a citizen or resident. |
If you’d like a legal wedding and a celebration in the same trip, Denmark and Gibraltar are the two places couples mention most. Iceland and Malta work well if you start the paperwork a few months ahead.
Countries with civil unions instead
Several European countries don’t offer marriage to all couples but do have civil unions or registered partnerships. These include Italy (the unione civile, since 2016), Croatia, the Czech Republic (where partnerships gained most of the rights of marriage in 2025), Cyprus, Hungary, Latvia (since 2024), Lithuania, Montenegro, Monaco and San Marino.
A civil union is a real legal status, but it isn’t a marriage, and how it’s treated back home can vary. For visiting couples, a union in one of these countries is rarely worth the paperwork. Italy is a good example: it’s a hugely popular wedding destination, and visiting couples who celebrate there almost always hold a symbolic ceremony instead.
The November 2025 EU court ruling
In November 2025, the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled that EU member states must recognise a marriage between two EU citizens that was lawfully concluded in another member state, even if the couple’s home country doesn’t offer same-sex marriage itself. Poland, for example, has since begun registering such marriages.
What this means in practice:
- If you’re EU citizens from a country without marriage equality, marrying in, say, Denmark or Portugal now has a much stronger chance of being recognised at home. Expect paperwork, and possibly delays while authorities adjust.
- If you’re from outside the EU (the UK, the US, Canada, Australia and so on), the ruling doesn’t change much for you. Recognition depends on your home country’s law; where marriage equality exists, a marriage made abroad is generally recognised once properly registered.
Implementation is uneven and still developing, so this is exactly the kind of thing to check with your embassy or a family lawyer.
The option most couples choose
Many of the couples we work with sign the legal papers at home and hold a symbolic ceremony in Europe. A symbolic ceremony has no paperwork limits: any place, any celebrant, any words. We’ve written a separate Travel Note, “Legal at home, symbolic abroad”, on how split ceremonies work.
A short checklist before you book
- Confirm with the local registry office that non-residents of your nationality can marry there
- Ask about notice periods and whether you need to appear in person beforehand
- List the documents: birth certificates, proof you’re free to marry, passports
- Check which need an apostille and a sworn translation
- Ask your embassy or consulate how to register the marriage at home
- Keep a symbolic ceremony as Plan B if the paperwork doesn’t line up
Whichever route you take, we photograph legal and symbolic ceremonies the same way: quietly, honestly, with the people who matter in the frame. When you know roughly where, tell us about your plans.
