EU court orders Poland to recognise same-sex marriages

The news in Polish

1. trybunał  (m.)
   instytucja sądowa, specjalny sąd zajmujący się określonymi sprawami ↩︎
2. jednopłciowy
   dotyczący osób tej samej płci ↩︎
3. legalnie
   zgodnie z prawem, w sposób dozwolony przez prawo ↩︎
4. respektować
   uznawać coś i postępować zgodnie z tym, nie łamać zasad lub praw ↩︎
5. pobyt  (m.)
   czas, kiedy ktoś przebywa w jakimś miejscu ↩︎
6. debata  (f.)
   oficjalna, często publiczna dyskusja na ważny temat ↩︎

Translation

Text comprehension

Question 1: What does the EU court say Poland must do with same-sex marriages performed legally in another EU country?

Question 2: Does the court’s decision mean that same-sex marriages will now be performed in Poland?

Vocabulary

Polish	English
trybunał  (m.)	tribunal
jednopłciowy	same-sex
legalnie	legally
respektować	to respect
pobyt  (m.)	stay
debata  (f.)	debate

Read the full story

The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has ruled that Poland must recognise same-sex marriages that were legally concluded in another EU member state. The judgment concerns a case brought by two Polish men who married in Berlin in 2018 and later asked Polish authorities to register their marriage.

When the couple returned to Poland, they applied to the Polish civil registry for a transcription of their German marriage certificate. Transcription is an administrative procedure in which a foreign civil-status document is copied into a country’s own registry. The Polish office refused, arguing that Polish national law does not allow marriage between two people of the same sex. The spouses challenged this decision in court, and the case eventually reached Poland’s Supreme Administrative Court, which asked the CJEU for guidance on EU law.

In its decision, the CJEU stated that an EU member state is obliged to recognise a marriage between two EU citizens of the same sex if that marriage was lawfully concluded in another member state where the couple exercised their EU rights to free movement and residence. According to the court, refusing to acknowledge such a marriage is incompatible with EU law because it limits not only freedom of movement but also the fundamental right to respect for private and family life.

The judges stressed that Poland must apply EU rules on free movement equally to different-sex and same-sex marriages. At the same time, the court underlined that this obligation to recognise foreign same-sex marriages does not force a country to introduce same-sex marriage into its own domestic family law. Recognition can take different legal forms: transcription is one option, but the state may choose another method, as long as same-sex couples are not excluded or excessively burdened compared with different-sex couples.

The CJEU also rejected the argument that recognising a same-sex marriage from abroad would threaten a member state’s national identity or public order. The ruling explained that acknowledging the legal effects of a foreign marriage for the purpose of EU free movement does not require a country to change its constitutional definition of marriage or its internal family-law system.

After the judgment, Poland’s Minister of Justice, Waldemar Żurek, commented on national television that Poland will have to adapt its legislation and implement the ruling in some form. He described the decision as a possible “first step” and said that the country should focus on educating society about such issues. Żurek noted that many Poles, including himself, grew up in traditional and Catholic families, where same-sex relationships were often considered a taboo subject.

Żurek pointed out that part of the legal debate in Poland concerns the Polish Constitution’s protection of the family. Some lawyers interpret this protection as applying specifically to a man and a woman. However, he underlined that the constitution does not explicitly ban same-sex marriages, which leaves room for different legal interpretations and potential reforms.

The minister also observed that younger generations in Poland appear more familiar and comfortable with same-sex relationships than older generations. In his view, some Polish citizens may now decide to travel abroad to marry in countries where same-sex marriage is permitted and then rely on EU law and the CJEU ruling when they return to Poland. According to Żurek, such movements could increase pressure on the state to create clearer rules for recognising these unions.

Żurek emphasised that discussions on how to change Polish law are only at the beginning and that Poland’s coalition government would need to reach agreement. He mentioned that it should be technically possible to amend the Law on Civil Status Records so that it aligns with the CJEU’s interpretation of EU rights. He added that, in general, European court judgments often set new directions, and national parliaments then update legislation to comply.

The ruling does not itself introduce same-sex marriage within Poland, where only different-sex couples can currently marry. Instead, it clarifies that when EU citizens have used their right to move and reside in another member state and married there, their home country cannot refuse to recognise that marriage for purposes connected with EU law, such as residence rights and family life. The judgment is therefore being seen by many observers as a landmark decision for LGBT+ rights and free movement within the EU, while in Poland it is also opening a new phase of political and legal debate.

Info: ‘Polish Learner News’ is a service from ‘Let’s Learn Polish’, a language school dedicated to teaching Polish online. As part of our programmes, each Polish course includes regular updates and materials that support learners in following current topics in Polish.