LGBT Rights in Colombia - Recognition of Same-sex Couples

Recognition of Same-sex Couples

On 7 February 2007, the Colombian Constitutional Court extended common-law marriage property and inheritance rights to same-sex couples, thanks to the constitutional action presented by the public interest law group of the Universidad de los Andes against the Ley 54. The decision did not include pension or social security (health insurance) rights. In a second ruling of 5 October 2007 the Constitutional court extended social security (health insurance) benefits to same sex couples, and on a ruling of 17 April 2008 pension rights were extended. With these three rulings same-sex couples in Colombia now enjoy the main benefits as heterosexual couples under the same terms.

These three rulings by the Constitutional Court replace the defeated Civil Union Law that fell in the Congress. On 19 June 2007, a gay rights bill, treating unregistered same-sex partners the same as unregistered opposite-sex partners, was defeated in the Congress of Colombia. Slightly different versions of the bill passed in each house of the legislature, and President Álvaro Uribe indicated he would support it. A compromise bill then passed one house but failed in the other.

The bill was defeated by a bloc of conservative senators. The bill, which had been endorsed by President Álvaro Uribe, would have made Colombia the first nation in Latin America to grant gay couples in long-term relationships the same rights to health insurance, inheritance and social security as heterosexual couples. However, with the rulings of the Constitutional Court same-sex couples today enjoy the same rights that this failed bill would have given them. In July 2011, Constitutional Court rules in a historic decision, that same-sex couples have the right to marry in Colombia. The Colombian Congress must create an equivalent of marriage for gay couples by June 20, 2013, or else couples will automatically gain the right to go to any judge or notary public to formalize their union, according to the ruling.