May 22, 2026, 1:12 p.mMay 22, 2026, 1:12 p.m
In Poland, registry offices must recognize same-sex marriages concluded abroad. Interior Minister Marcin Kierwinski announced on the X portal that he had signed a corresponding regulation. “Court judgments are always carried out.”
The ECJ has decided that homosexual marriages will be recognized in Poland.Image: www.imago-images.de
Just last week, the city hall in the capital Warsaw recognized for the first time the marriage of two men who got married in Berlin in 2018. In order for this recognition to occur, the two first had to go to the Court of Justice of the European Union (ECJ).
After she moved to Poland, the authorities initially refused to enter the marriage in the Polish civil status register because the Polish constitution defines marriage as a union between a man and a woman.
European Court of Justice backed couple
But the ECJ supported the couple. The court ruled in November that EU states must recognize same-sex marriages celebrated in other member states.
The judges in Luxembourg decided that EU citizens must have the certainty of being able to continue their family life in different EU countries. This is part of their right to move freely in the EU.
In March, Poland’s Supreme Administrative Court ruled that same-sex marriages performed in other EU member states must be recognized by the Polish state. The court thus implemented the ECJ ruling into Polish law.
The Interior Minister’s order comes into force three months after its publication and is then binding for all registry offices. (dab/sda/dpa)