Same-sex marriage in Malta

On 25 August 2017, the Minister for Equality, Helena Dalli, issued a legal notice to commence the law on 1 September.

Malta was the first European microstate, the 21st country in the world and the thirteenth in Europe to allow same-sex couples to marry nationwide.

Civil unions (Maltese: unjoni ċivili, pronounced [ʊnˈjɔːnɪ tʃɪˈviːlɪ]) were introduced in Malta in spring 2014.

Legislation to establish civil unions was first discussed in the early 2010s, before passing by a vote of 37–0 in the Parliament of Malta on 14 April 2014.

Before the 2008 elections, the Malta Gay Rights Movement sent a survey to all major political parties asking them for their views on the recognition of same-sex unions.

[4] On 28 March 2010, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi announced that the Government of Malta was working on a bill to regulate cohabitation, intended to be completed by the end of the year.

[14] Helena Dalli, the Minister for Social Dialogue, Consumer Affairs and Civil Liberties, argued that legalising same-sex marriage would require a referendum, and that the Maltese Government did not intend to put the issue to a popular vote.

[15] On 30 September 2013, the first day of the new legislative session, the Parliament of Malta held the first reading of a civil union bill,[16] which was published on 14 October 2013.

[20] In his 2013 Christmas sermon, Archbishop Charles J. Scicluna condemned adoption by same-sex couples and said that Pope Francis had told him to take a public stand against it.

[36] In March 2016, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said at an International Women's Day event that he was personally in favour of legalising same-sex marriage in the country and that it was "time for a national debate" on the issue.

[37] The country's leading gay rights organisation subsequently called for a bill to be put forward opening marriage to all couples irrespective of gender without delay.

[38] On 21 February 2017, Minister for Social Dialogue, Consumer Affairs and Civil Liberties Helena Dalli said she was preparing a bill to legalise same-sex marriage.

[39][40] The next day, Dalli stated that it was up to the Cabinet to decide whether the bill would be introduced to Parliament before the next election, provisionally scheduled for 2018.

[47][48][49] On 23 June 2017, the Nationalist Party confirmed its intention to vote in favour of the bill, and introduce amendments at the committee stage.

[69][70][71] It was signed into law by President Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca on 1 August 2017 as the Marriage Act and other Laws (Amendment) Act, 2017 (Maltese: Att tal-2017 li jemenda l-Att dwar iż-Żwieġ u Liġijiet oħrajn,[72] pronounced [ɐt tɐːl ɛlˈfɛɪ̯n ʊ zbɐˈtɐːʃ lɪ jɛˈmɛndɐ lɐt dwɐːr ɪzˈzwɪːtʃ ʊ lɪdʒɪˈjɪːt ɔħˈrɐɪ̯n]).

[73][55] On 25 August, the Minister for European Affairs and Equality, Helena Dalli, issued a legal notice to commence the law on 1 September 2017.

A Catholic Dominican priest, Father Mark Montebello, acting contrary to church guidelines, blessed the rings of a same-sex couple in an engagement ceremony in Valletta in April 2015.

[91] An April 2016 poll from The Malta Independent found that 61% of Maltese people supported same-sex marriage, with 25% opposed, 10% responding "don't care" and 4% unsure.

The survey also found that 78% of Maltese people thought that "there is nothing wrong in a sexual relationship between two persons of the same sex", while 21% disagreed.