Same-sex marriage in Brazil

Same-sex marriage has been legal in Brazil since May 16, 2013. This happened after a decision by the National Justice Council. They told every state that their offices must allow and perform same-sex marriages. Before this, some states and areas like Alagoas, Bahia, Ceará, Espírito Santo, Mato Grosso do Sul, Paraíba, Paraná, Piauí, Rondônia, Santa Catarina, São Paulo, Sergipe, the Federal District, and the city of Santa Rita do Sapucaí had already allowed same-sex marriages. In Rio de Janeiro, same-sex couples could marry but only with a judge's approval.

Even before same-sex marriage was fully allowed, Brazil had laws for stable unions since May 13, 2011. These unions gave most of the same rights as marriage. The Supreme Federal Court made this decision.

Brazil was the second country in South America, after Argentina, and the twelfth in the world to allow same-sex marriage. Many people in Brazil support allowing same-sex couples to marry.

Stable unions

The first time Brazil recognized a relationship between two people of the same sex was in 2004. This couple, who lived together for fourteen years, had their relationship officially recorded, even though laws at the time only allowed this for couples where the partners were not the same sex.

In 2010, Brazil’s government allowed diplomats to request special travel papers and visas for their same-sex partners. This made it easier for these partners to live and work abroad. Also in 2010, a major airport company in Brazil began giving benefits to same-sex couples whose relationships were officially registered.

On May 13, 2011, Brazil’s highest court decided that same-sex couples should be allowed to register their relationships just like opposite-sex couples. This decision gave same-sex couples the same rights as married couples, such as sharing bank accounts, living together, and having rights to things like health care and pensions.

In 2013, the Brazilian Air Force recognized the relationship of a sergeant and his partner, and later that year, a court ruled that the Army must recognize a same-sex union and give the partner benefits like a spouse. This was the first time the Army officially acknowledged a same-sex relationship.

Same-sex marriage

Background and summary

Marriage in Brazil is handled at the national level, not by individual states, and requires a marriage license issued by an official called a notary. In May 2011, Brazil’s highest court decided that the law allowed same-sex couples to form stable unions, a type of partnership. Later, in October 2011, another court ruled that a specific couple of women could get married. This decision became an important example for other couples who wanted to marry.

2013 National Justice Council ruling

In May 2013, Brazil’s National Justice Council made a big decision: notaries must issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples and change existing partnerships into marriages if the couples wanted it. The country’s top court leader, Joaquim Barbosa, said notaries could no longer refuse to marry same-sex couples. This decision became official on May 16, 2013.

Proposals in the National Congress

Brazil’s national laws have not yet been changed to match this ruling. In 2013, a group suggested protecting religious groups’ right to refuse to perform same-sex marriages. In 2017, a plan to update the nation’s marriage laws was approved by a committee but didn’t move forward. In November 2024, a new bill to officially add same-sex marriage to Brazil’s laws was approved by a committee.

State and district laws

Before the nationwide rule in 2013, some states had already started allowing same-sex marriages. For example, in 2011, a judge in São Paulo approved a same-sex marriage, and other states like Alagoas, Sergipe, and Espírito Santo followed. By early 2013, many states had updated their rules to treat same-sex marriages the same as opposite-sex marriages.

Native Brazilians

Some Indigenous groups in Brazil recognize people who don’t fit typical gender roles. These individuals sometimes form relationships with people of the same sex, but this isn’t exactly the same as modern same-sex marriage.

Statistics

In 2018, over 9,500 same-sex couples got married in Brazil. Most marriages happened in the southeast part of the country. The number of marriages went up in late 2018. Fewer marriages happened in 2020 because of limits put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Religious performance

Most big religious groups in Brazil do not perform same-sex marriages. The Catholic Church does not allow its leaders to marry same-sex couples and spoke out against making same-sex marriage legal. Some smaller religious groups, like some Baptist groups and the Anglican Episcopal Church of Brazil, do allow same-sex marriages. The first same-sex marriage in an Anglican church happened in São Paulo in November 2018. Some Umbanda and Candomblé ceremonies also perform same-sex marriages.

Public opinion

Surveys show how people in Brazil feel about same-sex marriage. In 2013 and 2014, about half of Brazilians supported it, and the other half did not. By 2017, more people, especially younger ones and those with more education, supported it. In 2021, over half of people supported same-sex marriage.

By 2023, support had gone down a little, but most people still thought same-sex couples should have the same rights to adopt children as other couples. Recent polls in 2026 show that support continues to change, with many people still in favor of letting same-sex couples marry.