US: Neither performed nor recognized in some tribal nations. Recognized but not performed in several other tribal nations and American Samoa.
Israel: Registered foreign marriages confer all marriage rights. Domestic common-law marriages confer most rights of marriage. Domestic civil marriage recognized by some cities.
EU: The Coman v. Romania ruling of the European Court of Justice obliges the state to provide residency rights for the foreign spouses of EU citizens. Some member states, including Romania, do not follow the ruling.
Cambodia: Recognition of a "declaration of family relationship", which may be useful in matters such as housing, but they are not legally binding.
China: Guardianship agreements, conferring some limited legal benefits, including decisions about medical and personal care.
HK: Inheritance, guardianship rights, and residency rights for foreign spouses of legal residents.
Same-sex marriage has been legal nationwide in Nepal since 27 April 2024. On 28 June 2023, Supreme Court Justice Til Prasad Shrestha directed the government to establish a "separate register" for "sexual minorities and non-traditional couples" and to "temporarily register their marriages".[1][2] Despite the directive, a district court in Kathmandu denied a same-sex couple's application to marry on 13 July 2023.[3][4] In the last week of November 2023, the couple was informed by the Ministry of Home Affairs that their marriage would be registered.[5] They successfully registered their marriage on 29 November 2023 in Dordi, followed by two other couples over the following months.[6][7][8][9] On 27 April 2024, the Ministry of Home Affairs issued a circular to all local registration authorities, instructing them to enter all same-sex marriages into the separate register.[10] The directive opened marriage to same-sex couples nationwide, making Nepal the 37th country in the world and the second in Asia to do so. However, married same-sex couples are not permitted to adopt.
Nonetheless, no supporting legislation has been passed by the Federal Parliament,[11][12] and the Supreme Court has yet to deliver a final verdict on the case.[13][14][15] A first hearing was expected to begin on 14 March 2024.[16]
In 2011 and 2012, as the country was undergoing a political transition, there was an attempt to add LGBT-inclusive language to the proposed constitution, following a demand by the Supreme Court. However, negotiations among political factions failed in spring 2012 and the drafting of a new constitution was placed on hold until new elections were held. A constitution was approved by the Constituent Assembly on 16 September 2015,[17] and while it includes "gender and sexual minorities" as a protected category, it does not address same-sex marriages.[18] The National Code of Nepal enacted in 2018 explicitly defines marriage as "when a man and a woman accept each other as husband and wife".[19]