A partnership is the legal recognition (registration) of a partnership between two persons of any sex, which should provide the couple with legal, economic and social protection from the state. However, a partnership is not legally equivalent to marriage.
Partnerships
In order to protect the de facto relationship of persons who do not wish or cannot marry (for example, same-sex couples), Lithuania has introduced the legal regulation of partnerships. A partnership is the legal recognition (registration) of a partnership between two persons.
important The institution of partnership is not the same as marriage. Although a partnership offers a number of rights, it does not include all the rights and guarantees of marriage. As a result, a partnership is not legally equivalent to marriage.
important Regulation for partnerships came into force after the Constitutional Court's ruling in 2025 and thus it is regulated only partially. The parliemant is yet to adopt a law fully regulating all rights and obligations of the partners.
Who, when and how can register a partnership?
A partnership can be registered by two persons who appear together before a court and certify a mutual intention to create family relations.
note People may enter into same-sex partnerships or different-sex partnerships. As partnerships are higly unregulated as of right now, other restrictions are unclear.
Unregulated issues
While marriage provides for certain rights and benefits for spouses, they are not available to couples whose relationship is not legally recognized. These benefits relate to property, inheritance, health care, social benefits and the adoption of a child.
To a certain extent couples can enter into private-law contracts to settle some of these issues, however, these private agreements may fail to provide for some fundamental basic needs required by a couple in a stable and committed relationship.
example A couple who are not married cannot adopt a child together. This means that the child may only be adopted by one partner. There would be no legal recognition of his/her relationship with the other partner, despite living together in a common household and having a close personal relationship.
If a partner is not mentioned in the last will, he/she will not receive any inheritance and will not be entitled to challenge the partner’s last will.
The consent of another person may be needed for some issues to be regulated by a private-law contract.
example If a person rents an apartment and wants his/her partner to move in as well, the consent of the landlord is needed. No such consent is needed for a spouse.
Termination of partnership
If the partners want to dissolve their partnership, they should apply to the court of general jurisdiction with the request. A partnership also ends with the death of a person.
Legal recognition of a relationship & Human rights
The fact that married couples’ rights and benefits are unavailable to unregistered partners may affect the enjoyment of their relationship. It would not, however, lead to a violation of the right to a private and family life for opposite-sex partners, because they are able to get married and thus overcome these potential difficulties. The situation is different for same-sex partners who are unable to marry in accordance with the Civil Code and civil partnership regulation is inconsistent.
Right to marry
Human rights such as the right to marry or the right to a private life do not oblige a State to provide same-sex couples with access to marriage the same way as for opposite-sex couples. A State may freely choose the way in which it regulates marriage and civil partnerships, including the choice to not register same-sex marriages, however, in such a case same-sex relationships should be recognised in another way.
Equality
Although a State’s choice not to grant a specific form of recognition to the relationships of same-sex couples is lawful, it may nevertheless have an impact on your private and family life. There may be certain issues related to the fact that you do have a family relationship with your partner, but the lack of legal recognition of your relationship may deny you the opportunity to fully enjoy it in certain areas. These issues include the regulation of mutual rights and obligations that partners have towards each other and the entitlement to privileges which are essential for the development and maintenance of a family relationship, such as the right to adopt a child together.
A lack of regulation in these areas may cause inequality between same-sex and married opposite-sex couples.
What human rights violation may there be?
The lack of legal recognition of a same-sex couple’s relationship may complicate the adequate protection and enjoyment of this relationship in certain situations. This may lead to a violation of your right to a private and family life, together with the prohibition of discrimination.
If you believe that your right to a private and family life has been violated due to you not having the same essential rights that a married couple would have, you may submit an application to the civil court or other institution such as the Equal Opportunities Ombudsmen. The court can evaluate whether the lack of regulation has led to a violation of your right to a private and family life, together with the prohibition against unequal treatment.
If you consider that your right to private and family life has been violated in that you do not enjoy the same fundamental rights as any married couple, you may submit an application to the Constitutional Court. The Constitutional Court can assess whether the lack of regulation has indeed led to an infringement of your right to private and family life and a breach of the prohibition of discrimination. If the Constitutional Court finds that these rights have been infringed and that the prohibition has been violated, it may order the parliament to amend the laws in force accordingly.
After exhausting domestic remedies, you can also apply to international human rights institutions.