Same-sex couples can do it. Now opposite-sex couples are about to be able to do it in England and Wales. That's enter into a civil partnership instead of a marriage. There are over 3 million opposite-sex couples here who chose not to marry because they have a conscientious objection to the idea or for other personal reasons. They support a million children but do not have the security or legal protection that married couples or civil partners enjoy. It is all about to change.
The Civil Partnership (Opposite-Sex Couples) Regulations 2019 (SI 2019/1458) come into force on 02 December 2019 which will enable opposite-sex couples who wish to enter into a civil partnership to give the required 28 days' notice and hold their ceremony before the end of this year. It could be you!
The right of same-sex civil partners to convert to a marriage, without having to first dissolve their partnership, is preserved. A similar right of opposite-sex partners to convert to marriage will not be available, at least for the time being, but will be considered.
