Relationships (Civil Partnerships) and Other Acts Amendment Bill 2015

Overview

This bill restores the right for adult couples of any gender in Queensland to hold an official civil partnership ceremony before registering their relationship. It renames the Relationships Act back to the Civil Partnerships Act, sets up a new scheme for registering civil partnership notaries who can conduct ceremonies, and modernises the Births, Deaths and Marriages registry by moving to electronic lodgement of birth and death records.

Who it affects

Same-sex and opposite-sex couples who want an official ceremony gain that option back, while marriage celebrants can register as civil partnership notaries. Hospitals and funeral directors will have to lodge birth and death records electronically.

Key changes

• Couples of any gender can again hold an official civil partnership ceremony, making a declaration in front of a registered notary and an adult witness
• The Relationships Act is renamed the Civil Partnerships Act and 'registered relationship' becomes 'civil partnership' across many Queensland laws
• Existing registered relationships automatically become civil partnerships when the law starts, with no action needed from couples
• A new scheme sets up registration, an annual fee, a public register and QCAT review for civil partnership notaries, with new offences to protect the integrity of ceremonies
• Hospitals must lodge birth notices and funeral directors must lodge death registrations electronically, and digitised records get the same legal status as paper originals