101.Part 5 of the Civil Partnership Act defines the term “overseas relationship” and sets out the circumstances in which a same sex couple who have registered a marriage or civil union overseas are to be treated as having formed a civil partnership under UK law. Paragraph 5 takes into account the fact that the Act makes marriage of same sex couples possible in England and Wales and as a consequence overseas marriages of same sex couples will be treated as marriages under the law of England and Wales.
Examples
If a same sex couple who were married in Belgium move to England, their relationship will be treated as a marriage in England and Wales.
If the same sex couple who married in Belgium subsequently move to Northern Ireland, their relationship will be treated as a civil partnership there, as marriage of same sex couples is not possible under Northern Ireland law and so overseas marriages of same sex couples will continue to be treated as civil partnerships in Northern Ireland under the Civil Partnership Act.