The Estonian parliament voted in favour of legalising same-sex marriage on June 20, becoming the first Baltic state and the second country in Central and Eastern Europe to allow same-sex marriage, after Slovenia.

“Everyone should have the right to marry the person they love and want to commit to. With this decision we are finally stepping among other Nordic countries as well as all the rest of the democratic countries in the world where marriage equality has been granted," Prime Minister Kaja Kallas (Reform party) said.

"This is a decision that does not take anything away from anyone but gives something important to many. It also shows that our society is caring and respectful towards each other. I am proud of Estonia,” Kallas wrote on Twitter on June 20.

The move comes just two months after the country’s new centrist coalition government took office. In April, Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas promised to introduce the legislation for same-sex marriage “as fast as possible”.

Estonia has long been the most progressive of the Baltic states, seeing itself as closer to the Nordic region in its attitudes. Neither of its neighbours are currently close to passing similar legislation. In Lithuania, a same-sex civil union bill passed a second vote in the Seimas at the end of May. The final vote on the adoption of the law is still to take place. In Latvia, a similar law has not cleared the Saeima’s  committee level.

In other CEE countries, notably Poland and Hungary, there has been a populist backlash against calls to allow same-sex marriage, with rightwing parties often trying to weaponise the issue as a "culture war" against Western European values and to use it against other parties that they claim are hostile to national and "Christian" values. Even in the liberal Czech Republic, the governing centre-right coalition has agreed not to pursue same-sex marriage. 

During the vote in Estonia’s Riigikogu (Parliament), 55 members of parliament voted in favour of legalising same-sex marriage and 34 voted against. The law will come into force on January 1, 2024.

“We are proud to become the first Baltic country to legalise same-sex marriage,” Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said after the vote.

Before legalising same-sex marriage, Estonia introduced same-sex civil unions in 2014. While Estonia also passed the Registered Partnership Act back in 2014, its implementing provisions and other amendments necessary for its full implementation were shelved for years. 

According to the amendments to the Estonian Family Law Act, the institution of marriage will be modified so that any two natural persons of legal age, regardless of gender, may marry. The words “man and woman” will be replaced with “two natural persons”.

Going forward, alongside marriage, people in Estonian will continue to enjoy the right to enter into a registered partnership. Such a partnership guarantees the right of registered spouses to have a say in decisions pertaining to their partner and to obtain support and benefits as needed. Couples who enter into a registered partnership will also be able to convert their status to marriage in a simplified procedure should they wish to do so, reported  ERR.ee, the website of Estonian national broadcaster ERR.

The proposal also clarifies Estonia’s Family Law Act's regulation of parenthood in regard to same-sex couples' adoption rights.

Both marriage and registered partnerships bring rights and obligations for couples which do not extend to those in de facto relationships. These are mostly linked to home, assets, parentage and obtaining support. For example, in the event of the death of one spouse or registered partner this will help to prevent situations in which the surviving partner, in the absence of a will, has no right to inherit the other partner's assets, all of which are automatically transferred to their relatives instead.

The help of the spouse or registered partner will also be used to confirm previously expressed intentions if the other spouse or registered partner is unconscious or incapable of exercising their will, so as to decide whether to accept or reject medical treatment.

The amendments required for entries to be made in regard to registered partnerships contracted between January 1, 2016 and December 31, 2023 prior to the remaining amendments taking effect will enter into force on October 1, 2023.

Minister of Social Protection Signe Riisalo (Reform) said that marriage equality will make Estonia a more inclusive and considerate place. "I am genuinely very grateful for the patience and understanding the LGBT+ community has shown for all these years," she said.

"Guaranteeing equal rights for all is such an elementary thing that this issue was essentially covered in the discussions that took place in the years immediately after we regained our independence. I am delighted that the decision has now been taken for a more forward-looking Estonia that cares for all”, ERR.ee said.