Poland has begun recognizing same-sex marriages performed abroad. How is this possible in a country where they are still not legal?

On Sunday, August 23, 2026, a landmark change took place in Poland: new civil registration rules came into force. Polish civil registry offices can now enter same-sex marriages legally contracted by citizens abroad into the national register. However, same-sex unions are still not legal in Poland under national law.

We explain how this reform works, why Poland’s conservative authorities had to make concessions, and what this changes for thousands of families.

What happened?

On August 23, 2026, new rules governing Poland’s civil registry offices came into effect. They can now register marriages of same-sex couples that were legally contracted in other countries. Poland’s civil registration system has even introduced new dedicated document forms for registering such unions.

This is an important practical shift: Polish authorities previously refused to register such documents, leaving couples to contend with resistance from officials and the courts. The procedure has now moved from courtroom battles to a standard administrative process.

How did it work before?

Until now, the Polish legal system had ignored the marital status of same-sex couples who married abroad. To have their union recognized in Poland, couples had to pursue difficult individual court cases for years. Each case came at an enormous emotional and financial cost, and the outcome depended entirely on the decisions of the particular judges involved.

Why did the Polish rules change now?

The main legal basis for the reform was a ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), issued in November 2025. The EU Court ruled that European Union member states must recognize same-sex marriages legally contracted in other EU countries, even if their own national laws do not permit such unions.

For Poland, this ruling became a binding call to action. Soon after the European court's verdict, Poland's Supreme Administrative Court also ruled in favor of several same-sex couples, ordering their foreign marriage certificates to be entered into the Polish register.

A practical precedent was set in May 2026. The Warsaw Civil Registry Office officially registered the marriage of two Polish citizens who had married in Germany back in 2018. Warsaw Mayor Rafał Trzaskowski then publicly stated that the city was prepared to actively recognize other marriages of Polish LGBTQ+ couples performed within the EU as well. This practice has now been extended nationwide.

Does this mean that same-sex marriage is now legal in Poland itself?

The short answer is no. The reform does not introduce full marriage equality in Poland. Same-sex couples still cannot marry within the country and obtain a Polish marriage certificate. Polish national law continues to define marriage in the traditional way.

The new rules deal exclusively with the issue of recognizing and registering marriages that have already been performed outside Polish jurisdiction.

What, then, is the practical significance of this decision?

Although the country still lacks full marriage equality, the reform has enormous practical significance for couples. Entering a marriage record into the civil registry system provides official proof of marital status in Poland. This greatly simplifies a wide range of administrative and legal matters:

• Inheritance arrangements;
• Joint ownership of property;
• Access to the intensive care unit and the right to make medical decisions on behalf of a spouse;
• Resolving tax and other bureaucratic matters in which the partners had previously been regarded as complete strangers to one another.

What does this change for the region?

This case demonstrates how supranational European law can influence the domestic policies of even the most conservative EU countries. The principles of freedom of movement and mutual recognition of documents within the European Union compel countries to adapt their systems and overcome traditional barriers.

As human rights advocates note, the November 2025 ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union sets an important precedent and should apply in other Baltic and Eastern European countries with similar regulations, such as Lithuania. Same-sex couples who married abroad now have a clear and straightforward path to having their marital status officially recognized in their home country.