Where Are Gay Partner Immigration Benefits Granted?

Updated: February 13, 2009

There are currently 19 countries with gay immigration policies that allow sponsorship of same-sex partners. These countries include:

Australia
Belgium
Brazil
Canada
Denmark
Czech Republic
Denmark
Finland
France
Germany
Iceland
Israel
Netherlands
New Zealand
Norway
South Africa
Spain
Sweden
United Kingdom

Many of these countries also allow same-sex marriage.

What about the United States?
The Defense of Marriage Act of 1996 prohibits federal recognition of same-sex couples in the U.S. and therefore, gay binational couples are not recognized for immigration purposes.

In response to America's lag in gay immigration rights, the Uniting American Families Act was re-introduced to the House and Senate by Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) and Vermont Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) on February 12, 2009. The bill seeks to broaden immigration laws by allowing U.S. citizens and legal residents to sponsor their same-sex partners for residence.