In a landmark ruling last year, a court in northern Sapporo said Japan's failure to recognise same-sex marriage is unconstitutional, a verdict hailed by campaigners as a major victory.īut Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has been cautious on the possibility of any legislative changes at the national level to recognise same-sex unions. Many areas have followed suit, with activists saying more than 200 municipalities now recognise same-sex partnerships, granting couples rights including the ability to visit a partner in hospital and rent property together. Tokyo's Shibuya district in 2015 became the first place in Japan to begin issuing symbolic 'partnership' certificates to same-sex couples. The city is considering offering various services currently only available to married couples to those with the partnership certificate, including applying for city-administered apartments, the spokesman said.
The metropolitan government plans to ask legislators to approve revising a local ordinance next month, and will then begin accepting applications for the certificates in October and issuing them in November.
