Partners for Law in Development - PLD / Bi-Monthly Legal News / International Updates / Asia / Hong Kong Court of Appeal allows grant of spousal visa to homosexual woman

Hong Kong Court of Appeal allows grant of spousal visa to homosexual woman

In a unanimous decision, the Hong Kong Court of Appeal has held that the Immigration Department’s refusal to recognize the UK civil partnership of a homosexual woman and grant her visa was unlawful and amounted to indirect discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender, and the nature of the relationship between the spouses. However, as same-sex marriages are not recognized in Hong Kong, the Court emphasized that granting a dependent visa to the woman must not be read as an official validation of same-sex unions.

Source: http://bit.ly/2wil9KG