Austria creates legal security for rainbow families!

Austria creates legal security for rainbow families!

Österreich - On May 30, 2025, a significant progress for the LGBTIQ+ Community in Austria was recorded. The National Council has decided on a national action plan against Hate Crime, which in particular aims to increase the protection of rainbow families. Mario Lindner, the SPÖ equal treatment spokesman, welcomed the recent improvement measures and was committed to comprehensive legal protection. Among other things, this also includes same -sex couples whose marriages are not recognized in their home country. In the future, they should receive full rights in the future reports OTS .

The goal of the Ministerial Council decision on the marriage reform is to improve the legal framework for rainbow families. A amendment to the International Private Law Act, which is to be passed this year, will legally secure adoptions by same -sex couples. This applies even in cases where one of the partners does not have an Austrian citizenship. These measures are part of a more comprehensive strategy to offer full protection and legal certainty in Austria

European developments

While Austria takes positive steps, rainbow families in many European countries continue to fight for their rights. In Latvia, an same-sex couple reported that it officially arrived on July 1, 2025 after it had sued the instance train explained the standard . These developments are in line with a broader movement within the European community, where the recognition and protection of LGBTI rights varied in recent years.

In Poland, for example, there are progress in relation to LGBTIQ rights under the newly formed government coalition. A draft law that is supposed to enable registered partnerships for same -sex couples was presented in October. However, the draft still has to pass the parliament and needs the signature of the conservative president Andrzej Duda, who is not considered a great friend of the queer community. In order to finalize the draft, the liberal parties have given up the possibility of adoption for same-sex couples in order to appease the conservative PSL Standard .

The importance of protecting LGBTI rights

The protection of the LGBTI rights is very important in the European Union. The EU has been committed to equality for LGBTI people for 25 years and the rights of this group are anchored in important documented agreements, such as the contract of Amsterdam and the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union presents Youth.europa.eu Fest .

Nevertheless, the situation for LGBTI people remains worrying in many EU countries. According to a survey by the European Union for fundamental rights from 2013, they suffer from discrimination, harassment and violence. Michelle O’Flaherty, director of the FRA, found in 2020 that many LGBTI people in public do not want to hold hands with same-sex partners out of worry.
The EU therefore works on a new strategy to improve this situation, while Ilga-Europe monitors the status of LGBTI rights and annually the benchmarking report "Rainbow Europe" published.