# Same-sex marriage in Alagoas

Part of the LGBT rights series :
Legal status of same-sex unions :
Marriage legal
Andorra
Argentina
Australia
Austria
Belgium
Brazil
Canada
Chile
Colombia
Costa Rica
Cuba
Denmark
Ecuador
Estonia
Finland
France
Germany
Greece
Iceland
Ireland
Liechtenstein
Luxembourg
Malta
Mexico
Netherlands
New Zealand
Norway
Portugal
Slovenia
South Africa
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
Taiwan
Thailand
United Kingdom
United States
Uruguay
Recognized
Israel :
Civil unions or registered partnerships but not marriage
Bolivia
Croatia
Cyprus
Czech Republic
Hungary
Italy
Latvia
Monaco
Montenegro
San Marino
United Kingdom:
 • Bermuda
 • Cayman Islands :
Minimal recognition
Bulgaria
Cambodia
China
 • Hong Kong
India
Japan
Lithuania
Namibia
Nepal
Netherlands:
 • Sint Maarten
Poland
Romania
Slovakia
United States:
 • American Samoa :
See also
Same-sex union legislation
Same-sex union court cases
Timeline of same-sex marriage
Recognition of same-sex unions in Africa
Recognition of same-sex unions in Asia
Recognition of same-sex unions in Europe
Recognition of same-sex unions in the Americas
Recognition of same-sex unions in Oceania
Marriage privatization
Divorce of same-sex couples
Domestic partnership
Military policy
Adoption
Listings by country
LGBT rights by country or territory :
Notes
1 2 Performed in the Netherlands proper (including the Caribbean Netherlands), as well as in Aruba and Curaçao. May be registered in Sint Maarten in such cases, but the rights of marriage are not guaranteed.
↑ Neither performed nor recognized in Niue, Tokelau, or the Cook Islands.
↑ Neither performed nor recognized in six British Overseas Territories.
1 2 Neither performed nor recognized in some tribal nations. Recognized but not performed in several other tribal nations and American Samoa.
↑ Registered foreign marriages confer all marriage rights. Domestic common-law marriages confer most rights of marriage. Domestic civil marriage recognized by some cities.
1 2 3 4 5 The Coman v. Romania ruling of the European Court of Justice obliges the state to provide residency rights for the foreign spouses of EU citizens. Some member states, including Romania, do not follow the ruling.
↑ A "declaration of family relationship" is available in several of Cambodia's communes which may be useful in matters such as housing, but is not legally binding.
↑ Guardianship agreements, conferring some limited legal benefits, including decisions about medical and personal care.
↑ Inheritance, guardianship rights, and residency rights for foreign spouses of legal residents.
↑ Courts have recognised guru–shishya, nata pratha or maitri karar–type contractual relationships, but they are not legally binding.
↑ Some cities and prefectures issue partnership certificates, but they are not legally binding.
↑ Marriages conducted abroad between a Namibian national and a foreign spouse recognized for residency rights.
↑ Hospital visitation rights through a "legal representative" status.
1 2 Not yet in effect. :
LGBTQ portal :
vte :
Same-sex marriage in Alagoas has been legal since 7 December 2011. Alagoas was the first Brazilian state to legalize same-sex marriage. Civil unions (união estável) have also been available since 2011.

## Legal history

On 6 December 2011, Judge James Magalhães de Medeiros of the Alagoas Judicial Administrative Department (Corregedoria Geral de Justiça do Estado de Alagoas) instructed the state's civil registry offices to process marriage applications from same-sex couples in an identical manner to opposite-sex couples. The decision, known as "Provision N° 40", came into effect upon publication on 7 December 2011. This made Alagoas the first state in Brazil to open marriage to same-sex couples. Civil unions have been legally performed and recognized nationwide, including in Alagoas, since May 2011 in accordance with a ruling from the Supreme Federal Court.
On 17 January 2012, a male couple who had been together for almost 25 years became the second same-sex couple to marry in the state, and the first to do so since the new ruling. In July 2011, a lesbian couple was able to have their civil union converted into a marriage by a judge in Maceió.

## Marriage statistics

The following table shows the number of same-sex marriages performed in Alagoas according to the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics.
| Year | Same-sex marriages | Same-sex marriages | Same-sex marriages | Total marriages | % same-sex |
| Year | Female | Male | Total | Total marriages | % same-sex |
| 2013 | 14 | 3 | 17 | 16,049 | 0.11% |
| 2014 | 15 | 3 | 18 | 17,550 | 0.10% |
| 2015 | 29 | 19 | 48 | 18,049 | 0.27% |
| 2016 | 20 | 12 | 32 | 15,789 | 0.20% |
| 2017 | 34 | 10 | 44 | 14,747 | 0.30% |
| 2018 | 56 | 39 | 95 | 15,096 | 0.63% |
| 2019 | 53 | 25 | 88 | 15,184 | 0.58% |
| 2020 | 48 | 28 | 76 | 10,633 | 0.71% |
Figures for 2020 are lower than previous years because of the restrictions in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic.