Same-sex marriage in South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands

Same-sex marriage became legal in South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands on March 13, 2014. This happened because the rules from England and Wales were applied there. Even though South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands do not have permanent residents, they were the first British Overseas Territory to allow same-sex marriages. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office updated its travel advice website in January 2018 to include this information.

Background

South Georgia was claimed by Captain James Cook for the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1775. In 1908, the United Kingdom officially took control of the South Sandwich Islands as well. By 1985, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands became their own special territory.

A law from 1949 allowed people to get married there, but it didn’t clearly say if people of the same gender could marry. Even though the law didn’t say “no,” it wasn’t allowed because of older rules. This law was changed in the Falkland Islands in 1996 but is still used in South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands.

Same-sex marriage law

On 17 July 2013, Queen Elizabeth II approved a law that allowed two people of the same gender to marry in England and Wales. This law started on 13 March 2014. Because of this law, places like South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands also began to allow same-gender marriages.

The government updated its travel website in 2018 to mention this change, but no same-gender weddings had happened there by then. Any wedding done there is recognized in the United Kingdom. Weddings need to happen within three months after getting a marriage license and usually take place near Grytviken, often at the Norwegian Anglican Church. In 2024, a new law was approved to make sure the rules about marriage were fair for everyone and set the minimum age to marry at 18.

Religious performance

The Norwegian Anglican Church in Grytviken is part of the Parish of the Falkland Islands. The Church of England has allowed its clergy to bless—but not perform—certain marriages since 17 December 2023. It is unclear if a similar policy exists in the Parish of the Falkland Islands, an extra-provincial church in the Anglican Communion.