Estonia, EU – Baltic States, Legislation, Society

The Supreme Court said that the law does not forbid issuing a living permit for the duration of an ongoing court dispute for cohabiting with a spouse, including when it is a same-sex marriage entered into outside Estonia.

Initial legal protection is a temporary measure which the court applies for the protection of the rights of the plaintiff for the duration of a court proceeding.

The administrative law chamber of the top court emphasized that the Constitution does not state the right of same-sex couples to marry in Estonia. But the constitutional right to the protection of family life extends to same-sex couples as well as the right to be not discriminated against. The cohabitation of same-sex couples is not prohibited in Estonia nor punishable by law. The state has a right to deny a foreigner the right to live with a family member in Estonia, but only if there is a reasonable excuse to do so.