Same-sex union legislation legislation of unregistered cohabitation was introduced in the Netherlands in June 1979. However, the first substantial recognition of same-sex couples didn't occur before the introduction of a new legal form, that of registered partnerships, which was first enacted in Denmark in June 1989. Many countries have followed with similar legislation since then. Legislation of these forms of legal unions still occur with a variety of different names, even after the introduction of same sex marriage, although sometimes they are overwritten by subsequent legislation of same-sex marriage. There are currently seventeen countries that have an alternative form of legal recognition other
Same-sex marriage in Sweden said they would like a gender-neutral marriage law which states that marriage can be conducted solely by the state, as is done in several other countries, rather than the current system in which churches have the authority to (legally) marry people, because this would further the separation of church and state. Sweden also has a separate and more limited common-law marriage act for both unmarried and unregistered opposite-sex and same-sex couples. From 1988 to 2003, there were two different laws, one for opposite-sex couples and one for same-sex couples, which have since been united into a single law. Common-law marriage