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Amsterdam Research Centre for Migration ARC-M

Same-Sex Marriage and Migration: Politics of Belonging, State Regulations, and New Ways of Doing Family across Borders

Workshop report

27 September 2024

A workshop on ‘Same-Sex Marriage and Migration’ took place on 19-20 September, hosted by the Amsterdam Research Centre for Migration and the “Strange(r) Families” research project. The workshop brought together authors and editors working on a special issue on the implications of the legal recognition of same-sex marriage on for queer people’s mobilities on the one hand, and migration governance on the other hand. The special issue, which has been conditionally accepted by the Journal for Migration and Ethnic Studies, will be guest edited by Apostolos Andrikopoulos (UCL) and ARC-M director Saskia Bonjour (UvA).
The workshop group at work

Contradictory Policies in Marriage Migration

In an era where the social significance of marriage is under scrutiny, marriage has emerged as a platform for migrants and LGBTI+ individuals to assert their rights. However, governmental responses to these assertions vary. While many countries have expanded their marriage laws to encompass same-sex couples and protect their families, they have also imposed restrictions on cross-border marriages, such as income thresholds, integration requirements, and age limits, aimed at curbing marriage migration. This dual development reflects a contradictory approach to marriage, ostensibly inclusive towards LGBTI+ individuals and their families but exclusionary towards migrants and their families. These represent two facets of the politics of belonging in which liberal democracies are increasingly invested, intersecting in the regulation of marriage migration for same-sex couples.

The legal recognition of same-sex marriage in numerous countries worldwide has not only redefined the legal concept of marriage, with significant implications for sexual citizenship, but has also reshaped the landscape of family migration, granting marriage migration rights to same-sex spouses. The traditional paradigm of a male breadwinner and a female dependent, which has implicitly informed the design of family reunification policies in Europe and elsewhere, is now being challenged by the migration of same-sex couples through formal family reunification routes.

Migration through same-sex marriage assumes global significance as marriage often serves as one of the few viable avenues for legal migration to the Global North, particularly for those from economically disadvantaged backgrounds who are excluded from other mobility categories. The legalization of same-sex unions has, therefore, not only extended marriage rights but also opened up a previously unavailable route for migration for same-sex couples.

JEMS Special Issue

In the workshop, we addressed these tensions and explored the interconnections between same-sex marriage and migration. The goal of the Special Issue is to establish the groundwork for a new research agenda that promises to deepen our understanding of the intricate dynamics surrounding same-sex marriage and migration with broader relevance for the politics of belonging and sexual citizenship. The special issue will explore the implications of the legal recognition of same-sex marriage on the state’s efforts to regulate migration through family regulation, as well as how the legal recognition of same-sex unions has led to new mobility patterns and novel ways of doing family.