Civil Partnership Act 2004

211 Registration by armed forces personnel

(1) Her Majesty may by Order in Council make provision for two people to register as civil partners of each other—

(a) in prescribed countries or territories outside the United Kingdom, and

(b) in the presence of an officer appointed by virtue of the Registration of Births, Deaths and Marriages (Special Provisions) Act 1957 (c. 58),

in cases where the officer is satisfied that the conditions in subsection (2) are met.

(2) The conditions are that—

(a) at least one of the proposed civil partners—

(i) is a member of a part of Her Majesty’s forces serving in the country or territory,

(ii) is employed in the country or territory in such other capacity as may be prescribed, or

(iii) is a child of a person falling within sub-paragraph (i) or (ii) and has his home with that person in that country or territory,

(b) the proposed civil partners would have been eligible to register as civil partners of each other in such part of the United Kingdom as is determined in accordance with the Order, and

(c) such other requirements as may be prescribed are complied with.

(3) In determining for the purposes of subsection (2) whether one person is the child of another, a person who is or was treated by another as a child of the family in relation to—

(a) a marriage to which the other is or was a party, or

(b) a civil partnership in which the other is or was a civil partner,

is to be regarded as the other’s child.

(4) An Order in Council under this section may provide that two people who register as civil partners of each other under such an Order are to be treated for the purposes of section 221(1)(c)(i) and (2)(c)(i), 222(c), 224(b), 225(1)(c)(i) and (3)(c)(i), 229(1)(c)(i) and (2)(c)(i), 230(c) and 232(b) and section 1(3)(c)(i) of the Presumption of Death (Scotland) Act 1977 (c. 27) as if they had done so in the part of the United Kingdom determined in accordance with subsection (2)(b).

(5) Any references in this section—

(a) to a country or territory outside the United Kingdom,

(b) to forces serving in such a country or territory, and

(c) to persons employed in such a country or territory,

include references to ships which are for the time being in the waters of a country or territory outside the United Kingdom, to forces serving in any such ship and to persons employed in any such ship.