Hong Kong’s top court rules in favor of equal inheritance and housing benefits for same-sex couples

HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong’s top court on Tuesday upheld earlier rulings that favored subsidized housing benefits and equal inheritance rights for same-sex married couples, in a landmark victory for the city’s LGBTQ+ community.

The Court of Final Appeal’s dismissal of the government’s appeals ended some yearslong legal battles over the differential treatment facing same-sex couples married overseas under Hong Kong’s Housing Authority policies and two inheritance laws.

The unanimous decisions are expected to have a far-reaching impact on the lives of same-sex couples, who have traditionally had fewer rights compared to their heterosexual counterparts in the global financial hub.

Chief Justice Andrew Cheung said in his judgement that exclusionary housing policies were argued to be beneficial to opposite-sex married couples because they increase the supply of subsidized housing for them and thereby support the institution of traditional families.

But Cheung said authorities failed to provide evidence showing the potential impact on opposite-sex couples if those policies were relaxed.

“The challenged policies cannot be justified,” he wrote.

On the inheritance laws, judges Roberto Ribeiro and Joseph Fok ruled that the disputed provisions are “discriminatory and unconstitutional” in their written judgement.

Hong Kong does not recognize same-sex marriage, prompting some couples to marry elsewhere.

Currently, the city only recognizes same-sex marriage for certain purposes such as taxation, civil service benefits and dependent visas. Many of the government’s concessions were won through legal challenges, and the city has seen a growing social acceptance toward same-sex marriage.

In September 2023, the top court ruled that the