On April 10, 2025, the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania issued a significant ruling declaring that the provision of the Assisted Reproduction Law limiting assisted reproduction services only to persons who have entered into marriage or registered partnership contradicts the Constitution.

The Court stated in its ruling:

“Article 5, paragraph 3 of the Law, insofar as only persons who have entered into marriage or a registered partnership agreement have the right to receive assisted reproduction services, contradicts Article 29 and Article 53, paragraph 1 of the Constitution.”

What did the Constitutional Court decide?

The Court found that Article 5, paragraph 3 of the Assisted Reproduction Law violates Article 29 of the Constitution (the principle of equality of persons) and Article 53, paragraph 1 (the right to accessible healthcare).

The Constitutional Court clearly stated in its ruling:

“The constitutional principle of equality of persons would be violated if certain persons or groups of persons were treated differently, even though there are no differences of such nature and scope between them that would objectively justify unequal treatment. One of the grounds of discrimination prohibited under Article 29 of the Constitution is the restriction of human rights due to their family status.“

The Court noted the key problem in the current law:

“The fact of marriage or registration of partnership (although a law regulating the procedure for registering partnership has not been adopted) is a criterion determining whether persons, in the presence of relevant medical reasons and in the absence of medical contraindications, will be provided with healthcare service – assisted reproduction.”

The Constitutional Court also emphasized in its ruling:

“There are no such differences between persons who have an established objective medical need for assisted reproduction and who have entered into marriage or registered partnership, and persons who have an established objective medical need for assisted reproduction and who have not entered into marriage or registered partnership, that would objectively justify their different treatment in terms of the right to receive healthcare services.”

The ruling already faces political opposition

Despite the Constitutional Court’s clear ruling on constitutional principles of equality, the ruling “Dawn of Nemunas” party has already announced plans to obstruct its implementation. As reported by BNS on April 13, party chairman Remigijus Žemaitaitis stated their primary goal is to ensure “clear and specific safeguards that would prevent same-sex couples from having children through assisted reproduction” when implementing the Court’s decision. This explicitly discriminatory position directly contradicts the Court’s emphasis on equal healthcare access regardless of family status. Žemaitaitis acknowledged implementation difficulties given Lithuania’s lack of a partnership institution, noting that “any unmarried woman is formally considered single regardless of whether she actually lives alone or not,” yet maintained that his party “will not support amendments” unless they prevent LGBTIQ couples from accessing these services. This stance highlights the ongoing tension between constitutional rights and political resistance to LGBTIQ equality in Lithuania.

The ruling is also significant for lesbian and bisexual women couples

The Court’s decision quotes the applicants’ position, revealing the practical importance of this issue:

“Infertility affects both persons (couples) who have entered into marriage or registered partnership, and persons who have made the decision to create de facto family relationships, however, according to the contested legal regulation established in the Law, families (couples) who have not entered into marriage or have not registered partnership, and single women are not granted the right to receive assisted reproduction services, therefore such persons are discriminated against on the basis of family status.”

The Constitutional Court also noted:

“Couples who have not entered into marriage or have not registered partnership and single persons cannot be provided with healthcare service – assisted reproduction – even in the presence of relevant medical reasons and in the absence of medical contraindications.”

The Court’s decision means that in the future, assisted reproduction services will have to be accessible to:

• Unmarried couples living in de facto families;
• Unmarried women if they have an established medical need and no contraindications. Indirectly, this should also lead to LB women couples’ access to assisted reproduction services.

This is especially important in the context of the current Lithuanian legal framework: LGBTIQ persons still do not have the possibility to enter into marriage or partnership and secure the rights arising from it, including family support measures.

When will the changes take effect?

The Constitutional Court established that the ruling will be officially published in the Register of Legal Acts and will enter into force only on April 10, 2026 – after one year. The Court justified this decision as follows:

“The Constitutional Court noted that the legislature needs a certain amount of time to eliminate the ambiguity of the legal regulation of the conditions for the provision of assisted reproduction services and to establish legal regulation in accordance with the Constitution, according to which these healthcare services would be provided to all persons in the presence of an established objective medical need, among other things, objective circumstances related to a person’s health.”

The Court also explained the potential problems if the decision were to take effect immediately:

“If the ruling of the Constitutional Court in this case were officially published immediately after its public announcement at the sitting of the Constitutional Court, there would be ambiguity in the legal regulation of the conditions for the provision of assisted reproduction services.”

Such a delay gives the legislature time to amend the law and establish new legal regulation in accordance with the Constitution.

Why is this decision important?

This decision is a significant step toward ensuring equal rights for all Lithuanian residents, regardless of their family status. It reflects a broader view of family and recognizes more diverse forms of family and the rights of persons who have not entered into marriage.

The Constitutional Court clearly identified the problem of discrimination in its decision:

“Such legal regulation creates preconditions for situations where, in the presence of an established objective medical need, objective circumstances related to a person’s health, assisted reproduction services will not be provided to persons solely because of their family status, such as solely because couples have not entered into marriage or registered partnership, but live in a de facto family, or because these persons are single.”

The Court also emphasized the state’s responsibility in healthcare:

“The legislature has not complied with the requirement arising from Article 53, paragraph 1 of the Constitution to ensure accessible healthcare for all.”

This ruling contributes to the establishment of the principle of non-discrimination and emphasizes that the right to healthcare, including assisted reproduction services, is a fundamental human right that should not depend on a person’s civil status.