The market research company RAIT has conducted a poll on civil partnership among 1003 Lithuanian inhabitants aged from 15 to 74. The survey, commissioned by the Baltic News Service, was carried out in November 2011.

According to the survey, seven out of ten Lithuanians believe that civil partnership status should be made legal, but only between a man and a woman. Only 4% of the respondents agree with a legal civil partnership model that would apply to both same-sex and heterosexual couples. Respondents with higher education, with an income of over 1100 LTL and younger respondents are more likely to approve of homosexual partnership. A quarter of the respondents (25%) believe that civil partnership should not be recognized at all.

The Lithuanian Ministry of Justice in November presented a draft law on recognizing the status of cohabiting unmarried partners. However, the Ministry does not propose to include same-sex couples in the scope of this law.

Member of Parliament Ms. Pavilionienė (Social Democrat) has in turn registered a draft partnership law which would include same-sex partnership. Minister of Justice Remigijus Šimašius, however, argues that homosexual couples already have sufficient legal measures in place to protect their interests.

Some Conservative Members of Parliament do not approve of the legalization of any kind of partnership, fearing that this might in the future lead to legalization of homosexual marriage.

The Government is currently deliberating on these proposals before a final decision on partnership law is taken.

Also in November 2011, the research company GfK Custom Research Baltic conducted an internet poll of 1714 respondents on whether they would be willing or unwilling to be neighbours with different social, ethnic and other groups. 56% of the respondents are unwilling to live next door to homosexuals, while one third of respondents said “it does not matter”. 72% of the respondents expressed being uncomfortable with the idea of living next door to someone with AIDS.