By: ANDY HUMM | Stereotypically right on time, on January 1, the first gay couple registered under the new Swiss federal partnership act. The couple, who wished to remain anonymous, have been partners for 30 years.
Donatella Zappa, leader of the Imbarco Immediato group that worked for the recognition statute, attended the ceremony. She told Radio Svizzera di Lingua Italiana, “The couple who got married today are quite old and have been looking forward nervously to what is the crowning moment of their lives.”
While gay partners who register get most of the rights of married couples, they are barred from adoption and fertility treatments. According to Swissinfo, foreign partners of Swiss nationals will receive residency, but not the easier access to the naturalization process that people in married couples get.
