Same-sex marriage was legalised in Belgium 20 years ago, with the first ceremony taking place on 6 June 2003. The number of same-sex marriages has since stabilised, with no significant upsurge in the past ten years, L'Avenir reports.
In 2021, same-sex marriages accounted for 3% of all marriages: 1,087 same-sex couples tied the knot, compared to 39,749 heterosexual couples, according to figures from Belgium's statistics office Statbel.
In the first decade of legalised same-sex marriage, Belgium registered on average 2,000 same-sex marriages per year. In the past ten years, however, that average stands at 1,000 weddings, according to L'Avenir.
The total number of marriages over this period has fluctuated, but has shown no decisive trend of decline. Between 2011 and 2021, the number of weddings varied between 37,000 to 45,000 unions (with a notable exception in 2020 when they dropped to 32,000).
In 2021, most Belgian same-sex marriages were registered in Flanders, with 644 couples wed in the Flemish region, compared to the 289 unions in Wallonia and 118 in Brussels.
Despite legal advances, LGBTQ people still face discrimination in Belgium. In a 2020 survey from the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA), 29% of lesbian, gay or bisexual respondents from Belgium said that they always avoid holding hands in public with a same-sex partner, because they fear being assaulted or harassed.
21% of respondents also said that they are never open about their LGBTQ identity.
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Neighbouring countries have similar figures on same-sex marriages. The Netherlands, the first country to legalise same-sex marriage in 2001, registers an average of 1,300 same-sex marriages per year.
France, which celebrated ten years of marriage equality in April, registered 6,406 same-sex unions in 2021, which also account for 3% of total marriages in the country.
