LGBT rights in Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha

An ordinance allowing same-sex marriage was approved by the Ascension Island Council on 31 May 2016, in a 5–0 vote.[7][8] It was signed by the Governor and published in the official gazette on 20 June.[9] On 23 December 2016, the Governor issued an order to commence the law on 1 January 2017.[10][11]

On 23 February 2017, after consultation with the Governor of Saint Helena, the Tristan da Cunha Island Council agreed that a law to legalise same-sex marriage would go forward formally for adoption.[12] On 4 August, the Marriages (Tristan da Cunha) Ordinance, 2017, extending the application of the Marriage (Ascension) Ordinance, 2016 to Tristan da Cunha, was signed by the Governor and published in the official gazette. It took effect upon publication.[13][14][15]

On 27 April 2016, the Saint Helena Executive Council announced a public consultation on a draft of a new marriage ordinance, which, if approved, would allow same-sex couples to marry. The consultation lasted until 25 May,[16][17] and revealed a majority of respondents in favour of same-sex marriage.[18] On 15 November 2016, the Executive Council decided to allow a same-sex marriage bill to proceed to the Legislative Council, after the draft bill underwent a number of technical issues addressed by the Attorney General.[19][20][21]

On 12 December 2016, after a lengthy debate, the Legislative Council passed an amendment removing the provisions allowing same-sex marriage from the bill, which led to the entire bill being withdrawn.[22]

In January 2017, a same-sex couple applied to marry in Saint Helena. The registrar was in the process of obtaining legal advice as to how to proceed (the existing Marriage Ordinance 1851 being unclear on same-sex marriage) when two members of the public filed caveats (objections) to the marriage notice. Subsequently, the registrar referred the issue to the Chief Justice of the Saint Helena Supreme Court for a decision. A preliminary hearing took place in the court on 23 February 2017.[23] The parties in the case were given until July 2017 to submit their arguments.[24]

At the Legislative Council meeting on 22 September 2017, members agreed to notify the Council as to their opinions on the subject at a later meeting. This would allow another same-sex marriage ordinance to be debated before the end of the year, and avoid a full Supreme Court hearing on the issue, which was expected in January 2018.[25][26]

On 6 October 2017, the Legislative Council decided to conduct a series of public consultations on the bill throughout the month.[27][28] On 4 December, the Social & Community Development Committee, which conducted the consultations, recommended the Executive Council to approve the draft ordinance with one minor technical amendment, which the Executive Council did the following day.[29][30][31][32] On 19 December, after a failed attempt to remove the same-sex marriage portion of the legislation, the ordinance was approved by the Legislative Council by a 9–2 vote.[33][34][35] It was subsequently signed by the Governor of Saint Helena, becoming the Marriage Ordinance 2017, and took effect upon publication on 20 December 2017.[36]

The first same-sex marriage in Saint Helena took place on 31 December 2018.[37][38]