Marriage Amendment (Definition and Religious Freedoms) Act 2017
| Marriage Amendment (Definition and Religious Freedoms) Act 2017 | |
|---|---|
| Parliament of Australia | |
| |
| Citation | No. 129, 2017 |
| Territorial extent | Australia |
| Passed by | Senate |
| Passed | 29 November 2017 |
| Passed by | House of Representatives |
| Passed | 7 December 2017 |
| Royal assent | 8 December 2017 |
| Commenced | 9 December 2017 |
| Legislative history | |
| First chamber: Senate | |
| Introduced by | Dean Smith |
| First reading | 15 November 2017 |
| Second reading | 28 November 2017 |
| Third reading | 29 November 2017 |
| Second chamber: House of Representatives | |
| Member(s) in charge | Warren Entsch |
| First reading | 4 December 2017 |
| Second reading | 7 December 2017 |
| Third reading | 7 December 2017 |
| Amends | |
| Marriage Act 1961 (No. 12, 1961) | |
| Keywords | |
| same-sex marriage | |
| Status: In force (amended) | |
The Marriage Amendment (Definition and Religious Freedoms) Act 2017 (Cth) is an Act of the Parliament of Australia, which legalises same-sex marriage in Australia by amending the Marriage Act 1961 to allow marriage between two persons of marriageable age, regardless of their gender.
Introduced as a private member's bill by Western Australian Senator Dean Smith of the Liberal Party following the Australian Marriage Law Postal Survey, the bill passed the Parliament on 7 December 2017. It received royal assent on the following day and came into effect on 9 December 2017.