The constitutional court in Italy has ruled that a non-biological mother in a same-sex union is entitled to paternity leave.
The court found that a 2001 decree on parental leave was unconstitutional, because it did not recognise that a non-biological mother in a lesbian civil union was entitled to 10 days of paternity leave, which is mandatory in Italy.
It argued that parents’ responsibilities and a child having time with both parents did not depend on their sexual orientation. The ruling equates the role of a non-biological mother in a same-sex union with that of a father, and that she should be entitled to bonding time with a newborn.
The ruling is also applicable in non-legitimating adoption cases, where the legally recognised relationship with the biological mother is accompanied by the child’s bond with the intended mother. It additionally addresses women who travelled abroad for legally procured IVF treatments.
In May 2025, the constitutional court ruled that two women can both register as parents of a child on a birth certificate. It also ruled that parental rights recognition cannot be restricted to just the biological mother in families with same-sex parents.
Within the court documents for the latest ruling, one of the ruling judges said: “The need to dedicate adequate time to caring for the child is highlighted, including through the modulation of time allocated to work, consistent with the goal of promoting the exercise of parental duties through a better organisation of family needs, in a process of progressively enhancing the functional aspect of parenthood, which remains identical in both homosexual and heterosexual couples.
“Within a couple, both parents are required to provide for the physical, psychological, and educational wellbeing of a child, because the parental bond originates precisely from the assumption of responsibilities consistent with the very essence of the parent-child relationship.”
