Dare to be different and learn to be lonely

I kind of got hung up on the simiraities of the dutch words to Norweian :-)

Burgerlijk huwelijk = borgelig ekteskap.
Geregistreerd partnerschap = registrert partnerskap.
Samenlevingscontract = samlivskontrakt.

Registrert Partnerskap has been the same way in Norway as in Holland - the kids has had to be adopted by the other parent. This has however been the only adoption they have been allowed to do - because Norwegian laws say you'll have to be married (not partner) to adopt. So that left people in registrert partnesrkap, in samlivskontrakt or singles unable to adopt, with the exception of the partnesrship adoption for the other parent. (which was made an excetion for the safety of the kids - one didn't want the kids to risk losing the other parent if the biological parent died.)
You can't get assistence to get pregnant (IVF) if you are not married in Norway.

Registrert Parnesrkap was introdced in Norway in 1993 (as the second country in the world) but as 1 January 2009 you can no longer register in partnership (you can chose to keep your old partnership though if you wre allready in a partnership) but you can now have an actual same sex marriage. (and those who were already in a partnership could have their partnership re-registered as a marriage automatically without any new information and seremonies... or keep it as partnership)

This means that gay married couples can finally adopt in Norway, and lesbian married couple can get help getting pregnant through IVF.