LGBTQ+ Families, Welfare, and Same-sex Marriage Legalisation in Taiwan: A Social Policy Perspective

This article examines whether and to what extent legalised same-sex marriage can assist lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, and queer (LGBTQ+) people to develop family life and protect them from defamilisation and familisation risks. While previous research has explored the views of supporters and opponents in debates on same-sex marriage in Taiwan, this study adopts a social policy perspective, focusing on the provision of and gaps in welfare for LGBTQ+ people since marriage equality. A content analysis of online community discussions since Taiwan’s same-sex marriage legalisation in 2019 shows that local LGBTQ+ community discussions were filled with concerns about the lack of familial status for cross-border couples, lack of legal parental status and rights for same-sex parents, and questions about heteronormative values and kinship ties. This article reveals how heteronormative assumptions embedded in the policy system and in the wider society influence LGBTQ+ people’s welfare, and identifies supplementary and alternative measures.