The Australian government says polygamy is illegal and they do not recognise foreign polygamous marriages. Marriage laws in Australia define marriage as a union between a man and a woman, and you can only be engaged in one such union at a time (except for the state of Tasmania, which permits same-sex marriage). Australian law recognises both marriages and de facto relationships. Significantly, section 6of that Act states that “a union in the nature of a marriage which is, or has at any time been, polygamous, being a union entered into in a place outside Australia, shall be de… It will create awareness among people, in general, and women, in particular. Under changes to the Family Law Act, de facto relationships - or domestic partnerships, as they are now known - can exist even when one of the parties is already married or in another de facto relationship. Part VA of the Marriage Act provides that overseas marriages are recognised in Australia, subject to a number of exceptions, including marriages that were non-consensual due to fraud, duress or mistaken identity, were incestuous or which involved a person under the age of 16 years. WATCH: Judge rejects Blackmore and Oler’s challenge of polygamy laws. While bigamy is a criminal offence (under section 94 of the Marriage Act 1961), it is not an offence to have multiple simultaneous de facto relationships. Polyandry is illegal in virtually every state in the world. Family payments, such as Family Tax Benefit, are paid in respect of children with the payment provided to the person who has responsibility for the day-to-day care, welfare and development of the child. Polygamy is legal in many African, Asian and Middle Eastern countries, and usually involves more than one wife. No nation can long survive with a twotiered law system. "It will discourage polygamy and encourage women to take up their case with the courts. Eligibility for certain payments and rates of payment can be affected by whether or not a person is considered to be a member of a couple. Firstly: We do not know how some of those to whom Allaah has granted authority over the Muslims dare to oppose Allaah and His religion. Centrelink says it is cheaper to pay benefits to the other wives than would be if they claimed under any number of other benefits. Is it is the situation where your husband is 'seeing' rather than be married to the other woman would not be classed as polygamy. In most of these states, polygyny is allowed and legally sanctioned. The Australian government says polygamy is illegal and they do not recognise foreign polygamous marriages. Bob B. Lv 7. 24 June 2008. However, Chief Justice Bauman commented that an egalitarian form of polygamy called polyamory, that does not include the various forms of abuse found in fundamentalist Mormon types of polygamy, should be legal as long as the persons involved refrain from celebrating marriage ceremonies. Each person’s income and assets are assessed against the income and assets of each of their partners and the lowest rate payable is applied. Confessions of an Australian woman actively seeking a polygamous relationship. – Here is a timeline of polygamy in Canada: 1890: Wilford Woodruff, president of the Mormon church, ends the religion’s long-standing practise of plural marriages, paving the path for Utah to become the 45th American state in 1896. ^ "Polygamy - the right to put down women". But the existing position under Australian law makes regulating polygamous relationships extremely difficult, and family lawyers suggest that cases involving polygamy are rare. 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