LGBT rights in South Africa

==Adoption and parenting==
A number of High Court judgments have determined that the sexual orientation of a parent is not a relevant issue in decisions on child custody.<ref name="aba">{{cite journal |first=Wendy |last=Isaack |title=Equal in Word of Law: The Rights of Lesbian and Gay People in South Africa |journal=Human Rights |year=2003 |volume=30 |number=3 |pages=19–22 |url=http://www.americanbar.org/publications/human_rights_magazine_home/human_rights_vol30_2003/summer2003/hr_summer03_southafrica.html |access-date=13 May 2013}}</ref> In 2002, the Constitutional Court's ruling in ''[[Du Toit v Minister of Welfare and Population Development]]'' gave same-sex partners the same adoption rights as married spouses, allowing couples to adopt children jointly and allowing one partner to adopt the other's children.<ref>{{cite news |title=Lesbians, gays can adopt children |newspaper=[[News24 (website)|News24]] |date=10 September 2002 |url=http://www.news24.com/World/News/Lesbians-gays-can-adopt-children-20020910 |access-date=15 August 2011}}</ref> The adoption law has since been replaced by the ''[[Children's Act, 2005]]'', which allows adoption by spouses and by "partners in a permanent domestic life-partnership" regardless of orientation.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.centreforchildlaw.co.za/images/files/mediaguides/childrens_act_media_guide.pdf |title=A Media Guide to the Children's Act 38 of 2005 |publisher=Centre for Child Law; Media Monitoring Project |year=2008 |last=Donelly |first=Lynley |access-date=15 August 2011 |page=40 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151019171622/http://www.centreforchildlaw.co.za/images/files/mediaguides/childrens_act_media_guide.pdf |archive-date=19 October 2015 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In 1997, [[artificial insemination]], which was previously limited to married women, was made legal for single women including lesbians.<ref name="aba" /> In the 2003 case of ''[[J v Director General, Department of Home Affairs]]'', the Constitutional Court ruled that a child born by artificial insemination to a lesbian couple was to be regarded as legitimate, and that the partner who was not the biological parent was entitled to be regarded as a natural parent and to be recorded on the child's birth certificate.<ref>{{cite news |title=Lesbians' twins 'legitimate' |newspaper=[[News24 (website)|News24]] |date=28 March 2003 |url=http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/Lesbians-twins-legitimate-20030328 |access-date=15 August 2011}}</ref>

In November 2017, the [[National Assembly of South Africa|National Assembly]] passed the ''Labour Laws Amendment Act 10 of 2018'', introduced as a [[private member's bill]] by [[African Christian Democratic Party]] MP [[Cheryllyn Dudley]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.timeslive.co.za/news/south-africa/2017-11-30-parental-leave-breakthrough-national-assembly-passes-bill/|title=Parental leave breakthrough: National Assembly passes bill|work=timeslive.co.za|date=30 November 2017}}</ref> It was signed into law by [[President of South Africa|President]] [[Cyril Ramaphosa]] in November 2018.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.timeslive.co.za/news/south-africa/2018-11-26-working-dads-now-entitled-to-10-days-leave-on-birth-of-a-child/|title=Working dads now entitled to 10 days' leave on birth of a child|work=timeslive.co.za|date=26 November 2018}}</ref> The law allows same-sex couples, as well as adoptive and surrogate parents, to take parental leave, and fathers will get at least 10 days paternity leave when a child is born or when an adoption order is granted. It also enables the adoptive parents of a child of under two years old to take an adoption leave of two months and two weeks consecutively. If there are two adoptive parents‚ one of them is entitled to adoption leave and the other is entitled to parental leave of 10 days. The same provision is made for commissioning parents in a surrogate motherhood agreement.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.dispatchlive.co.za/news/2018-11-26-dads-now-entitled-to-10-days-leave-on-childs-birth/|title=Dads now entitled to 10 days' leave on child's birth|work=dispatchlive.co.za|date=26 November 2018|last=Mabuza|first=Ernest}}</ref> The law went into effect on 1 January 2019.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.timeslive.co.za/news/south-africa/2018-11-28-dads-can-claim-paternity-leave-from-uif-as-of-january-2019/|title=Dads can claim paternity leave from UIF as of January 2019|work=timeslive.co.za|date=28 November 2018|last=Pijoos|first=Iavan}}</ref>