Where next after Coman?

This article considers the impact of the recent judgement of the Court of Justice of the European Union in Case C-673/16 Coman and Others in which same-sex marriages where found to fall under the definition of ‘spouse’ in the Citizenship Directive. In light of recent societal and case law developments in Europe it is possible that Coman may come to be an important foundational case which will form part of the groundwork for the CJEU to advance the rights of unmarried couples in the EU migration context. This article examines the current position of unmarried couples (including registered or civil partners) under EU migration legislation as well as recent developments under the European Convention of Human Rights to argue that there are clear indications that EU migration laws need to be adapted to better suit a wider range of relationships than marriage.d