In an enactment, de facto relationship means a relationship between 2 people (whether a man and a woman, a man and a man, or a woman and a woman) who—

Despite subsection (1), a relationship involving a person aged 16 or 17 years is not a de facto relationship unless that person has obtained consent for the relationship in accordance with section 46A of the Care of Children Act 2004.

In determining whether 2 people live together as a couple in a relationship in the nature of marriage or civil union, the court or person required to determine the question must have regard to—

A de facto relationship ends if—

For the purposes of an enactment, the relationship of step-parent, stepson, stepdaughter, or any other relationship described by a word containing the prefix “step”, may be established by civil union or by de facto relationship as well as by marriage.