Tokyo begins to acknowledge same-sex couples.

On Tuesday, Tokyo began awarding partnership certificates to same-sex couples who reside and work in the capital, a long-awaited development in a nation lacking marriage equality.

The certificates permit LGBTQ couples to be classified as married couples for a variety of public services, including housing, healthcare, and welfare.

Since the Shibuya district of Tokyo pioneered the system in 2015, more than 200 smaller local g....