The Finnish parliament on Friday voted to allow same-sex couples in registered partnerships to adopt the natural children of their partner.
With the new law, children could be eligible for alimony and gain the right to inherit the parent who is not their biological parent.
Should the couple separate, the non-biological parent would also qualify for visitation rights.
The government bill was passed Friday by a 108-29 vote with 61 members of parliament absent. One legislator abstained.
The bill has been preceded by a lengthy debate, and some members of the ruling four-party coalition voted against it.
Earlier this week, a member of the opposition True Finns Party, Pentti Oinoen, drew fire when he expressed his opposition to the proposal by arguing that in future there might even be demands that pet owners to get the right to marry their pet dogs.
After a meeting with speaker Sauli Niinisto on Thursday, Oinionen said his remarks were not meant to offend anybody. Niinisto came to the same conclusion, the Helsingin Sanomat newspaper reported.
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