By Rachel La Corte

A.P. Writer

OLYMPIA, Wash.—Tom Richardson and Salvador Valenzuela first marked their commitment to each other with a city domestic partnership in Seattle. When Massachusetts became the first state to allow same-sex marriage, they married and hyphenated their last names.

Now back in Washington state, the Richardson-Valenzuelas plan to register for a state domestic partnership here, taking advantage of the new law that took effect July 23 and gives same-sex couples some of the benefits that married heterosexual couples enjoy.

The only problem is that by doing so, they risk getting Salvador, a Mexican national, deported, because registering could jeopardize the temporary tourist visas he uses to enter the country.

“It’s really important for our relationship to be recognized,” said Tom Richardson-Valenzuela, who said they both realize that the immigration laws may catch up with them. “We are a legitimate couple. If we have to leave the United States, as much as we don’t want to leave the country, we will.”

Gay and lesbian advocacy groups are urging couples like the Richardson-Valenzuelas to think twice before registering. Couples where one or both members are either foreign nationals or members of the military are at risk if they acknowledge their relationships.

“Be very, very careful and seek legal advice before seeking a domestic partnership,” said Lara Schwartz, the legal director for the Human Rights Campaign in Washington, D.C.

Because immigration law does not recognize same-sex couples, an American citizen would not be able to sponsor their partner if they are on a temporary visa, and in some cases registering for a domestic partnership could jeopardize a foreign national’s status. And in the case of military couples, it could violate the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” law and jeopardize their careers.

The new state law creates a domestic partnership registry with the state, and provides enhanced rights for same-sex couples, including hospital visitation rights, the ability to authorize autopsies and organ donations and inheritance rights when there is no will.

Approximately four percent of the gay and lesbian couples in the state—at least 700 couples—include one foreign national, according to a 2004 report prepared for Immigration Equality, a New York-based advocacy group.

Schwartz said most temporary visas are granted after the applicant promises to return to their home country.

“Once you enter into a legal partnership, be it a marriage or domestic partnership, you have really undermined that statement,” she said.

Tom Richardson-Valenzuela said they were fully aware of the risks to Salvador’s visa status—he travels regularly to the United States on a tourist visa—when they registered for the Seattle domestic partnership, and again when they married in 2005.

But because their marriage is not recognized in Washington state, the couple want to register as domestic partners in order to get some of the rights and benefits that they would get if they were still in Massachusetts.

“I can’t tell you how important that is,” he said.

The new law takes effect a year after the Washington Supreme Court upheld Washington’s ban on same-sex marriage in a 5-4 decision, ruling that state lawmakers were justified in passing the 1998 Defense of Marriage Act, which restricts marriage to unions between a man and woman.

Several other states have approved either civil unions or domestic partnerships for same-sex couples, including Connecticut, Vermont, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Maine, California and Oregon. Hawaii extends certain spousal rights to same-sex couples and cohabiting heterosexual pairs. Only Massachusetts allows same-sex couples to marry.