France’s National Assembly has approved legalizing equal marriage and adoptions for same-sex couples.

The ‘Marriage for All’ bill has now been adopted 329 votes to 229, with 10 ministers abstaining.

It will now go to France’s Senate before it can be signed into law by President Francois Hollande.

Last week, the National Assembly voted in favor of the integral part of the bill, with 249 deputies for and 97 against legalizing same-sex marriage.

The bill has provoked a heated national debate and a series of opposing rallies that brought hundreds of thousands to the streets of Paris.

Over the past ten days, parliamentarians have waded through more than 5,000 amendments proposed by critics of the bill, many as a delaying tactic.

Some suggested proposals to equate gay marriage with polygamy and incestuous weddings.

Marriage equality and adoptions for same-sex couples has also seen thousands and thousands of people march for and against across the country.

While the ‘Marriage for All’ bill originally included a law providing medically assisted procreation to lesbian couples, it was later discarded. However it will be debated later in the year.

Assuming it is passed by the Senate upper house in a 2 April vote, France will join 11 other countries including the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, Norway and South Africa where same-sex marriage is legal.