Brazil records more divorces and fewer marriages in 2022

Brazil had 970,000 civil marriages held in registry offices in 2022. The number represents an increase of 4.0% compared to 2021, but has continued to decline since 2015.

The data is part of the Civil Registration Statistics, released this Wednesday (27), by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE).

According to IBGE, the number of marriages reflects a downward trend when compared to previous years. Factors such as the COVID-19 pandemic may have influenced this decline, with many couples postponing or canceling their wedding plans due to restrictions and public health concerns.

“Since 2015, the number of marriages has been on a downward trend. There was an even more significant decrease between 2019 and 2020, closely related to the pandemic scenario and health guidelines for social distancing”, explained researcher Klívia Brayner.

Of the total number of marriages, IBGE found that 11 thousand were same-sex marriages. The number represents the record in the series, since 2013, when the National Council of Justice (CNJ) prevented registry offices from refusing to celebrate marriages between people of the same sex.

Regarding the age range of the spouses, the research shows that people over 40 are more interested in sealing the union. In 2000, 6.3% of women who married were 40 years of age or older. In 2022, this percentage reaches 24.1%. This phenomenon was also observed among men in the same age group, who represented 10.2% in 2000 and reached 30.4% in 2022.

Divorces

The number of divorces continues to rise in the country, according to survey data. There were 420 thousand divorces granted in the first instance or carried out by extrajudicial deeds, an increase of 8.6% compared to the total in 2021 (386.8 thousand).

Among the regions, the Central-West and Northeast presented the greatest variation, of 26.5% and 14.0%, respectively. On average, men divorced at older ages (44) than women (41).

Judicial divorces granted in the first instance corresponded to 81.1% of divorces in the country. In the analysis of this type of divorce according to family arrangement, the highest proportion of dissolutions occurred among families constituted only with minor children, reaching 47.0 % in 2022.

The IBGE survey also showed a reduction in the average length of marriage. In 2010, it was around 16 years. In 2022, the number fell to 13.8 years.