The Highest Divorce Rate to Marriage Ratio Recorded in Iran

On Tuesday, October 15, the website 'Open Data Iran' published a report on the divorce rates in Iran, announcing that in the year 1402 (2023), for every 2.4 registered marriages, one divorce was recorded in the country, marking 'the highest divorce to marriage ratio in the history of civil registration.' The report noted an unprecedented increase in divorce statistics and a decrease in registered marriages in 1402, stating that according to the latest civil registration statistics, the number of registered marriages has dropped to the lowest level in 27 years, approximately 481,000 cases, while the divorce rate has reached 202,000 cases, which is the third highest divorce record in the history of civil registration in Iran. As shown in the chart, the divorce to marriage ratio in the 1360s (1980s) was less than 9 per 100, but this ratio has increased more than fourfold over four decades, reaching about 40 divorces for every 100 marriages in the first three years of the 1400s (2021-2023). In 1402, the highest divorce to marriage ratio belonged to Alborz province with a record of 61 divorces for every 100 marriages. The provinces of Mazandaran, Tehran, Gilan, Semnan, and Markazi follow with rates between 50 and 58 divorces for every 100 marriages. The provinces of Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari with 30 and South Khorasan with 27 divorces for every 100 marriages are at the lower end of the table. Sistan and Baluchestan province has the lowest rate with 10 divorces for every 100 marriages, significantly trailing behind. Experts say that economic problems have the most significant impact on the increase in divorce and the decrease in the duration of marriages in Iran. Criticism has been directed at the achievements of the 'Childbearing Law,' which has led to an 11% increase in divorces and a 5.5% decrease in births over the course of a year. Experts attribute the root causes of separations in Iran to 'inability to secure the minimum necessities of life.' The divorce record last year was reached in Tehran province.