Marriages and Divorces, Australia

There were 89,164 marriages registered in Australia in 2021, well below pre-pandemic numbers but more than the historic low (78,989) recorded in 2020. Public health orders including lockdowns, size and density limits on gatherings, mask mandates, and restrictions on social activities such as singing and dancing would have all impacted on couples' marriage plans, especially during the Delta wave from June 2021 onwards.

This article provides details of marriages in 2021, with comparisons made to 2020, the first year of the pandemic, and 2019 as the last pre-pandemic year. Comparisons are also made with an average of 2015-2019 marriage counts to highlight changes in seasonal patterns.

In 2021:

• There were 89,164 marriages registered which was 12.9% higher than in 2020 (78,989), but still 21.7% lower than 2019 (113,815).
• The crude marriage rate was 3.5 per 1,000 people, compared with 3.1 in 2020, and 4.5 in 2019.

The number of marriages registered across each state and territory highlight how the pandemic disproportionately affected some jurisdictions in 2021. 

In 2021:

• There were 31.0% fewer marriages in New South Wales and 34.6% fewer marriages in Victoria when compared with 2019, with the Delta wave and associated public health orders impacting on marriage plans from mid-2021 onwards.
• New South Wales was the only jurisdiction that recorded a decrease in marriages when compared to 2020.
• Marriage numbers in other jurisdictions were less impacted, almost returning to pre-pandemic levels in Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania and Northern Territory.

Marriages normally follow a strong seasonal pattern with couples in most states and territories opting for spring and autumn weddings. Across 2020 and 2021 the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the usual seasonal patterns. For 2021, the impact of the Delta wave is evident with patterns altered from mid-year as the number of infections increased and public health measures were introduced.

Monthly wedding counts for 2021, based on the date weddings occurred, show:

• In the first six months, weddings were proceeding at almost normal rates.
• Particularly low numbers of weddings occurred in July and August (3,934 and 2,981 respectively).
• The normal spring peak in weddings was supressed, with numbers of marriages remaining well below pre-pandemic averages throughout the second half of the year.

The Delta wave of the COVID-19 pandemic was mostly centred in New South Wales and Victoria, with marriages in those two states particularly impacted in the latter half of 2021.

In New South Wales:

• Weddings in the first half of 2021 followed the normal seasonal pattern, with numbers similar to pre-pandemic (2015-2019) averages.
• Public health orders relating to the Delta wave began to impact in July 2021, with only 327 marriages registered.
• In August 2021, limitations on gatherings prevented weddings from going ahead in the Greater Sydney area, with only 153 weddings held in that month.
• From early September, small weddings were able to occur again, although there were still restrictions associated with gatherings during this time.
• The number of marriages remained low for the remainder of the year, with the 3,090 fewer marriages held in the traditionally popular month of October compared with the five-year pre-pandemic average.

In Victoria:

• In 2021, marriages followed normal seasonal patterns for the first five months of the year.
• Marriage numbers fell below five-year pre-pandemic averages from June 2021 as the Delta wave began.
• For the balance of 2021, the number of weddings remained low, following a similar pattern to the first year of the pandemic.
• Just 174 weddings occurred in September 2021, 1,858 less weddings than the five-year pre-pandemic average.

In other states and territories:

• Both the number of marriages and seasonal distribution of those marriages in 2021 more closely resembled averages from 2015-2019.
• The number of marriages was lower than pre-pandemic averages from August 2021 onwards but not as heavily impacted as New South Wales and Victoria.

The number of marriages registered was considerably lower in 2021 than before the pandemic, but the characteristics of those who were able to marry have remained reasonably stable.

In 2021:

• The median age at marriage for males was 32.1 years.
• The median age at marriage for females was 30.5 years.
• 80.7% of marriages were officiated by a civil celebrant, similar to the 80.3% officiated by civil celebrants in 2019 and 2020.

In 2021 there were 2,842 same-sex marriages registered, a slight decrease of 60 (2.1%) compared with 2020. Same-sex marriages represented 3.2% of all marriages registered in Australia in 2021.

Although there have been fewer same-sex marriages every year since their introduction at the end of 2017, the largest decrease occurred between 2019 and 2020 at the time of the COVID-19 pandemic (with 2,605 fewer marriages in 2020 compared with 2019).

Same-sex marriages as a proportion of all marriages have decreased each year since their introduction, accounting for 3.2% in 2021 compared with 5.5% in 2018.

In 2021, more female same-sex couples married (1,771) than male same-sex couples (1,072). This was the case across all states and territories.

Most state and territory Registries of Births, Deaths and Marriages provide couples an alternative to marriage in the form of a relationship register (exceptions are Western Australia and Northern Territory). Relationship registers provide legal proof of a relationship. Registers are available to adults who are in a relationship as a couple, regardless of their sex or gender. Registered relationships are not included in marriage statistics. 

The COVID-19 pandemic appears to have had little impact on registered relationships, with 19,190 relationships registered in 2021 compared with 19,055 in 2020 and 19,870 in 2019.

In 2021, 56,244 divorces were granted in Australia, an increase of 13.6% when compared with 2020 (49,510). The Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia have advised that the high number of divorces finalised in 2021 is in part related to administrative changes to increase finalisations and reduce timeframes. These changes enabled the finalisation of more applications for divorce than previous years and allowed the Court to reduce backlogs by finalising more divorce applications in the year than were received. This constitutes a break in time series and any comparison with earlier years should be made with caution.

In Australia, divorces can only be granted after a minimum of 12 months or more of separation. As such, only a small proportion of divorces finalised in 2021 relate to separations that occurred after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020.

In 2021:

• There were 56,244 divorces granted, compared to 49,510 in 2020 and 48,582 in 2019.
• The crude divorce rate was 2.2 divorces per 1,000 people.
• The higher number of divorces granted in 2021 has increased the divorce rate to a level last recorded in 2011 and 2012.

The characteristics of those granted divorce are relatively stable over time. In 2021, for those marriages that ended in divorce:

• The median duration of marriage to divorce was 12.2 years.
• 47.8% of the divorces granted were of couples with children under 18 years.
• The median age at divorce was 45.9 years for males and 43.0 years for females.

In 2021:

• For males, the highest divorce rate was for those aged 40 to 44 years and 45 to 49 years, with 10.3 divorces per 1,000 males in both age-groups.
• For females, those aged 40 to 44 years had the highest divorce rate, with 10.4 divorces per 1,000 females.
• In the younger age groups (those under 45 years) the divorce rate was higher for females.
• In the older age groups (those aged 45 years or more) the divorce rate was higher for males.

The higher number of divorces granted in 2021 have resulted in increased age-specific divorce rates in all age groups. The proportional distribution across age groups remained in line with previous years.

Divorces data by state and territory are presented by the jurisdiction where the divorce was granted. This may be different to the state or territory in which the applicants usually reside. Increases in 2021 relate to administrative changes applied in each jurisdiction. This constitutes a break in time series and any comparison with earlier years should be made with caution. For further detail on considerations for state-based analysis refer to the Methodology.

In 2021:

• All states and territories (except Australian Capital Territory) recorded increased numbers of divorces granted compared with 2020.
• The largest increase in divorces granted was recorded in New South Wales, with 17,126 in 2021 compared with 14,023 in 2020 and 14,197 in 2019.

In 2021 there were 473 divorces granted for same-sex couples including 306 female same-sex couples and 167 male same-sex couples. Divorces of same-sex couples were not separately identifiable in data provided to the ABS before 2021.

This release previously used catalogue number 3310.0