Marriage, Divorce Rates Up in Tehran Province

The National Organization for Civil Registration says last year (ended in March) the rates of marriage and divorce in Tehran Province shot up by 22% and 11.4% respectively compared with the preceding year.

Based on data published on the organization’s website, only 5% of all divorces happen after 29 years of marriage, while 40% of occur during the first five years of matrimony.

Last year, 97,591 marriages were registered in the province. The figure was 86,591 in the previous year. Most of the marriages were registered in Tehran city (62,338). The number of marriages was 6,678 and 5,916 in Shahriar and Rey counties, respectively.

According to the report, the average age of marriage was 30 for men and 26 for women in Tehran Province.  The figure is 23.7 years for women and 27.5 for men across the country, which indicates that the average marriage age in Tehran  is much higher than the national average.

In 2010, the number of registered marriages was 101,488. The figure gradually decreased to 86,591 in 2015. Last year the downward spiral in the number of registered marriages was reversed.

Last year 39,282 divorces were also registered in Tehran Province, of which 26,381 were registered in the capital city.

The average age for couples going through their first divorce is 38 for men and 33 for women in Tehran Province. Statistics suggest that Iranian men tend to part ways at 36 and the average age of divorce for women is 31.

According to the report, the marriage to divorce ratio was around 2.2 in 2016.

According to official figures about 38% of all divorces happen in couples between the ages 25 to 29 and only 11% have the chance to celebrate their 20th wedding anniversary. Last year 240,000 divorces were registered in the country.

  Divorce Prevention

To ensure couples in troubled marriage receive counseling before parting ways, the State Welfare Organization in cooperation with the judiciary plans to register divorce requests in an electronic system in 11 provinces with the highest rates of separation.

According to NOCR, the 11 provinces with the highest rates of divorce, from highest to lowest, are: Tehran, Khorasan Razavi, Isfahan, Khuzestan, Mazandaran, East Azarbaijan, Fars, Gilan, Alborz, West Azarbaijan, and Kermanshah.

The scheme was piloted in South Khorasan Province two years ago and Khorasan Razavi Province last year.

In Mashhad, Khorasan Razavi Province, statistics show that counseling helped in reducing divorce by almost 50% compared to the previous year as many couples had a change of heart and decided to give their marriage another chance.

In 2013, the Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, called on the Interior Ministry to prepare a report on the status of social problems , including divorce. Stressing the need to check social grievances, he urged executive bodies to look into the root problems of social maladies and address them.

There are 22 social problems that have been identified and need to be addressed. Divorce, unemployment, poverty, social marginalization (of those living in unofficial settlements), and addiction are among the top five.

The ministry’s High Social Council (formed in 2013) has classified and divided by region national responsibilities in social areas, and assigned them to the relevant executive officials for implementation.