statistics
Further slight decline in divorces in 2021
Not every marriage lasts forever. But the number of divorces in Germany has decreased. Photo: Patrick Pleul/dpa-Zentralbild/dpa
© dpa-infocom GmbH
Not every marriage lasts a lifetime. However, the number of divorces is declining. Could this be due to the pandemic?
Last year, 142,800 marriages ended in divorce in Germany. That was almost 1,100 fewer divorces than in the previous year or a decrease of 0.7 percent, as the Federal Statistical Office announced on Thursday.
According to this, the number of divorces has fallen every year since 2012 – with the exception of a slight increase in 2019. The effects of the corona pandemic on the number of divorces are not recognizable. Since a divorce is usually preceded by a separation period of at least one year, such effects could only become apparent in the long term, it was said when considering whether some marriages did not survive in the lockdown.
According to the information, a little more than half of the couples divorced in 2021 had underage children. A total of around 121,800 children and young people were affected by their parents’ divorce last year. On average, the couples were married for 14 years and six months. About 22,900 or 16.1 percent of all divorced couples have been married for at least the 25th year.