TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Taiwan's marriage rate continues to decline as societal views on marriage evolve, with 123,061 couples marrying in 2024, according to the Ministry of the Interior (MOI, 內政部). This resulted in a crude marriage rate of 5.26 per 1,000 people, a drop from 149,513 couples in 2014 when the rate stood at 6.39.
Meanwhile, the divorce rate reached a new high since 2019, with 53,469 couples divorcing in 2024, translating to a crude divorce rate of 2.28 per 1,000 people. Taiwan's 2023 divorce rate of 2.27 per 1,000 exceeded South Korea's 1.8 and Japan's 1.5, following China's 2.56. (The data is from Statistics Korea and Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare)
The average age for first marriages has also risen. In 2024, men married at an average age of 33.1 years and women at 31.1 years, compared to 32.1 and 29.9 years in 2014, respectively. Fan Hui-hua (范蕙華), secretary at Da'an District Household Registration Office in Taipei, attributed finding suitable partners to poor job prospects and the high costs of starting a family.
Lin Tsui-fen (林萃芬), a counseling psychologist, emphasized recognizing and addressing practical, psychological, and emotional needs to maintain marriages. She noted that creating a calm psychological environment helps understand the problem's essence. Li I-hsin (李亦欣), another counseling psychologist, highlighted the challenges of emotional detachment and intimacy loss in middle-aged marriages, describing this stage as a potential turning point. ◼