Fewer marriages, later divorces: what money and law have to do with it

Marriage is becoming less common in Switzerland. In 2025, the Federal Statistical Office (BFS) recorded 35,900 marriages, 2.3 percent fewer than the previous year. At the same time, 15,800 marriages were divorced, also fewer than in 2024. Yet the two declines prove neither a general «marriage crisis» nor that financial risks alone keep people from marrying.

The bigger story lies in the combination of several developments: couples marry later, live together unmarried more often, and separate partnership, parenthood and marriage certificate more sharply than earlier generations. At the same time, tax and social insurance law create financial differences that can be considerable depending on income, care arrangements and age.

The decline does not begin with taxes

BFS analyses show that young adults today marry less often and later. Since 1970, the number of first marriages has fallen despite a growing population. Non-marital partnerships and relationships with separate households have become more widespread in society. Among couples with joint children, marriage remains dominant, but unmarried parents are more common in younger generations.

The long-term trend therefore cannot be reduced to a single cause. Statistics record decisions, but not their motives. Statements such as «the marriage penalty is the reason» or «men no longer marry for fear of divorce» go beyond what is documented.

The tax consequences are real – but not the same for everyone

Today, married couples are taxed jointly, unmarried partners separately. Under direct federal tax, married dual earners with similarly high incomes can pay more than two unmarried persons. A married couple with only one income, or with a markedly lower second income, can fare better instead. So there is no question of a uniform tax disadvantage for all marriages.

On 8 March 2026, voters approved individual taxation with 54.23 percent. It takes effect in 2032 at federal, cantonal and municipal level. From then on, each person files their own tax return, regardless of marital status. For couples considering marriage today, nothing changes until then. And the reform removes neither the private consequences of divorce nor the AHV cap.

Divorce law does not favour either sex

Swiss divorce law has been no-fault since 2000. Post-marital maintenance is based on criteria such as the division of tasks during the marriage, duration, age, health, income, assets and future earning capacity. The law does not tie this assessment to sex. Child maintenance is moreover a right of the child and must be distinguished from maintenance between former spouses.

Since 2014, joint parental responsibility has been the rule. Since 2017, authorities must examine alternating care if a parent or the child requests it; the decisive factor remains the best interests of the child. These reforms do not guarantee equal care in every case, but they have changed the legal starting point.

Blanket claims that women are favoured or men financially exploited cannot be derived from this. Unequal outcomes often arise because paid work and care work were already unequally distributed during the marriage. Whoever carried the larger share of paid work is more likely to owe maintenance; whoever took on care work often has lower incomes and lower pension entitlements. This can affect men and women differently, but it is not a statutory gender rule.

Divorces are shifting into older ages

In 2024, a marriage lasted an average of 15.8 years until divorce. Men were on average 50.8 years old at divorce, women 46.2; at the same time, the significance of divorces after at least 20 years of marriage has grown over the long term. The term «grey divorce» should not obscure the fact that many of those affected are still in working life.

Nor can there be any talk of a current divorce explosion: in 2025, the number of divorces fell by 2.2 percent. What matters more is that a late separation leaves less time to close pension gaps, and that one household becomes two.

The AHV cap is a genuine consequence of marriage