Albanians are getting married less and getting divorced more. The latest INSTAT figures show that the number of marriages has fallen to a historic low, while divorces have taken the opposite direction, reaching peaks never seen before.
One in three marriages ended in divorce in 2024, according to figures from the General Directorate of Civil Status.
Marriage data confirms that Albania is not only facing a wave of divorces, but also a strong contraction of the institution of marriage itself.
From around 29 thousand marriages in 1990, the level remained relatively stable throughout the 1990s and early 2000s, fluctuating around 25–27 thousand per year, before starting a structural decline after 2004.
A strong interruption is observed since the mid-2000s, when marriages fall below 22 thousand and fail to recover previous levels, despite some temporary rebounds.
After 2015, the trend becomes clearly negative, with an acceleration of the decline after 2019. The pandemic further deepens this trend, but the decline does not stop even after it.
The year 2024 marks a historic low with only 16,120 marriages, almost half the level of the early 1990s, reflecting not simply a demographic or economic effect, but a profound change in social choices, youth emigration, and the increasing reluctance to formalize ties in marriage.
Meanwhile, the divorce rate per 1,000 marriages, which in 1990 was 9.2, has followed an upward trajectory for more than three decades, but recent years have broken every previous record.
From the late 1990s, when the indicator dropped to a historic low of 5.9 in 1997, divorce began an unstoppable climb during the 2000s and 2010s, exceeding 20 separations per 1,000 marriages as early as 2018. The latest report shows that 2024 marks an absolute record of 29.8 divorces per 1,000 marriages, the highest level ever recorded in the country.
Analysts in the socio-demographic field see in these figures not just a statistical change, but a profound transformation of social structures.
Gëzim Tushi, a sociologist, says that in the years after the transition, when the lack of prospects and economic crises kept entire families together, divorce was often seen as a luxury or failure. According to him, today, Albanians, exposed to international influences, more economically independent and more aware of personal well-being standards, are making new choices about married life.
Family and social policy experts estimate that the increase in divorces is a direct impact of several main factors: rapid urbanization, mass emigration of younger generations, economic pressure on young families, and a social norm that has evolved toward individual well-being over collective survival.
On the other hand, the judicial system and social services are facing an increasing volume of family cases, which require political response and institutional support, according to communications received from social psychologists in the courts.
Mr. Tusha emphasizes that an increase in divorces brings new challenges for childcare, property issues, and social support for single parents.
Lawyer Nexhi Beqiri adds that divorces in recent years come mainly from couples in their 40s, who do not compromise like they used to. The problems that follow these divorces, according to the lawyer, are the division of assets and child custody, which take months and years in the courts. / Monitor
