Historic drop in Canadian divorces during the pandemic

The number of divorces recorded in Canada in 2020 is the lowest since 1973, according to Statistics Canada.

According to recent data published by Statistics Canada, only 42,933 divorces were recorded in 2020 in the country, which represents a decrease of 25% compared to the previous year.

This is the largest decrease since the Divorce Act came into effect in 1968.

“Difficulties in accessing court services during the COVID-19 pandemic likely contributed to this decline which coincides with the onset of the pandemic,” reads the Canadian Vital Statistics Database report. released this week.

In 2020, the average age at divorce was 44.5 years for women and 47 years for men while marriages lasted an average of 15.3 years before ending in divorce.

These data also reveal that 31% of divorce petitions are made jointly, suggesting that spouses increasingly tend to agree on the outline of their divorce before proceeding to a formal application to the courts.

More divorces in the Yukon

From 2016 to 2020, the Yukon has the highest divorce rate in Canada, where 13 out of every 1,000 married people end their relationship. Alberta ranks second, with 10 out of 1,000 married people eventually divorced.

In contrast, Nunavut (2 out of 1,000) and Newfoundland and Labrador (6 out of 1,000) have the lowest divorce rates in Canada.

In 1987, Canada recorded 97,773 divorces, which is the highest annual number in the country.