Divorce News

Canada is widely recognized for having half of its marriages end in divorce, but the recent survey discredits this popular notion. The latest survey held by Vanier Institute of the Family shows that 38 percent of married couples in Canada will divorce by their 30th wedding anniversary, and the divorce rate has been decreasing since the 1990s.

An estimated 22% was recorded in Newfoundland and Labrador, while 48% in Quebec. The United States has 44% divorce rate. The myth that half of Canadian marriages end in divorce is suspiciously blamed to the miscalculation and dominance of American figures from the 1980s. Toronto’s York University emeritus sociology professor Anne-Marie Ambert said the conclusion that half of marriages end in divorce in US, since the 1980s, was also misconstrued with Canada’s divorce.

In 1987, there were 362 divorces out of 100,000 population in Canada, but the rate plunged during the 1990s and now remains at 221 divorces per 100,000 people. Meanwhile, the years of marriage that ended in divorce in 2005 lasted 14.5 years, which means a bit longer than the previous decades.

Judging by numbers

Sadly, there’s no sign that Canadian divorce rate will drop, according to researchers. The report shows an estimated 30% of children born in 1984 who had their parents divorced or cohabitated by age 15 and, half of these children from divorced families will see their parents divorce again. Approximately, the 20% of all divorces in Canada are a repeat divorce for at least one of the spouses.

Meanwhile, although divorce is widely accepted among Canadian teens, there are only 40% are in favor of divorce while 88% are against it and are hoping to remain with their spouse for life. Hence, only half of the population is likely to marry, and one-third will divorce before their 30th anniversary.