WILLEMSTAD – The number of marriages registered in Curaçao has declined significantly over the past 14 years, falling from 1,098 in 2011 to just 575 in 2025, according to a new publication by the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS). The figures represent a decrease of approximately 47.6 percent, highlighting a substantial change in marriage patterns on the island.
The findings are presented in the CBS publication “Civil Status of Residents of Curaçao,” which examines the marital status of the population, marriage trends, and divorce developments using administrative records from Curaçao's Civil Registry (Kranshi).
The wedding hall at Kranshi
The report provides an overview of the population's marital status as of January 1, 2026, while analyzing marriages and divorces registered during 2025. It also examines historical developments between 2011 and 2025.
According to CBS, Curaçao had 44,745 married residents aged 18 and older at the beginning of 2026. Another 68,937 adults were registered as never married, while 16,934 were divorced and 7,525 were widowed. Additionally, 307 people were registered as being in a registered partnership.
The figures show that the number of adults who had never married was considerably higher than the number of married residents.
Of the 575 marriages registered in 2025, at least one partner was a Curaçao resident in 476 cases, representing 82.8 percent of all marriages.
In the remaining 99 marriages, or 17.2 percent, neither partner was registered as a resident of Curaçao. This indicates that a notable share of marriages conducted on the island involved couples living elsewhere.
The CBS publication also provides insight into the composition of marriages by gender.
The overwhelming majority of marriages registered in 2025, approximately 96.5 percent, involved partners of different sexes. Same-sex marriages accounted for 3.1 percent of the total, while the sex of the partners was not recorded in 0.4 percent of registrations.
The long-term decline in marriages is among the most striking findings of the report. Compared with 2011, Curaçao recorded 523 fewer marriages in 2025.
Although the figures establish a substantial decrease in the number of marriages, the information released by CBS does not identify the reasons behind the decline.
Changes in population size, age distribution, relationship preferences, and other demographic or social factors would require further analysis before conclusions could be drawn about the underlying causes.
The publication also examines marriage patterns by age, sex, and residency status, while comparing Curaçao's developments with those of selected countries internationally.
CBS said the report forms part of its annual monitoring of population developments and is intended to provide a clearer understanding of demographic and social changes affecting Curaçao.
The full publication, “Civil Status of Residents of Curaçao,” is available through the official CBS website.