Kuwait: 50% of marriages ended in divorce in first six months of 2025

Kuwait is witnessing a steep climb in divorce rates, with official data showing that nearly one in two marriages ended during the first half of 2025, raising renewed calls for mandatory premarital counselling and stronger reconciliation measures.

According to statistics issued by the Ministry of Justice, 6,968 marriage contracts were registered between January and June, while 3,661 divorces were recorded during the same period, an average of about 20 divorces per day. An additional 478 cases involved couples reconciling after divorce.

Marriages between Kuwaitis made up the majority, at 5,112 cases or 73.4 percent of the total.

There were 588 marriages between Kuwaiti men and non-Kuwaiti women, 230 between Kuwaiti women and non-Kuwaiti men, and 1,038 between non-Kuwaitis.

On the divorce side, unions between Kuwaiti men and Kuwaiti women accounted for 2,198 cases, or 60 percent of the total, followed by 676 divorces among non-Kuwaiti couples, 553 between Kuwaiti men and non-Kuwaiti women, and 234 between non-Kuwaiti men and Kuwaiti women.

The data also revealed that 535 divorces, nearly 15 percent, occurred when the husband was already married to one or more wives, while 330 divorces were filed before the marriage had been consummated.

Remarkably, 74.2 percent of divorces were settled through ratification, without the need for court rulings, compared with 18.5 percent resolved in court and 7.2 percent classified as “conditional.”

First revocable divorces were the most common, with 2,013 cases, followed by 1,063 first irrevocable divorces.

Family law practitioners say the trends highlight systemic gaps. Attorney Enaam Haider said Kuwait must “intensify premarital guidance and make counselling sessions mandatory before marriage, especially in mixed marriages.”

She added that the current reliance on testimony in ratification cases, which make up nearly three-quarters of all divorces, risks undermining financial and custodial protections for women.

Attorney Israa Al Haddad highlighted similar concerns, calling for broader authority for family reconciliation offices. “These offices must be given clear deadlines for amicable efforts before divorce is finalised and empowered to conduct immediate settlements for alimony, housing and custody,” she said.