Editor’s note: this article was translated and edited from Wenxuecity.com and looks at the recent surge of “fake” divorces in Nanjing. The article describes a registry office in one of the city’s districts that recently had to introduce restrictions on the number of divorces it could process each day. The cause of this “divorce wave”? It was found that many couples were divorcing in order to take advantage of recent policy changes. New policies related to property purchasing and sending children to certain schools have led some couples to fake their divorces in order to either avoid these policies or take advantage of then.

In response to the recent surge of divorces in China, authorities have begun to employ some drastic measures. In the registry office of Nanjing’s Gulou District, where matrimony registrations (including divorce applications) are the highest in city, new measures have been implemented to deal with the sheer volume of people applying for divorces each day. The office has had to employ a policy whereby only a certain number of divorces can be dealt with per day. However, these restrictions are due to a sudden surge in “fake” divorces – procedures undertaken by couples who simply want to divorce temporarily so they can avoid or take advantage of new government policy changes.

Mrs Lin: prime example of a “fake” divorcee

“The procedures for divorce are very easy, we’ve already been through them,” said 32-year-old Mrs Lin. Lin and her husband have already divorced twice, though this was in order to gain benefits for themselves and their son. The first divorce was in order to successfully secure a loan to buy a new apartment outside of Nanjing. Under China’s new policies that allow divorcees to buy second apartments with low tax, the “recently divorced” Lin was eligible for a loan which would enable her to buy a bigger apartment. After the loan was granted, Lin and her husband then remarried, bought the new house, and moved back in together.

On June 14 this year, Lin arrived at the Gulou District registry office once again to file for divorce for the second time. “Last time it was to buy an apartment, this time I’m doing it to get my child into a good school. There’s no other way I can do this,” stated Lin. Lin explained that her, her husband and son’s hukou (household registration booklet) were issued in different places. Lin (and her parents’) hukou was registered to Nanjing’s Gulou District, but since they were currently living outside of the city, they were unable to send their son to one of Gulou District’s well-known schools. “Although there are some well-known schools where we live now, we want our child to attend a school in Gulou District. My son will only be able to come back to Nanjing if my husband and I divorce again,” told Lin.

“After we divorce again, both of our apartments will be under my husband’s name. To be honest, it does make me feel a bit uneasy, though I can’t really explain the feeling fully,” admitted Lin. Lin later revealed that both of the divorces are unbeknownst to their son and her parents as they’re afraid their son will spill their secret to others; though they’re more worried about how her parents will feel.

Surge of “fake” divorces lead to daily restrictions

The increasing amounts of “false” divorces such as Mrs Lin’s, have seen a sharp rise since March 2013. In only a few days after the central government released new regulations which allowed divorcees to purchase houses with lower tax rates, various registry offices across Nanjing reported that the amount of average divorces per day had increased two or even three-fold. The wave of divorces in Nanjing hit its peak in June. It was during this month that top schools in Gulou District announced their new measures regarding the enrolment of new students, which then led to a large wave of people like Mrs Lin applying for “fake” divorces.       

A spokeswoman for the registry office in Gulou District described the scene. “On the first day after the Dragon Boat Festival, we processed 55 divorces. Normally, we’d only deal with around ten or so a day.” It was then that the office began administrating numbers to people who wanted to get divorced, with only a certain number of cases being allowed to be processed in one day. “There were so many divorces to deal with that day that we were completely unprepared. To combat this, we decided to put a limit on the amount of divorces that could be dealt with everyday. We rejected those who came in after 16:00, because the assigned amount of divorces for the day had already been used up. We told them that if they really wanted to divorce, they would have to line-up for a number the next day.”

“Although we do advise against divorce on the grounds of using loopholes in the law, there’s not much we can do if they provide legal reasons for their divorce. The daily divorce limits were set up to make these potential “fake” divorcees think twice about their decision, as the later consequences could be severe.”  

Statistics speak volumes

According to Ma Hong, an employee for the Nanjing Civil Affairs Bureau, there were 18,311 divorces in Nanjing in the first half of 2013. This is 79% up on the figures for the same time last year, with the average age of divorcees being 39.2 years old. Commenting on the age statistics, Ma said, “At this age, people’s careers are relatively stable and they have a solid financial foundation; enough to buy another house.” Ma explained that in the first half of 2013, 84,653 single status certificates were issued; a huge increased on the whole-year figure for 2012, which was around 10,000.

In the last five years, Nanjing has seen its annual divorce rate increase by over 20%. Closer analysis suggests that the increase in divorces shows a clear correlation with the release of new policies regarding property regulations and where children can go to school among others. “I know from experience that as long as new policies affecting the property market are released, there’ll be new influxes of divorce waves. Under the drive to gain personal benefit, the original concept of a sacred marriage has now been manipulated into a tool that is used for avoiding various government policies.”   

Source: Wenxuecity

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