China targets high bride prices, lavish weddings in five-year marriage service reform plan
On September 23, China's Ministry of Civil Affairs outlined a five-pronged plan to reform marriage management services during the 2026-2030 period. Vice Minister Shu Huihao reported that since revised Marriage Registration Regulations took effect in May 2025, 921,000 cross-province registrations were processed. The ministry aims to enhance registration databases, expand counseling services, modernize venues, curb high bride prices and vulgar wedding pranks, and regulate matchmaking agencies through fraud crackdowns.
IllustrationEditorial responsibility
- No named human review is recorded for this page.
- Reports are grouped by semantic similarity and deterministic rules. Language models may assist titles, summaries, translation and cross-source analysis; the page reads the event directly, while its address stays stable when the title changes.
- Summary covers the current reports
Cross-source coverage
Reporting timeline
China's Ministry of Civil Affairs Outlines Plans to Reform Marriage Services and Curb High Bride Prices
On September 23, China's State Council Information Office held a press conference on improving civil affairs during the '15th Five-Year Plan' period (2026-2030). Ministry of Civil Affairs Vice Minister Shu Huihao reported progress since the revised Marriage Registration Regulations took effect in May 2025, including 921,000 cross-province marriage registrations, 2,080 pilot reform units, and 1,330 outdoor certificate venues. For the next five years, the ministry will focus on five areas: enhancing registration services via a national database, expanding marriage counseling, improving registration venues, promoting civilized wedding customs to eliminate high bride prices and vulgar wedding pranks, and regulating matchmaking agencies by cracking down on fraud. Separately, Vice Minister Hu Haifeng outlined plans to strengthen child welfare by improving policies for orphans and left-behind children, expanding mental health services, opening children's welfare institutions to community children, and training 55 million village-level child welfare officers.
Read sourceChina to Optimize Marriage Registration Services with Five Key Focus Areas
At a State Council Information Office press conference on the '15th Five-Year Plan' period, China's Vice Minister of Civil Affairs, Shu Huihao, announced that the newly revised 'Marriage Registration Regulations,' effective May 10, 2025, have facilitated 921,000 cross-province marriage registrations by the end of August. The ministry has streamlined processes by integrating marriage registration, household registration changes, and birth registration, reducing required materials by over 50% and enabling same-day completion in some cases. Marriage family counseling services have expanded, with counseling rooms now available in all county-level registration offices and 18,000 counselors nationwide. The ministry outlined five priorities for the '15th Five-Year Plan' period: improving registration service efficiency through a national database; expanding counseling services to communities and online platforms; standardizing registration venues with enhanced ceremony features; promoting civilized wedding customs to combat lavish spending and high bride prices; and regulating the matchmaking industry by cracking down on fraud and false advertising.
Read sourceChina's Civil Affairs Ministry to Focus on Five Areas to Improve Marriage Services During 15th Five-Year Plan
According to a report from state broadcaster CCTV, China's Ministry of Civil Affairs has announced plans to optimize marriage management services during the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030), focusing on five key areas. First, the ministry will improve registration services by enhancing the national marriage database and data verification efficiency to facilitate nationwide inter-provincial registration. It will also issue new rules for Chinese citizens who are both non-mainland residents to register marriages in mainland China, aiming to better serve residents from Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, and overseas Chinese. Second, it will expand marriage and family counseling services to grassroots communities and online platforms. Third, it will standardize and modernize marriage registration venues, promoting ceremonies and group weddings to enhance the ritual sense of marriage registration. Fourth, it will deepen marriage customs reform to combat extravagant weddings, high bride prices, and vulgar wedding pranks. Fifth, it will regulate the matchmaking industry through crackdowns on fraud and false advertising, and support the development of public dating platforms for young people.
Read sourceShow 4 older updatesHide older updates
China's Ministry of Civil Affairs Vows to Curb Lavish Weddings, High Bride Prices, Vulgar Pranks
On September 23, China's Vice Minister of Civil Affairs, Shu Huihao, announced at a State Council press conference that the newly revised Marriage Registration Regulations, effective May 10, 2025, have facilitated 921,000 cross-province marriage registrations as of the end of August. The ministry has streamlined procedures by integrating marriage registration, household registration changes, and birth registration, reducing required materials by over 50% and enabling same-day completion in some cases. Shu stated that marriage counseling rooms now cover all county-level marriage registration offices, staffed by 18,000 counselors offering services from pre-marital guidance to relationship repair. The ministry has established 2,080 pilot units for wedding custom reform, 1,330 outdoor certificate-giving venues, and 525 registration points in parks. Looking ahead to the 15th Five-Year Plan period, the ministry will focus on five areas: improving registration services, expanding counseling, optimizing venues, promoting civilized wedding customs—specifically targeting lavish ceremonies, high bride prices, and vulgar pranks—and regulating the matchmaking industry through crackdowns on fraud and misleading advertising.
Read sourceChina's Civil Affairs Ministry Reports Full Coverage of Marriage Counseling Rooms
According to a report from Jin10 Data on September 23, citing China's Ministry of Civil Affairs (MCA), marriage registration offices at the county level and above have achieved full coverage of marriage and family counseling rooms. The MCA stated that there are now 18,000 marriage and family counselors, and services have expanded from simple mediation to include pre-marital counseling, psychological guidance, and relationship repair. The ministry also reported that new wedding customs are becoming more prevalent, with 2,080 pilot reform units established at various levels, 1,330 outdoor certificate-granting points, 525 marriage registration points in parks and other venues, and 2,045 wedding culture exhibition sites. Simple and moderate weddings are gradually becoming a new trend. Looking ahead to the '15th Five-Year Plan' period, the MCA said it will focus on public needs by optimizing marriage management services, specifically in five areas: improving registration services, expanding counseling service supply, optimizing registration venue construction, cultivating civilized wedding customs, and regulating the development of the matchmaking industry.
China to Optimize Marriage Management Services with Five Key Focus Areas
On September 23, China's Ministry of Civil Affairs announced plans to optimize marriage management services during the '15th Five-Year Plan' period. Vice Minister Shu Huihao outlined five key focus areas. First, improving registration services by enhancing the national marriage database and streamlining cross-province registration, including new rules for Chinese citizens who are both non-mainland residents. Second, expanding marriage and family counseling services to communities and online platforms, offering pre-marital and relationship adjustment support. Third, upgrading marriage registration venues with standardized, digital, and humanized facilities, and hosting regular ceremonies and group weddings to enhance the ritual significance. Fourth, promoting civilized wedding customs by curbing extravagant spending, high bride prices, and vulgar wedding pranks. Fifth, regulating the matchmaking industry through crackdowns on fraud and false advertising, establishing long-term supervision mechanisms, and supporting public-interest dating platforms for youth.
Read sourceChina's Civil Affairs Ministry Targets Lavish Weddings, High Bride Prices, and Matchmaking Abuses
On September 23, at a State Council Information Office press conference on the '15th Five-Year Plan,' China's Vice Minister of Civil Affairs, Shu Huihao, outlined the ministry's five-pronged strategy to reform marriage management services during the 2026-2030 period. Shu reported that since the revised Marriage Registration Regulations took effect on May 10, 2025, 921,000 cross-province marriage registrations had been processed by the end of August. The ministry plans to enhance registration services by improving the national marriage database and issuing new rules for non-mainland residents. It will expand marriage and family counseling services to communities and online platforms. The ministry also aims to modernize registration venues with standardized and humanized facilities. A key focus is deepening marriage customs reform to eliminate wasteful banquets, exorbitant bride prices, and vulgar wedding pranks. Additionally, the ministry will launch a special campaign to regulate the matchmaking industry, cracking down on false advertising, fraud, and matchmaking scams, while supporting public-interest dating platforms for young people.
Read source