19. What is your current marital status?

1. In this section there are two questions: number 18 and number 19. Remember that you should ask question 18 of all women who are twelve years old and older.

[p.196]

5. The last question on the census is number 19. This question will be answered by all of the [persons] of [12] years or older (consult the census form).

Ask one question at a time in the indicated order, and when you receive an affirmative response, mark the corresponding box.

[p.197]

6. How would you place the following answers in the census form next to question number 19?

--Single person who lives with her partner under martial condition and in stable condition, without having contracted legal marriage.

For all of the persons 14 years and more

[Questions 10-15 were asked of persons age 14 and older.]

15. What is your current civil status?

Census home is a person or group of persons, related or not, who occupy the same dwelling. You will write down first the name and surname of the head of the household, then ask all the corresponding questions.

You will ask the following questions to all persons 14 years old or older.

15. What is your current civil state?
You will ask the questions in the order that they are presented.

You will ask about the civil state of the enumerated person on the day of the census.

Persons who live in a stable form in apparent matrimony without being married in accordance with the laws will be included filling out the cell "united de facto".

[Questions 21-24 were asked of persons age 14+ who had a job last week (did formal or informal work or did not work due to sickness, vacation, etc.), per questions 17-19.]

25. [Marital status]

25. Currently, you are?

20. What is your legal civil state?

Follow the order of the questions strictly.

Pay attention to the sequence indicated by the arrows and the steps to continue asking the questions.

The questions 20 to 23 refer to the marital status of the persons 14 years old or more.

Question 20: What is your marital status?

Q24a: What is your marital status?

Question 24

18. Marital status

Your marital status
The question is registered only for the people of 15 years old and higher.

"Column 24A"
The marital status

"1" "Never married" prompt code is written for those people who have never been married.
"2" "Married (registered)" prompt code is written for those people who are married at the time of the census and their marriage is registered by the Civil Registry Agency.
"3" "Married in fact (not registered)" prompt code is written for those people who are factually married but their marriage is not registered by the Civil Registry Agency.
"4" "Married, only by ritual canon in church" prompt code is written for those people who are married at the time of the census and their marriage is registered only by the ritual canon in Armenian Apostolic church.
"5" "Widowed" prompt code is written for those people whose marriage (regardless of being registered or not) was interrupted because of the death of one of the spouses.
"6" "Divorced (registered)" prompt code is written for those people whose marriage was registered but in the present those people are divorced and those facts are registered by the Civil Registry Agency.
"7" "Divorced in fact (not registered)" prompt code is written for those people who were married before (registered or not) but now they are divorced and these facts are not registered by the Civil Registry Agency.

6. Marital status:

For Question 6, Marital status: The date of the marriage should only be given by married persons, namely for existing marriages.

6. Marital status:

For Question 6, Marital status: The date of the marriage should only be given by married persons, namely for existing marriages.

3. Marital status: mark your legal marital status

Question 21: Marital Status
Ask whether the reported person is unmarried or married or having no wife. Fill out the actual oval box for valid information. Fill out oval box (1) for unmarried, oval box (2) for married, oval box (3) for not having wife, and oval box (4) for divorced or separated.

For questions 15, 16, 17, 18, 20, 22, 23, 24 and 25, put x in the relevant box.

4. Your marital status?

(9) Marital status

Column (9): Marital Status
Ask the interviewee if he/she is single, married, widowed, or divorced.

(17) Marital status

Columns (17) to (21): These columns are only for persons older than 10 i.e. born before February 1982.

Column (17): Marital Status
Is considered married, each individual whose union was celebrated in a civil, religious, or customary rite. The census agent shall circle the codes according to the interviewee's answer.

Now we would like to ask for information on you and the persons habitually living in your household or currently residing in your home

Persons of 10 years or more of age
[Question 23 was asked of persons 10+ years old]

(23) Marital status

Column (23): Marital status
Column (23) only concerns residents of 10 and more years of age. For residents of less than 10, this column does not apply and the census agent shall leave it empty. (To this effect, verify with column 6 i.e. age).
The marital status is a person's situation in relation to marriage defined as the union between a man and a woman according to the laws and customs.
Ask the following question: "What is [the respondent]'s marital status?" and circle the code corresponding to the interviewee's declaration according to the following options.

25. Marital status

The question on marital status shall only be asked to men and women household residents age 10 or more.

For person younger than 10 years, leave columns 26, 27, 28, and 29 blank then skip to the person on the following line, if there is no other person, skip to question 30.

Marital status is defined as the existence or not of conjugal relations between two persons of the opposite sex. In light of existing laws and customs, one can distinguish:

Single: is considered single any person who has never been married;

Married: is married any person united by law, custom, or religion to another person of the opposite sex;

Monogamous marriage:

Polygamous marriage with 2, 3, 4, or more women:

Divorced: is divorced any person who has severed all ties [legal or customary] that linked them to their partner and who has not remarried; however, a man in polygamous marriage who divorces one of his spouses remains married.

Widower/widow: is a widower/widow any person whose partner has died and who has not remarried; however, a man in polygamous marriage whose wife dies remains married.

Separated: is separated a person who has been abandoned or is separated from their partner, legally or not, but whose divorce has not yet been pronounced; however, a man in polygamous marriage who is separated from one of his spouses remains married.

Free union: is considered living in a free union, any person living with another person of the opposite sex without having had a civil, customary, or religious marriage celebrated.

The modality codes of the variable marital status are:

Q: "Are you/is [the respondent] married?"

Only for those 12 years of age and older

17. What is your current marital status?

48. What is your current civil status?

Question 48. What is your current marital status?

The question is presented to the person and the corresponding oval is filled in.

45. What is your civil or marital status?

45. Civil or marital status
On the census form, the question about civil or marital status is closed-ended and allows only one answer. Mark the appropriate circle or bubble.
Civil or marital status means each person's circumstance in relation to the laws or customs regarding marriage. The civil or marital status categories are:

(12 years and over)

11. Marital status

Is [the respondent] currently married?

Enter the appropriate one-digit code in the shaded area:

[Diagram on page 26 omitted]

[p.27]

In the sample questionnaire on page 26, James and Anne are coded as living together (code 2) in column A11. Mimi and Molelo are under 12 years old, so the question does not apply to them and dashes are entered. Anthony and David have never been married, so they are coded 3, while Thembe was widowed a few years ago and is coded 6.

Note that James had indicated to the enumerator that Anne was his spouse, yet, in response to the question on marital status, he said that they were living together, not married, since they had never formally married. You should accept what people tell you concerning their marital status and simply record their response; do not change the relationship code in A2. If the respondent tells you that the head and his/her "spouse" are "living together".

A20. What is [the person] marital status?

110. Column A20: Marital status

Q: What is [the person's] marital status?

Enter the appropriate one-digit code in the shaded area:

Note that someone may indicate to you that the person is his spouse, yet, in response to the question on marital status, he said that they were living together, not married, since they had never formally married. You should accept what people tell you concerning their marital status and simply record their response; do not change the relationship code in A2 if the respondent tells you that the head and his "spouse" are "living together".

Marital status
18. What is [the respondent's] marital status?

145. Column A18-A25
These questions apply only to persons aged 12 and years and over. If the person is less than 12 years of age, then when you reach column A16 you should put dashes in the shaded areas for columns A16-A31 and proceed to the next listed person in the household.

147. Column A19: Marital status
Q. What is the respondent's marital status?
Enter the appropriate one-digit code in the shaded area:

P. If living with a partner, spouse, companion, consort, etc., indicate the nature of the union. If not living with a partner spouse, companion, consort, etc., indicate if person is:

19. If living with a partner spouse, companion, etc., indicate the nature of the union. If not living with a partner spouse, companion, etc indicate if person is:

26. If living with a partner - spouse, companion, etc indicate the nature of the union.

Question 26 - 1st part - If the person lives in the company of his or her spouse, indicate the nature of the marriage bond
Mark:

32. If live with partner - spouse, companion, etc., indicate the nature of the relationship

33. If not living with partner - spouse, companion, etc., indicate if it is:

31. If answer to question 30 was 1, indicate the month and year entered into first union

34. If responded to question 32 indicate the month and year the current union began. If responded to question 33, indicate the month or year that indicated situation began.

4.38 What is your marital status?

Question 4.38 - What is your marital status?

4.36 Do you live in the company of a spouse or partner?

Question 4.36 - Do you live in the company of a spouse or common-law wife or husband?

Mark, as the case may be:

4.37 What was the nature of the last union?

Question 4.37 - What is (was) the nature of the most recent conjugal union?

Nuptiality
For persons 10 years of age or older
[Questions 6.37 to 6.40 were asked for persons 10 years of age and older.]

6.40 What is your marital status?

6.40 - What is your marital status?
Depending on the situation, record:

Nuptiality
For persons 10 years of age or older
[Questions 6.37 to 6.40 were asked for persons 10 years of age and older.]

6.37 Do you live with a spouse or partner?

6.37 ? Do you live with a spouse or partner?

Depending on the situation, record:

Nuptiality
For persons 10 years of age or older
[Questions 6.37 to 6.40 were asked for persons 10 years of age and older.]

6.39 What is the nature of the union?

6.39 - What was the nature of the union?
Depending on the situation, record:

16. Marital status ____

Column sixteen - marital status:

This is the information concerning the marital status of residents of both sexes age 12 years or older.

Use the following abbreviations:

5. Residential status ____

Marital status
P23. Does [person] live with one or more women (a man)?

P05. Resident status

Individual particulars
For all persons
[Questions 1 to 6 were asked of all persons]

[8] Marital status

61. Column 8: Marital status
Codes are provided in the column heading itself. You have to ask this delicate question carefully and record appropriate code numbers according to the answers given. Record Code 1 for Never Married i.e. for those who have never entered into any form of marital union. Record Code 2 for Married, 3 for widowed, 4 for divorced and 5 for separated.
61.1 The category "Married" will include those persons who are contractually married but not yet living as a man and wife. Even if a marriage is disputed in the neighborhood write Code 2 if the person concerned says he or she is married and is in stable de facto union. The category separated will include both legal and de facto separations. Persons who were widowed or divorced but have remarried must be recorded as married.

8. Marital status

You have to collect information in part 2 for all persons mentioned in statement 1.1 and statement 1.2 of part 1. Some of the following questions have been answered in part 1. Therefore there will be no need to ask these questions again. In such cases all you have to do is to copy the information in the appropriate column.

61. Column 8: marital status

Codes are provided in the column heading itself. You have to ask this delicate question carefully and record appropriate code numbers according to the answers given. Record code 1 for Never Married i.e. for those who have never entered into any form of marital union. Record code 2 for Married, 3 for widowed, 4 for divorced and 5 for separated.

61.1. The category "Married" will include those persons who are contractually married but not yet living as a man and wife. Even if a marriage is disputed in the neighborhood write code 2 if the person concerned says he or she is married and is in stable de facto union. The category separated will include both legal and de facto separations. Persons who were widowed or divorced but have remarried must be recorded as married.

Individual particulars
[This section except for questions 6 and 8 are to be completed by all persons]

7. Marital status:

25) Marital status

Column 25: Marital status
Mark:

The fourth page of the questionnaire: to be filled out for each household.

N.B. These questions should be asked once per household. In cases where several sheets are used for the same household, only fill out the back of the first sheet and mark a line on the back of the extra sheets that are already filed on the inside of the first sheet once the household has been surveyed.

Events occurring in the household over the last 12 months.

These questions are meant to create an inventory of the births and deaths that occurred in the household over the course of the 12 months that came before the first day of surveying, meaning from April 9 1975 to April 8 1976.

Mark this period once in its reserved space, under the following form: "period from 4/9/75 to 4/8/76".

P24. Marital status ________

Column P24: Marital status
Write one of the following abbreviations as the case may be:

N.B. The question on marital status is only asked to men over the age of 15 and women over the age of 12.

Marital status is defined by the existence or not of a marital relationship between two people of opposite sex. Considering laws and customs in effect, we distinguish:

Single: all people who have never been married are considered single.

Married: all people joined by law, tradition, or religion to another person of opposite sex are considered married.

Separated: all people who were left by or separated from their spouse, legally or not, but for whom the divorce hasn't been declared are considered separated; nevertheless, a polygamous man separated from one of his spouses remains married.

Divorced: all people who broke all ties (legally or traditional) which joined them to a spouse and who did not remarry are considered divorced, nevertheless, a polygamist who divorced one of his wives remains married.

Widow: All people whose spouse is deceased, and who did not remarry are considered widows, nevertheless, a polygamist with a spouse who died remains married.

Cohabitation: all people who cohabitate with a person of the opposite sex without a civil, traditional, or religious marriage

The codes of the terms of the marital status variable are:

5. Marital status
What is your marital status?
(See guidelines for further information.)

5. Is this person living with a common-law partner?

Questions 2 to 6 provide information about the living arrangements of people in Canada, family size, the number of children living with one parent or two parents, and the number of people who live alone. This information is used for planning social programs. It is also used by communities to plan services such as daycare centers, schools and senior citizens' residences.

Your NHS questionnaire contains all the information needed to answer questions 1 to 6. If you still have questions or require further information, please visit the NHS website at www.nhs.statcan.gc.ca or phone the StatCan Help Line at 1-877-308-2777.

Question 4 -- Marital status
Mark the circle that indicates the person's current legal marital status. This does not include the person's common-law status, which is asked in a separate question.

If the person is the adult son or daughter of person 1 and still lives at home, mark the circle that most closely describes that person's marital status. Provide one response only for each person.

It is important to indicate the marital status of every person in the household-- even babies and young children. Children under age 15 should be marked as 'never legally married'.

For all persons 15 or older

18. What is your marital status?

10. What is your current marital status?

[] 1 Married
[] 2 Consensual union
[] 3 Single
[] 4 Widowed
[] 5 Separated
[] 6 Annulled

27. What is your current marital status?

Marital Status

13. Marital status:

R17 through R24 apply to persons who are 15 years or older.

R23. Marital status
This question asks a person's "actual" marital status rather than legal marital status at the time of census. Those who are below the legal marital age but in marital relations should answer according to their real status.

5. What is his/her current marital status?

Question No. 5. Current marital state

[Below the text is a form.]

Mark with an "x" the box that corresponds to the civil state of the person at the moment of the Census. Remember that the different alternatives are exclusive; therefore, you should not mark more than one of them.

[p. 42]

Read the question and the alternatives in their order until obtaining an affirmative response.

For minors mark with an "x" the box "single".

42. Actually you are:

Question No. 42 Civil or conjugal state

[Below the text is a form.]

Mark "x" in the corresponding box.

If necessary explain the following definitions:

[p. 46]

36. He/she is currently. . .

36. Currently [the respondent] is:

This question refers to the civil or conjugal state of a person at the moment of the census. That is to say, the personal state of each individual in relation to the laws or customs of the country about matrimony.

[Below the text is a form.]

Take into account the following criteria:

53. [The respondent] currently: (basic)

11. Marital Status

Question 11: Marital Status

The objective of this question for census purposes is to get the marital situation of the persons in relation with the marriage laws and customs of the country.

[Below the text is a form.]

[p. 52]

Ask this question in the following manner: "What is the current marital state?"

Remember that it refers to the person about whom you are requesting information.

The question offers 6 possibilities of response: "United", "Separated", "Married", "Widowed", "Divorced" and "Single".

{Types of Marital Status}

Below we will review the 6 types of Marital Status that you can find with reference to the census moment. We will try to make it so each concept is clear to you so that you carry out a correct enumeration.

13. Currently, is ____

Question 13: Marital Status

This question has as its objective obtaining the current marital situation of all persons 12 years old or older at the moment of the census in relation with the laws and customs of the country (not the civil state). Together with the relation or relationships, it permits identifying different family nucleuses in the same home.

[To the right of the text is a form.]

Ask the question as it appears in the questionnaire, reading each one of the alternatives until getting an affirmative response.

Six types of marital state situations have been considered:

[All marital situations end in "o(a)" indicating that the person could be man or woman.]

20. [The respondent] is currently...?

Question 20: Marital status

Only for people 12 years or older

20. [Name] is currently ...?

This question refers to the marital status and not the civil or legal status of the population.

Consensual union or partnership: people that live in a consensual union without having contracted legal or civil matrimony with the person with which they cohabitate. This category includes those people of the same sex that declare to be cohabitating as a couple.

Married: person that has contracted legal matrimony and lives with his/her spouse or partner, even if they do not live in the same dwelling for circumstantial reasons such as work, sickness, imprisonment, hospitalization, or other reason that does not allow them to live under the same roof; whenever the union has not been dissolved.

Separated: person that contracted legal matrimony or was in a consensual union and currently does not live with his/her spouse or partner because they dissolved the union without recurring to legal mechanisms, or solicited legal separation without having consolidated the divorce.

Divorced: person that having dissolved his/her matrimony in a legal way has not married again nor lives in consensual union.

Widowed: person that after the death of his/her spouse has not contracted matrimony again nor lives in a consensual union.

Single: person that has never married nor lived in a consensual union.

Remember that this deals with the marital status and not the civil status. Because of this you may find the case of a couple where one of the partners is legally married and the other single; in this situation, the marital status of both is "consensual union."

With this question we have concluded the part of Section IV that corresponds to persons twelve years old and more and we will begin to work with the segments of the population that are fifteen years old and more, with questions about their economic situation.

For persons 12 years and older
(End of interview for persons under this age.)
[Question 16 was asked of persons age 12 and older.]

16. What is your civil and/or marital status?

For persons 12 years and older (end of interview for those under this age)

Question 16. What is your civil and/or marital status?
The purpose of the question is to determine the marital status of the listed persons. You will need to ask the question and then read each of the boxes for the person to select their civil or marital status.
You must memorize the following definitions:

Remember that people who claim to be Married or In a Civil Union, if they live in the same household with their spouse, should be marked with the corresponding number on question 3 of this Questionnaire. If the spouse does not reside in the household, "00" must be written in the space intended for "Spouse of."
This question ends the part of Section IV for those 12 years and older; from here on the survey applies only to those 15 years and older with questions about their economic situation.

25. Marital status

To complete the inside of the questionnaire, you must have:

- Read and fully understand the contents of this manual.
- If any points are unclear to you, ask your team leader for an explanation.
- Know the definitions perfectly and the meaning of the abbreviations used.
- The presence of the person you are surveying to obtain reliable information. If the head of the household is absent, speak with his representative to get the necessary information.

[p.32]

- Ask each person to be surveyed to present an identification document (national identification card, birth certificate, passport, driver's license, etc.) in order to quickly obtain answers to questions regarding first and last names, date of birth, etc.

Carefully follow all instructions you have been given, especially regarding how to ask the questions.

Question 25: Marital status
Marital status indicates an individual's situation with respect to marriage.

He or she is considered "married" when they are in a union that was celebrated civilly or religiously or in accordance with the traditional rites.

After conducting the interview, as applicable, circle the code that corresponds to the situation of the surveyed individual.

The possible answers are:

How to conduct the interview about marital status.

34. Marital status

Note: People who are separated are considered divorced.
A polygamist who divorces from one of his wives is not considered divorced, but remains married.

How to conduct the interview on marital status?
For each resident 12 years of age or older, ask: "Do you live with a woman (or a man)?"

5. Legal marital status. What is the legal civil marital status of the enumerated person?

65. Are you currently in a consensual union, married, separated, divorced, widowed, or single?

Question 65: Are you currently in a consensual union, married, separated, divorced, widowed, or unmarried?

The options are read and the corresponding circle is filled in.

This information refers to the [conjugal] situation of the person at the moment of the census and not to their legal marital status.

60. At the present time [the respondent] is...

Question 60: Currently, is (NAME):

Read each option and fill in the correct answer.

1. Married. If the person is married legally (by Law) or by the church.
2. In union. If the person lives with a partner without being married legally or religiously.
3. Divorced. If the person was married and is divorced legally or religiously and has not been married or living in union with another person.
4. Widow/widower. If the person was married and his/her partner died and has not been married or living in union with another person.
5. Separated legally or religiously. If the person lived in legal union or religiously and separated from his/her partner and has not been married or living in union with another person.
6. Separated from union. If the person live in union with a partner (free union or concubinage) and now is separated and has not been married or living in union with another person.
7. Single. If a person has never been married or in union.

55. Currently, is [the respondent]: (Read all answers and mark only one)

• Separated legally or religiously represents the status of a person who is legally or religiously married, but that currently is separated from his/her partner and does not have another partner.
• Divorced is the person who was married but is legally divorced from his/her partner and currently does not have another partner.
• Widow/widower is the person who was married but his/her partner is deceased and currently does not have another partner.
• Separated from a civil union is the person who was in union with a partner but currently does not have a partner.

• Living together is a person that currently is living together with a person in civil union or by consent.
• Single (Never married or in a civil union) is the person that does not have a partner and was never married or in a civil union with anybody.

IX. (14) Marital Status

[This is the second section D. in the enumerator's manual. On the enumeration form, this section has the title "fertility characteristics."]

Question No. 21

[The following directions refer to a graphic representing question 21, "what is your marital or conjugal status?", in this section of the enumeration form.]

Read each one of the alternatives and ask all members of the census household who are 12 or older in which of them they classify themselves. Mark the corresponding box.

[Note that this question corresponds to question 19 (in section E. marital status) on the enumeration form. The enumeration form includes two response options ("separated" and "unknown") that do not appear in the enumerator's manual.]

This question is for men and women 12 years of age and older.

Question 21. Are you in a consensual union, single, married, divorced, widowed or separated?

Read the question as it is written. Mark the box corresponding to the answer given.

23. Are you currently: In a consensual union, single, married, divorced, widowed or separated? Mark only one box.

34. [The respondent] is currently:

Step 15: Continue with section 4, information about the population / E: Marital status and social security.

[A copy of section 4E of the census questionnaire is omitted here.]

Tips:

• Follow the sequencial order of the questions.
• Remember that these questions are for persons twelve years old and older.
• Marital status of the person who holds the position of head of household should be the same as his/her spouse; therefore, you will register the current marital status of the persons.
• The persons who do not contribute to the agricultural insurance and are only beneficiaries of the same should register alternative 7 (does not contribute).
• Pay attention to the indications of question 35.

13. Marital status
[Question 13 was asked of males 18 years and over and females 16 and over.]

15. Marital status

7. Marital status
[For males 18 years or older and females 16 years or older]

There is one square to write one of the following answers according to the status of each member. There is also a line below the square to write the verbal responses.

16. Number of current wives ____

8. Number of wives currently married to
This question is filled only for married men of all religions.

There is one square to write a number from (1) to (4) only, since it is logical that he doesn't have more than (4) wives for Muslims and not more than (1) for non-Muslims.

1. All persons

5. What is your current marital status?

13. What is your marital status?

Question 13: What is your marital status?
"Marital status" is understood to mean each person's status with respect to the laws or customs related to matrimony or cohabitation in this country.
Take the following definitions into account to help you identify marital status:

This column must be for all members of the household aged ten years and over. For household members aged below ten years, /--/ will be entered in column 31. Marriage means union between man and woman through legal or traditional ceremony and living together as husband and wife.

Categories of marriage and their codes are given below to indicate marital status.

Based on the listing of categories of marital status given above the correct code of marital status will be entered in column 31 card column 57 for household members ten years and over.

33. Marital status

Every member of the household whose age is 10 years and above are asked currently married or not. People who live together as husband and wife and who regard themselves as husband and wife should be recorded as married. The marriage may be taken place either legal, religious or traditional basis or those married persons should live together as husband and wife. The answer for this question must be accepted as given by the respondent and not to question the legal aspect of the marital status. Thus, it is the respondent who defines his/her marital status. The definition for different types of marital status and the assigned codes are given below:

[Questions 21-25 were asked of long form respondents' age 10+.]

25. What is [the respondent]'s current marital status?

Every member of the household whose age is 10 years and above are asked currently married or not. People who live together as husband and wife and who regard themselves as husband and wife should be recorded as married. The marriage may be taken place either legal, religious or traditional basis or those married persons should live together as husband and wife. The answer for this question must be accepted as given by the respondent and not to question the legal aspect of the marital status. Thus, it is the respondent who defines his/her marital status. The relevant codes to be marked for the various marital status categories are:

6. Marital status

16. Marital status
(a) Has [the person] ever been married?

16. Marital status
(a) Has [the person] ever been married?

16. Marital status
(a) Has [the person] ever been married?

16. Marital status
(a) Has [the person] ever been married?

6. Marital status

D6. Marital status
Never married, married, widowed, divorced or separated
______

D6. What is [person's] marital status?

[D6] What is this person's marital status? _ _

Divorce
The divorce statistics are based on data on granted decrees of divorce transmitted to the Population Register Centre by courts of law. The statistics also include cases where a permanent resident of Finland is granted a divorce by a foreign court. If the divorce is granted abroad, it must be reported to the register keeper for registration of divorce. Exceptions are divorces granted to Finnish citizens in Sweden, on which the Swedish register keeper notifies the Finnish counterpart directly.
A divorce granted to a Finnish citizen abroad usually requires validation by the Helsinki Court of Appeal before registration. Divorce decisions given in the Nordic Countries and in the EU countries as of 1 March 2001 can be registered without validation.
In 1980 to 2016, divorces referred to divorces of women living permanently in Finland unless otherwise stated. Starting from the statistical reference year 2017, divorces where at least one of the spouses has resided permanently in Finland on the day the divorce was granted are included in the statistics as divorces. The amendment to the Marriage Act that entered into force on 1 March 2017 enabled same-sex couples to enter into marriage (156/2015). Since 2017, the total number of divorces consists of the number of divorces of marriages between opposite-sex and same-sex couples.
The amendment to the Marriage Act (411/1987), effective from 1 January 1988, simplified divorce proceedings. Divorce figures began to rise towards the end of 1988, when the first divorces (after a reconsideration period of six months) became effective under the new legislation. The Marriage Act no longer has regulations on 'cancellation of marriage' or 'nullification of marriage'. Before the new act came into force in 1988 these were in separate groups, now among divorces.

Marital status
The information on marital status is derived from the Population Information System of the Population Register Centre. It should be noted that common-law marriage or cohabiting is not a marital status. People representing all marital status categories may be cohabiting, including those who are still officially married.
The current divorce regulations no longer recognise the concept of legal separation. Those persons who are legally separated on the basis of the old divorce provisions prior to 1 January 1988 and still living apart have been slotted under married persons in the statistics.
The possibility to register partnerships started in Finland on 1 March 2002 and ended on the last day of February 2017 (Act to amend the Act of Registered Partnerships 250/2016). Starting from the beginning of March 2017, same-sex couples have been able to enter into marriage (156/2015). Same-sex couples had been able to register their partnership in Finland as of 1 March 2002.
The amendment to the Marriage Act that entered into force on 1 March 2017 didn't change the classification of marital status.
For reasons of data protection, in municipal tables those living in a registered partnership are classified together with married persons, as are those divorced or widowed from a registered partnership with divorced and widowed persons.

The classification of marital status is as follows:

Registered partnership
Registered partnership of two persons of the same sex aged 18 or over (Act on Registered Partnerships of 9 Nov. 2001/950). Partnership is registered by an authority entitled to perform civil marriage ceremonies. Registered partnership is dissolved when one partner dies or is declared dead, or when it is dissolved by court order.

4. Marital Status

Mark an X in only one of the boxes that corresponds to your present status. Thus, a widower (or divorced man) who has remarried should mark the 2nd box.

8. What is your legal marital status?

6) The following portion of the questionnaire is for individuals age 14 or older.

8) What is your legal marital status?

3. Marital status

Marital status: Answer for persons 12 years and older.
P10. What is [the respondent's] current marital status?

5. Legal Marital Status

5. Legal marital status.

5. Marital status

Ask these questions for all of the persons, independent of their age or other situation:

Question 5: Civil status

For this characteristic, you should mark the box that corresponds according to the definitions that appear on the form and with the given information in the following paragraphs.

Take into account that for persons who are younger than 14 years old, you should mark the small box 6 with an X, indicating for persons 14 years old or older the civil status that corresponds to them (single, married, consensual union, divorced, etc.).

In any case, you should write the current civil status. For example, if a person has separated from his or her spouse and currently lives in a consensual union with another person, he or she should be classified as "consensual union" because this is the civil status on the census date.

Single is the person who has never contracted legal marriage, excepting those who live in consensual unions who are living in "consensual union."

Married is the person who contracted legal marriage and continues in it, even when at the date of the census they are separated but without having divorced. In consequence, in this group you should include the "married but separated" and those who have legalized their "common-law marriage."

"Consensual union" refers to a couple who lives in a consensual union without the tie of any marriage, its member constitute it, alone or with their relatives, as a well-defined family. It is a delicate question, for which you should proceed with tact during the interview, avoiding discussions or expressions that can ruin the work.

Widow is that person who has not contracted legal matrimony since that date of death of his or her spouse, nor is living in a consensual union at the census day. If the person has remarried or lives in a consensual union, you should indicate his or her current civil status.

[p. 39]

Divorced is the person who has dissolved his or her marriage in definitive form through the legal process, as long as he or she has not remarried or does not live in a consensual union.

In the investigation of this aspect, in general some factors come up, derived from the tendency to maintain certain social prestige, which make it difficult to have a clear idea of the true situation. The enumerator should avoid suggesting answers to the informant, especially in the cases of the person who is divorced or in a consensual union. In this way, he or she will avoid causing an unfavorable environment for the interviewer, when the informant is susceptible in this sense.

When two persons inform that they are married, but the wife, when giving her name, does not add the last name of the husband, it is convenient to clarify if they are really married or not, since in some places the wives do not have the custom of taking the husband's name. If you confirm that they are married, following the last name of the woman you will write the last name of the husband preceded by "of."

For this reasons, and always when the enumerator suspects that the informants are not married, you should find out, with much caution, the true situation, without insisting in a way that could displease the informant, which is a situation that could be counterproductive for the rest of the investigation.

5. Marital status

Question 5: marital status

1. How to ask the question:
Ask, "Are you single, married, cohabiting, widowed, or divorced?"

The following definitions will help you categorize each person correctly according to his or her marital status:

[p. 66]

a. Single: this person has never been married and is not cohabiting.

b. Married: this person is married, even if he or she is separated (but not divorced) on the census date.

c. Cohabiting: this person (single, divorced or widowed) is living in a consensual relationship with another person and has established a family with that person, without any legal matrimonial ties.

d. Widowed: this person was married and whose spouse died. The person has not remarried and is not cohabiting.

e. Divorced: this is a person whose marriage was legally dissolved by a qualified authority. The person has not remarried and is not cohabiting.

It is not necessary to ask this question of persons younger than 13; simply mark an "X" in the box for single.

2. How to record the answer:
The different categories are mutually exclusive, so you should mark an "X" in only one box according to the marital status of the enumerated person.

3. Example:
[This box contains question 5 of the section VI, "people in the census household."]

For all individuals
[Questions 1 - 8 were asked for all persons]

5. Current marital status

Question 5: current marital status

1. How to formulate the question

Are you married, living in a consensual union, unmarried, widowed, divorced, or separated?

The following definitions will help the enumerator to correctly classify each person according to their marital status at the date of the census:

[p. 67]

a) Married: Those who have entered into a legal marriage and live with their spouse; that is, they are not widowed, divorced, or separated.

b) In union (consensual union): Those who are not legally married but who live in a consensual or de facto union with another person.

c) Single: Those who have never entered into a legal marriage and do not live in a consensual union.

d) Divorced or separated from a marriage or consensual union: Those whose marriage has been legally dissolved or those who are separated from their spouse and who have not remarried or entered into another consensual union.

It is not necessary to ask this question to those under 13 years of age; in these cases, "3. single" is marked.

2. How to record the data

The different categories are mutually exclusive, therefore, only the number corresponding to the marital status of the enumerated person is marked.

3. Example:

[These instructions refer to a graphic of question 5 of the census form]

4. Current marital status

The first seven questions sets in this section refer to family relationship, age, sex, current marital status, ethnic group, death of mother and disability.

Questions 8-12 refer to the person's migration and ethnic characteristics. Only questions 11 and 12 are for persons aged three and older.

Questions 13-15 refer to literacy, level of education and attendance at school and are intended for persons aged seven and older.

The four following questions (16-19) refer to the person's type of economic activity, principal employment, branch of activity, and occupational category. They are also intended for persons aged seven and older.

The last five questions (20-24) cover fertility, and are intended only for females aged 12 and older.

The housing form has enough space to record a maximum of ten person, and so the section is repeated an equal number of times. The information about each person who spends the night in the homeless shelter should be written in the same order as they were listed in section V, "list of persons."

If the homeless shelter has more than ten persons, use an additional form.

Section VII is designed to allow you to record the complete information about one person. Write the person's order number in the grid space according to the list in section V. Spell out completely the first names and complete surnames of each person.

4. Current marital status
If the person is 12 or older, ask, "What is your current marital status?"
If the person, male or female, is less than 12, do not ask this question and mark an X in the circle corresponding to option 1, "less than 12 years old."

[A graphic of box 4, "current marital status," is reproduced on the left-hand side of the page.]

The following definitions will help you determine a person's current marital status:

[p. 48]

Mark an X in the appropriate circle.

For persons 12 years and older
[Question 21 is for persons 12 years and older]

21. What is your marital status?

This section records individual information for a maximum of ten people - those listed in section 6, "total number of persons in the household." If there are more than ten people in the census household use as many additional forms as necessary.

[A graphic of the "individual characteristics", located at the top of section 7 of the census form, is included here.]

Person number: In the grid spaces on the upper left side of the form, write the number that corresponds to the person according to the order from the list of persons in section VI. The head of household is number 1.

Name: In the appropriate space, write the name of each of the persons who make up the household according to the order in which they appear on the list in question 3 of section VI. Begin with the head of household and continue writing according to the order established.

Information supplied by respondent: This is when the person interviewed gives information about his/her own self. Fill in the appropriate oval according to the information you receive.

Questions 1-11 should be asked for all permanent residents of the household in the dwelling.

Question 21 is for persons aged 12 and over.

21. Current marital status
Ask, "What is the person's current marital status?"

[A graphic of question 21, from section 7 of the census form, is included here.]

Cohabiting: This person is cohabiting with another person.

Married: This person is legally married and lives with his/her spouse, i.e. is not widowed, divorced, or separated.

Divorced or separated: This is a person whose marriage was legally dissolved or is separated from his/her spouse and has not married again and does not cohabit with anyone.

Widowed: This is a person who was married, whose spouse has died, and who has not re-married and is not cohabiting.

Single: This person has never married and is not cohabiting with anyone.

9. Marital status

P19 Marital status

Residents of 12 years or more
[Questions P26 and P27 were asked of resident persons 12 years or more.]

P27. Marital status

21. Is this person currently:

5. Marital Status
Write as appropriate:

Single: those who have never married, including minors. Excluded from this group are those who are not married but live in a consensual union.

Married: those who have been legally married at the time of enumeration. Include in this group those who are married but are not living with their spouse, only if they are not living in a consensual union with another person.

Consensual union: one who lives in a state of marriage without having been legally married.

Widowed: one whose spouse has passed away and who has not remarried or entered into a consensual union.

Divorced: one whose marriage has ended through a legal divorce and who has not remarried or entered into a consensual union.

5. Are you married, in a consensual union, single, divorced, or widowed?

This section is for all residents in the dwelling. It is intended to find out information about the composition of the population according to their relationship with the head of household, sex, age, civil status, whether the mother is alive, place of birth, year of arrival in the country, nationality, and permanent residence in 1969.

Ask questions 1-9 of everyone who is enumerated, without exception and according to the detailed instructions below.

Question set 5: Are you/is the person married, co-habiting, single, divorced or widowed?

The following definitions will help you categorize each person correctly according to his/her civil or marital status.

A) Married. This is a person who has entered into matrimony, even though he/she may be separated but not divorced on the census date. Within this category the following information is of interest:

If a person is married but living with another person because he is separated from his legal wife, check off box 3, co-habiting with a companion who lives in the dwelling.

B) Cohabiting. This is a person (single, divorced or widowed) who lives in a consensual relationship with another person and has established a family with that person, without any legal matrimonial ties. Within this category the following information is of interest:

Be very careful when enumerating persons who were cohabiting and are now living apart as they tend to declare themselves single. Check off box 5 for these people (co-habiting living apart).

C) Single (box 6). This is a person who has never been married and who is not cohabiting and has not cohabited.

D) Divorced (box 7). This is a person whose marriage was legally dissolved by a qualified authority. The person has not remarried and is not cohabiting.

E) Widowed (box 8). This is a person whose spouse has died. The person has not remarried and is not cohabiting.

The categories are mutually exclusive. Therefore, check off only one box according to the civil or marital status of the person being enumerated.

18. What is your current marital status?

Be aware that:

For persons 12 years old or more
[Question 17 was asked of persons aged 12 years or older]

17. What is your current marital status?

Question 17: What is your current marital status?
Read each of the alternatives that appear in the form, and mark the corresponding box.

You should take into account that we want to register the conjugal status of the persons at the census moment, independent of the legal situation.

4. Marital status