Uzbekistan has increased penalties for violating marriage-age rules or the procedure for registering marriages, under a law the president signed on October 14. The amendments took effect the same day.
Entering a de facto marital relationship with a person below the marriage age now carries a fine of 10 to 15 basic calculation units (BRV), up from 5 to 10 BRVs.
Parents, or those acting in their place, who marry off a person below the marriage age face a fine of 20 to 25 BRVs, up from 7 to 15 BRVs.
The fine for conducting a religious marriage ceremony for people whose marriage is not officially registered, including a person below the marriage age, has risen to 30 to 50 BRVs from 15 to 30 BRVs.
From September 1, 15% of fines collected for such violations may be used to reward people who report them.
In the spring, the president signed a decree to encourage marriages among young people who are financially independent and fully prepared to start a family. From 2027, couples marrying for the first time, both aged at least 21, will receive additional benefits and other support from the state.
Plans also called for setting out specific, exhaustive grounds in law for lowering the marriage age. Governors can currently lower it from 18 to 17 in exceptional cases for valid reasons: pregnancy, the birth of a child or a minor being declared fully legally capable.
According to statistics, 40% of marriages in Uzbekistan are between people aged 18 to 19.
