Supervisor Elham AbolFateh
Editor in Chief Mohamed Wadie

Divorce Cases Spike in Brazil in 2020 due to COVID-19


Fri 22 Jan 2021 | 10:52 PM
Ahmed Moamar

Brazil suffered a record number of porces during the second half of 2020, amid the Coronavirus crisis that struck the world and affected millions of people, according to data released by the College of Documentation in Brazil on Friday.

The College indicated in a report that between July and December of last year, notaries public across the country received 43,859 applications for dissolution of marriage, which represents a 15% increase compared to 38,174 applications submitted in the same period in 2019.

This is the highest level registered in one semester since the college began monitoring records in 2007.

According to the study, October was the month with the most porces, with more than 7,600 cases across Brazil.

The study also revealed that the number of porces increased in 23 of the 27 Brazilian states, including Santa Catarina, in the south of the country, with porces increasing by 95%.

The figures show that the Corona crisis, which has already left more than 214,000 dead and 8.7 million infected in the South American giant, also affected the marital relations of the Brazilians.

According to the foundation, the numbers are a reflection of a greater coexistence between spouses, who were forced to isolate and share life 24 hours a day, due to the social isolation measures imposed by governments for months in an attempt to stop the progress of the virus.

"This atypical year of 2020 has brought about many changes, both in the coexistence of people and in the provision of services to citizens," said the head of Brazilian documentation, Colegio Notarial do Brasil, Giselle Oliveira de Barros.

She noted that implementing a virtual platform for couples to report their porce online also contributed to this increase, once it facilitated the formal separation process.