Home > Statistics > Changes in marital status > 2020 > Quality description, changes in marital status

Quality description, changes in marital status

• 1. Relevance of statistical information
• 2. Methodological description of survey
• 3. Correctness and accuracy of data
• 4. Timeliness and promptness of published data
• 5. Accessibility and transparency/clarity of data
• 6. Comparability of statistics
• 7. Coherence and consistency/uniformity

1. Relevance of statistical information

The main source used when producing Finnish population statistics is the Population Information System, which is maintained by the Digital and Population Data Services Agency and the State Department of Åland. The registration of the information is based on statutory notifications made by municipalities, private individuals and public authorities. Most of the information for the Population Information System is supplied directly by public authorities. For example, hospitals send information on births and deaths, and the names of baptised children are provided by parishes, which transfer the details directly from their own system as electronic data.  In addition to the public authorities, information is also supplied by private individuals. The notification of move required when you move to a new home is the most common of these documents.

From 1975 Statistics Finland has obtained population data from the Digital and Population Data Services Agency.

The last population registration was carried out in Finland on 1 January 1989. After that the Population Information System has been updated by notifications of changes. The data stored in the Population Information System are specified in the act on Population Information System and the certificate services of the Digital and Population Data Services Agency (21 August 2009/661). Notifications on population changes for the past year are expected by the last day of January of the following year.

Statistics Finland’s function is to compile statistics on conditions in society (Statistics Finland Act of 24 January 1992/48). These also include demographic statistics.

In accordance with the Act on the Municipality of Domicile, the municipality of domicile and the place of residence of individuals are recorded in the Population Information System. The municipality in which a person lives or the one construed by the inhabitant as the municipality of domicile on the grounds of residence, family ties, livelihood or other equivalent circumstances, or to which the inhabitant has close links due to the aforementioned circumstances is deemed the municipality of domicile. (Act on the Municipality of Domicile, 201/1994.) The population registered in the Population Information System is divided into those present and those absent. Those present are permanent residents of Finland, either Finnish nationals or aliens. Those absent are Finnish nationals who when emigrating from the country have reported that they intend to be absent from Finland for more than one year, with the exception of Finnish nationals who are diplomats and those working in development co-operation (Act on the Municipality of Domicile, 201/1994.) Only changes in the population resident in Finland on 31 December are taken into account when compiling statistics on vital events. Persons moving to Finland from abroad are classified in the population statistics if the place of residence they have declared as their municipality of domicile is later confirmed as their place of residence.

Divorces

The divorce statistics are based on data on granted decrees of divorce transmitted to the Population Information System by district courts. 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 the first of 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 amendment to Marriage Act. The Marriage Act no longer has regulations on "cancellation of marriage". Before the amendment to the act came into force in 1988 these were in separate groups, now among divorces.

The key figures defined below can be calculated for women and men, although they are defined to be calculated for women only.

The age-specific divorce rate indicates the number of divorced women per 1,000 married women of the mean population in the age group in question. The probability of divorce for women’s first marriages where the spouses are of opposite sexes is produced by applying multistate life tables. The life tables are based on women's age-group specific marriage, mortality, widowhood and divorce rates in the statistical reference year regardless of the husband's age or whether the marriage is the first one or not for him.

Marital status

The marital status of a person refers to the status according to the Finnish Marriage Code (234/29). It should be noted that cohabiting is not a marital status. People representing all marital status categories may be cohabiting, including those who are still officially married.

Current divorce regulations no longer recognize 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 marital status classification is as follows: unmarried, married, divorced, widowed, partner in a registered partnership, dissolved registered partnership, widowed after a registered partnership.

Marriages

In 1980 to 2016, contracted marriages referred to marriages of women living permanently in Finland unless otherwise stated. Starting from the statistical reference year 2017, contracted marriages refer to marriages where at least one of the spouses has resided permanently in Finland on the day when the marriage was contracted. The amendment to the Marriage Act that entered into force on 1 March 2017 enabled same-sex couples to enter into marriage (156/2015). The number of marriages contracted annually is, thus, the number of marriages entered into by same-sex and opposite-sex spouses.

The number of men and women from marriages between opposite sexes is not the same because the number of contracted marriages where the parties are a woman living permanently in Finland and a man living permanently abroad is different than that where the parties are a man living permanently in Finland and a woman living permanently abroad.

As a result of the amendment to the Marriage Act, starting from 1 June 2019, a person under 18 years of age shall not marry in Finland (351/ 2019).

The key figures defined below can be calculated for women and men, although they are defined to be calculated for women only.

The age-specific marriage rate indicates the number of married women per 1,000 non-married women and women not in registered partnership of the mean population in the age group in question.

Registered partnership

“Registered partnership” refers to registered partnership of two persons of the same sex aged 18 or over (Act on Registerd 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.

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).

As a result of the amendment to the Marriage Act, parties to a partnership registered in Finland can convert their partnership into a marriage by making a joint notification of this to the local register office. A registered partnership continues as a marriage from the day on which the local register office has received the notification.

In the statistics, registered partnerships that have been converted into marriages based on such notification are not included as contracted marriages in the annual statistics.

2. Methodological description of survey

The main source used when producing Finnish population statistics is the Population Information System of the Digital and Population Data Services Agency and the State Department of Åland. The registration of the information is based on statutory notifications made by municipalities, private individuals and public authorities.  For example, local courts take information of divorces dealt in the court into the Population Information System.

Statistics Finland receives the updated data on vital events on a weekly basis from the Digital and Population Data Services Agency.

The deadline for delivering data to Statistics Finland on vital events in the statistical year is the end of January of the following year. The exception to this is the data on stillbirths, which were expected by the end of September. Data on population changes in statistical year delivered to Statistics Finland after this date are included in the data of the following year. Data on events relating to the years statistical year – 4 through to statistical year – 1 and reported between February statistical year and January statistical year + 1 are included in the statistical year data.

Starting from the statistical reference year 2018, additions or corrections are expected to the background data in the population change data until the end of February following the statistical reference year. The total number of vital events established at the end of January does not change, however, but the aim of the additions and corrections is to improve the quality of the data.

3. Correctness and accuracy of data

In general, the Population Information System can be considered very exhaustive as regards persons. In order that a person obtains a personal identity code, he or she has to be registered in the Population Information System. It is practically impossible to live in Finland without a personal identity code. A personal identity code is needed so that one can work legally, open a bank account, have dealings with authorities and so on. It can be safely assumed that Finland cannot have any substantial numbers of ’moonlighters’ who receive their pay in cash for periods of over one year, for example. Staying in Finland for at least one year is the prerequisite for registering into the population of Finland.

After abolishment of yearly checking of domicile registers (January 1) in 1989 the Population Information System has been maintained only by notifications of changes to population information. Their correctness is determined by a reliability survey made on the addresses in the Population Information System.

The Digital and Population Data Services Agency has charged Statistics Finland with the task of conducting a sample survey on correctness of address information. Around 11,000 people are asked whether their address in the Population Information System is correct. In the most recent survey in 2012, the address was correct for 98.9 per cent of the respondents.

4. Timeliness and promptness of published data

Final vital statistics are published yearly in April to August, except for those on stillbirths, which are available in October. Since 1999 the regional division used has been that of the first day of the following year. Thus the municipalities that unite on the first day of the new year are already combined in the statistics on the last day of the previous year. Information on the vital statistics of the united municipalities before the unification is available from 2003 onwards.

Preliminary population data by municipality are available by month.

5. Accessibility and transparency/clarity of data

Basic population data are available in electronic form by municipality or with larger regional divisions than municipality in Statistics Finland’s free ‘Population’ online service (Statistical databases) at: http://tilastokeskus.fi/tup/tilastotietokannat/index_en.html

Population statistics from 1750 on have been digitised into PDF format in the National Library's Doria service.

Publications on Population structure in Doria (in Finnish) .
Publications on Vital statistics in Doria (in Finnish) .
Publications on Population censuses in Doria (in Finnish) .

The chargeable information service contains more specified information about the population by sub-area of municipality, for example. More information about Statistics Finland’s chargeable services is available at: http://tilastokeskus.fi/tup/vaestotilastopalvelu/index.html (in Finnish).

6. Comparability of statistics

Comparable regional vital statistics series are available from 1990. The tables always indicate which regional division is used.

Vital statistics data on the numbers of marriages contracted are available free from 1749 onwards. After the statistical revision of 1877 annual collection of data on divorces was also started.

The amendment to the Marriage Act on 1 March 2017 enabled same-sex couples to enter into marriage. This means that starting from 2017, the total number of marriages contracted during the year consists of contracted marriages of same-sex or opposite-sex couples.

From 1980 to 2016, the total number of marriages contracted during the year consisted of marriages where at least the wife was permanently residing in Finland. Starting from 2017, the total number of opposite-sex marriages contracted also includes marriages entered into where only the husband is permanently residing in Finland at the time the marriage was contracted. When applying the new calculation method it is possible to tabulate comparable numbers of opposite-sex marriages contracted retrospectively starting from 1990.

When tabulating data on changes in marital status by area, e.g. by municipality, in cases where the couple is permanently residing in Finland but the municipalities of residence of the spouses or the parties at the time of the event are not the same, in opposite-sex change events the municipality of residence of the woman is selected and in change events involving same-sex couples the municipality of residence of the younger spouse or party is selected. The principle of the procedure is the same as before. In other cases, the municipality of residence of the spouse or party who is permanently resident in Finland is used.

Data on the number of registered partnerships is available from 2002 to 2017 and on the number of divorces of registered parnerships from 2002 on. Data on the number of marriages and divorces between same-sex couples are available from 2017 onwards.

Vital statistics time series for the whole country is available from 1749.

7. Coherence and consistency/uniformity

Statistics Finland’s other statistics use the data of demographic statistics as basic information on population. Consequently, Statistics Finland’s other statistics correspond to demographic statistics.

Source: Changes in marital status 2020. Statistics Finland

Inquiries: Timo Nikander 029 551 3250, Auli Hämäläinen 029 551 2260, info@stat.fi

Head of Department in charge: Hannele Orjala

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Updated 18.6.2021