Work

The Demographic and Socioeconomic Consequences of Restricting Access to Marriage for Young Immigrant Women in Denmark

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: In July 2002, Danish reforms limited the marriage opportunities for all Danish and non-European Union (EU) citizens younger than 24 living in Denmark who wished (or whose parents wished for them) to marry someone from outside the EU. Before the reform, more than 80% of first- and second-generation immigrants from outside the EU married spouses from their parents' origin countries; the reform drastically changed their marriage market. We examine the policy's effects on subsequent marriage behavior, the transition to motherhood, human capital accumulation, and labor market activities using full-population administrative data on 578,380 Danish-born first- and second-generation non-EU immigrants born in 1972-1990 and a difference-in-differences design. We find that the policy delayed marriages among individuals with an immigrant background, extended premarital cohabitation, changed the composition of spouses, and delayed and decreased in-wedlock fertility. Finally, the duration of obtained formal education increased. Our results emphasize that reforms constraining access to external marriage markets can have lasting impacts on marriage demographics among immigrants.

Source: Demography

DOI: 10.1215/00703370-11791081

Authors: Bojana Cuzulan, Marie Louise Schultz-Nielsen, Peter Fallesen

Institutions: Copenhagen Municipality, Rockwool Foundation, Stockholm University

Language: English

Topic: Family Dynamics and Relationships

Subfield: Demography

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDGs: Reduced inequalities, Gender equality, Decent work and economic growth

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $2,750