The Tongan government has announced that a new law raising the legal marriage age to 18 has officially come into force, marking a significant reform aimed at strengthening protections for vulnerable children.
The change follows decades of concern over underage marriages in the country, where previously young people could legally marry at 15—and in some cases as young as 14—with parental consent.
Under the Civil Registration & Digital Identification Act 2025, it is now unlawful for anyone under 18 to marry.
This reform closes the long‑criticised parental‑consent loophole that had enabled forced or coerced marriages under the guise of family approval.
The announcement of the law this week follows a long process that included serious parliamentary debate and extensive scrutiny before the reforms were finally passed.
As Kaniva News reported in 2016, then Deputy Speaker Lord Tuʻiʻāfitu told Parliament he was deeply concerned by the scale of child marriage in Tonga, revealing that 183 underage marriages had been recorded over a three‑year period.
UNICEF classifies marriage before the age of 18 as a fundamental violation of human rights, underscoring the seriousness of the issue.
Voices of Women Heard and Children
The Women and Children Crisis Centre (WCCC) has welcomed the government’s announcement, noting that its recommendation had consistently called for setting the minimum legal marriage age at 18.
It said that in August 2025, the WCCC made a formal written submission to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Legislation as it reviewed the Civil Registration & Digital Identification Bill.
In its submission, WCCC strongly supported establishing 18 as the minimum legal age for marriage in line with international human rights standards, including the Convention on the Rights of the Child and CEDAW.
The recommendation was based on extensive community consultations and national survey findings from women and young women across Tonga, as well as frontline casework from WCCC services involving girls aged 15 to 17 who had entered early marriages and later sought help as survivors of violence, abuse and exploitation.
WCCC also raised several legal considerations aimed at strengthening protections within the law, calling for clearer frameworks for divorce and annulment, stronger judicial safeguards to prevent misuse of nullity provisions, better recognition of the gendered impacts of marriage and divorce on women and vulnerable spouses, and greater clarity around prohibited degrees of consanguinity.
The organisation said it valued the opportunity to contribute to the legislative process and emphasised the importance of continued collaboration between government, Parliament, civil society and communities to improve protections for women and children.
It noted that the reform represents an important step forward in protecting girls from early marriage and ensuring they can complete their education, make informed decisions and reach their full potential.
