LAUSR

The negative and restrictive attitude of the Swedish legislator towards child marriages celebrated abroad has been step-by step sharpened, most recently by an amendment reacting to the dramatic increase of asylum seekers in the second half of 2015 from countries where persons under the age of eighteen can enter into valid marriages. Such marriages, concluded on or after 1 January 2019, will with almost no exceptions be denied recognition in Sweden, regardless of whether at the time of the wedding the spouses had any connection with Sweden and irrespective of how much time has lapsed thereafter. While the Swedish politicians and public generally welcome this reform, they seem to disregard the serious negative practical and legal consequences such general non-recognition may have for the persons concerned, in particular the young wives. The article examines critically the new rules and discusses the possibilities to reconcile the refusal to accept child marriages with the protection of legitimate interests of the spouses.