Divorce on the rise across the country

In 2013, Belgian notaries recorded 15% more divorces than the year before. "The economic crisis may be one of the factors to blame for more marriages gone wrong, but the effect is only being felt now," said Bart Van Opstal, President of the Belgian federation of notaries, in Het Nieuwsblad and De Standaard. "In 2013 we saw consumer confidence rise, but at the same time so did the number of divorces."

While the annual report of the Belgian notaries only takes into account divorce by mutual consent, the figures are nevertheless a good indication of the effect of the crisis on people’s personal lives.