If you have searched for China's "new divorce law" for 2025 or 2026, you have probably read that China introduced a 30-day divorce cooling-off period in 2025, or that a "new marriage law" took effect on 1 February 2026. Neither is accurate. There is no new marriage law, and the Civil Code's divorce rules have not changed. What did change in 2025 were two instruments: the Supreme People's Court's Interpretation II on Marriage and Family (1 February 2025) and the revised Marriage Registration Regulations (10 May 2025).
The Supreme People's Court's Interpretation II on Marriage and Family, in force since 1 February 2025, is a set of binding judicial guidelines that tells Chinese courts how to apply the Civil Code's marriage and family rules to common modern disputes. It does not rewrite the Civil Code, but it clarifies several areas that matter in divorce: houses bought with parents' money, "fake divorces", gifts to lovers or livestreamers, promises in loyalty agreements, and parents who hide or snatch a child.
This article gives a general overview as of 2026. The detailed rules are technical and fact-specific, so treat this as orientation rather than advice on your own case.
Myth: the cooling-off period was introduced in 2025
The 30-day divorce cooling-off period is not new. It comes from Article 1077 of the PRC Civil Code and has applied since 1 January 2021. It applies only to divorce by agreement at the marriage registry: either spouse may withdraw within 30 days of applying, and both must then return in person within the following 30 days to collect the divorce certificate. It does not apply to court divorces. Interpretation II did not change it, and the 2025 Registration Regulations keep the same procedure.
If you are experiencing domestic violence, you do not have to go through the registry at all: you can file in court, where there is no cooling-off period, and apply for a personal safety protection order. For the details, see our guide to the China divorce cooling-off period.
What actually changed in 2025
| Date | Instrument | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| 1 February 2025 | SPC Interpretation II on Marriage and Family | Clarifies how courts handle parents' house contributions, fake divorce, gifts to third parties, loyalty agreements and child-snatching |
| 10 May 2025 | Revised Marriage Registration Regulations | Registration is nationwide rather than tied to the hukou location, the hukou booklet is no longer required, and the registry divorce procedure, including the cooling-off period, is unchanged |
As of 2026 there has been no change to the Civil Code's divorce grounds, custody rules or cooling-off period. For couples involving a foreigner, see marriage registration in China for foreigners. The rest of this article focuses on Interpretation II, the change most likely to affect a contested divorce.
What is Interpretation II on Marriage and Family?
The Supreme People's Court (SPC) regularly issues judicial interpretations to unify how courts apply the law. For marriage and family matters under Book V of the PRC Civil Code, the SPC issued Interpretation I, which took effect with the Civil Code in 2021, and then Interpretation II, effective 1 February 2025.
Interpretation II responds to disputes that had produced inconsistent results in different courts. Its aim is predictability: couples, parents and lawyers can better anticipate how a court is likely to approach these issues.
Five areas Interpretation II clarifies
| Area | The question it addresses | General direction |
|---|---|---|
| Parents' contributions to a home | Is money from parents a gift to the couple, to their own child, or a loan? | Courts look at the circumstances, including agreements, who paid and the length of the marriage |
| Fake divorce | What if a couple divorces to evade debts or get around purchase restrictions? | The divorce is generally real; the aim of misleading others does not undo it |
| Gifts to a third party | Can a spouse recover money given to a lover or a livestreamer? | Unreasonable gifts of community property can in principle be recovered |
| Loyalty and marriage agreements | Is a promise to hand over property if one spouse is unfaithful enforceable? | Courts take a cautious, case-by-case approach |
| Hiding or snatching a child | How does it affect custody? | Such conduct can weigh against the parent who does it |
We look at each in turn below.
1. Houses bought with parents' contributions
Parents in China very often help their children buy a home, either before or during the marriage. When the marriage ends, the key question is who that contribution belongs to.
Interpretation II gives courts a more structured way to answer this. In general terms, courts consider whether there was a written agreement, whether the contribution was for the whole purchase or only part of it, in whose name the property is registered, and how long the marriage lasted. It also allows courts, in appropriate cases, to take into account the parents' contribution and the length of the marriage when deciding how to divide the home or what compensation one spouse should pay the other.
The practical lesson: parents who help with a purchase should document whether the money is a gift to their own child, a gift to the couple, or a loan. See who gets the house in a divorce in China for the wider picture.
2. "Fake divorce" is treated as a real divorce
Some couples divorce on paper to qualify for a second home under purchase restrictions, or to shield assets from creditors, intending to remarry later. This is often called a fake divorce.
Interpretation II confirms the long-standing position: the divorce is legally real. The property terms in the divorce agreement generally bind the spouses, even if one of them later says it was all for show. The Interpretation also addresses situations where a divorce agreement is used to move assets away from creditors, so creditors may have remedies of their own.
If you are considering a divorce for practical or financial reasons, take advice first. The risk of losing property permanently is real.
3. Recovering gifts to a lover or livestreamer
Community property belongs to both spouses. Interpretation II addresses cases where one spouse makes substantial gifts to a third party, for example to a person with whom they are having an affair, or large "tips" to an online livestreamer, without the other spouse's consent.
In general terms, the other spouse can ask the court to recover such gifts when they go beyond what is reasonable in daily life, and these transfers may also be relevant to how the remaining community property is divided. Evidence such as bank and payment-app records is usually crucial, and our hidden asset tracing team often helps here.
4. Property promised in a loyalty or marriage agreement
Couples sometimes sign "loyalty agreements" saying, for example, that a spouse who is unfaithful must give up the house. Interpretation II clarifies how courts approach promises to transfer property between spouses in such agreements.
Courts generally distinguish between genuine marital property agreements, which the Civil Code allows couples to make in writing, and clauses that try to punish personal conduct or restrict freedom of marriage. Whether a particular promise will be enforced depends heavily on its wording and circumstances, so these documents should be drafted carefully. Our prenuptial and postnuptial agreement lawyers can advise.
5. Hiding or snatching a child
Custody disputes sometimes turn into one parent taking the child and refusing contact, or hiding the child to gain an advantage. Interpretation II addresses this conduct in custody decisions.
In general, a parent who snatches or hides a child to obtain custody, or to block the other parent's contact, risks having that behaviour weigh against them when the court applies the best-interests principle. For how custody is decided more broadly, see how Chinese courts decide child custody.
What Interpretation II means for you
- If you are negotiating a divorce agreement, review how property from parents and any gifts to third parties are dealt with.
- If your parents helped buy your home, put the nature of that help in writing.
- If you have signed a loyalty agreement, do not assume it will be enforced exactly as written.
- If you are in a custody dispute, avoid any action that looks like hiding the child or cutting off the other parent.
- If your case started before February 2025, ask a lawyer how the new rules may apply; transitional questions can be technical.
Key takeaways
- There is no "new divorce law" for 2025 or 2026. The 30-day cooling-off period has applied since 1 January 2021, and only to registry divorce.
- Interpretation II on Marriage and Family took effect on 1 February 2025 and guides how courts apply the Civil Code.
- It clarifies parents' contributions to a home, fake divorce, gifts to third parties, loyalty agreements and child-snatching.
- A divorce entered into for tactical reasons is generally a real divorce with binding property terms.
- Written records of family contributions and careful drafting of agreements matter more than ever.
- Outcomes remain fact-specific; take advice on your own situation.
To discuss how Interpretation II may affect your divorce, property or custody matter, book a free, confidential consultation.