"Fake divorce" (假离婚) is the popular term for a divorce that a couple registers not because the marriage has ended, but to gain some practical advantage, for example to qualify for a second home under purchase restrictions, to obtain better mortgage terms, or to keep assets away from creditors. The couple usually plans to remarry later. Chinese law does not recognise a category of "fake" divorce: once the registry issues divorce certificates, the marriage has ended.
Why it matters
This is one of the riskiest arrangements in Chinese family life. The divorce agreement's property terms bind both parties; if one spouse transfers the house to the other "temporarily" and the other later refuses to remarry, getting it back is very difficult. Courts generally do not accept "it was only a fake divorce" as a reason to undo the property split. Where the purpose was to evade debts, creditors can challenge transfers made to defeat them, and Interpretation II (2025) addresses such arrangements. In the meantime, either person may marry someone else.
How it works in practice
A couple in Guangzhou divorced so the wife could buy a second flat as a "first-time buyer". Their agreement gave the existing flat and most savings to the wife. Two years later she declined to remarry. The husband sued, arguing the divorce was fake and the agreement should be reset. The court held that the divorce and agreement were valid, and he recovered nothing on that ground.
Common mistakes
- Believing that a private side agreement to remarry is enforceable
- Transferring nearly all assets to one spouse on trust
- Thinking a divorce to avoid debt will defeat creditors
- Forgetting that custody terms in the agreement also take effect
- Ignoring the tax, residency and immigration consequences of a registered divorce