Mexico City Considers Temporary Marriage Licenses

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‘Til death do us part … for two years? Mexico City lawmakers are proposing legislation that would allow newlyweds to apply for temporary marriage licenses, instead of making the plunge into wedded life a lifetime commitment.

The legislation’s proponents argue that the hassle of divorce could be avoided by making these licenses an option, according to Reuters. The change to civil code was proposed this week and would allow couples to decide the length of the commitment, with two years as the minimum.

If couples are still enjoying wedded bliss when the contract ends, then they would be able to renew the license. And if they’re unhappy, the contract expires and they are both free without going through a divorce.

“The proposal is, when the two-year period is up, if the relationship is not stable or harmonious, the contract simply ends,” Leonoel Luna, the Mexico City assemblyman who co-authored the bill, told Reuters. “You wouldn’t have to go through the torturous process of divorce.”

The legislation has proved to be controversial in Mexico, the country with the second largest Catholic population in world, after Brazil.

“The reform is absurd. It contradicts the nature of marriage,” Hugo Valdemar, spokesman for the Mexican archdiocese, told Reuters. “It’s another one of these electoral theatrics the assembly tends to do that are irresponsible and immoral.”

A vote is expected on the proposed legislation by the end of the year.