Mass wedding event across China aims to discourage extravagance

BEIJING - A total of 5,000 couples, including newlyweds from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, will participate in a mass wedding ceremony on Sept 22, the All-China Women's Federation said Wednesday.

The traditional Chinese wedding ceremony, organized as a public benefit activity by the federation and five other institutions, aims to promote simplified weddings and discourage outdated customs like extravagant betrothal gifts.

The event will take place in Beijing, with simultaneous ceremonies across the country via video. Newlyweds can apply with their marriage certificates through the federation's official WeChat account to participate in the mass wedding.

Data from the Ministry of Civil Affairs show that China recorded 7.68 million marriage registrations in 2023, an increase of 12.4 percent year on year.

China has recently simplified the marriage registration process, announcing that couples will no longer need to present their resident household registration books when registering for marriage.