Romantic relationship in Eritrea

Eritrea has no state registration or approval process for dating or romantic relationships. A betrothal is a contractual promise to marry, normally formed with two witnesses according to local practice; it does not require a civil-status entry, and a simple promise to marry is not automatically a betrothal. If no wedding date was agreed, the marriage should generally follow within six months after one party requests it. A breach can lead to repayment of gifts, compensation for expenses and possible moral compensation of up to 10,000 Nakfa, with a one-year period for bringing a claim. Marriage can be civil, religious or customary. Civil registration is handled through decentralized civil-status officers under the Ministry of Local Government, while religious and customary authorities conduct other forms of marriage. Publicly documented nationwide fees, certificate requirements, processing deadlines and consequences for late registration are not established, and ceremony costs vary by community and religion. Bigamy prevents a valid new marriage. Both partners must give personal consent, and a marriage concluded through threats is invalid. The normal minimum marriage age is 18 for both partners. A legal exception applies when both are at least 16 and pregnancy or childbirth is involved; an additional dispensation may be issued by the Minister of Justice or an authorized official. Marriage creates duties of respect, fidelity, protection, support and assistance, with equal rights and responsibilities. Partners share responsibility for family direction, child upbringing and residence, while property and support consequences follow the applicable legal rules. Cohabitation without marriage can acquire legal consequences after at least five years: a court may award support and up to one quarter of the property when the relationship ends, and succession can follow the position of a surviving spouse after death. Health services under Eritrea's adolescent-friendly sexual and reproductive health policy are intended for married and unmarried adolescents, including girls and boys. They include contraception, HIV and sexually transmitted infection referrals, and counselling. Social stigma and other costs connected with sexual activity outside marriage exist, but their national scale has not been reliably measured. Domestic violence has no separate offence category, although assault is criminalized; intervention by authorities is reported to be uncommon. Country reporting from 2023 states that rape of a spouse is criminalized only when the spouses are permanently separated. In a 2010 survey, 51% of women aged 15 to 49 considered at least one reason for wife-beating justified. Consensual same-sex sexual activity is criminalized in Eritrea with a stated prison range of five to seven years and was reported as enforced in 2023. No general anti-discrimination protection, legal gender recognition or relationship protection for same-sex couples is documented, and strong social and religious discrimination is reported. No known LGBTQ organization provides a nationally documented relationship-support pathway. Early and forced marriage risks also affect partner choice. Among women aged 20 to 24, 41% had first married or entered a union before age 18 and 13% before age 15 in 2010; UNICEF estimated about 466,000 child brides. Poverty, rural residence, limited education, patriarchal expectations and family or community pressure are associated factors. Programs involving UNFPA, UNICEF, the National Union of Eritrean Women, the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare address awareness, community mobilization, education and vocational support, but no verified nationwide dating or relationship-counselling service is established. After separation, divorce may be based on an irretrievable breakdown of the relationship, and one year of separation creates an irrebuttable presumption of breakdown. Family arbitrators can attempt reconciliation and set terms concerning support, custody and property; if no agreement is reached, they should decide within six months of the application. A court process is also available, and unilateral repudiation has no legal effect. Sharia Courts handle Islamic family matters such as divorce, maintenance, paternity, custody and inheritance, with the possibility of choosing national rules. Regional differences in practice, actual enforcement and the costs of registration, ceremonies, court proceedings and advice remain insufficiently documented.