The Metropolitan Cathedral in Asunción, Paraguay (Photo: Chipachyryry, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons)

PARAGUAY · CHILDREN’S RIGHTS

Paraguay’s Chamber of Deputies voted on Tuesday 20 October 2026 to ban marriage under 18 with no exceptions, ending the rule that lets 16- and 17-year-olds wed with parental or judicial consent. The bill passed by 23 votes to 15, with 9 blank votes, and now goes to the Senate.

For US readers, the vote comes from a close Washington partner, one day after Paraguay and the United States signed two security deals in Asunción during a visit by US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau. It also follows Paraguay’s acceptance of United Nations recommendations to end such exceptions, according to a coalition of children’s rights groups.

Our earlier report, Paraguay Signs 2 Security Deals With US, covers the Landau visit. The sources reviewed for this article do not link the marriage vote to those talks.

What the Bill Changes

The bill amends article 17 of the Civil Code and cancels the provisions added by Law 1 of 1992 and Law 5419 of 2015, which allow marriage from age 16. Today the Civil Code sets 18 as the general minimum age, but 16- and 17-year-olds may marry with the consent of their parents, a guardian or a judge.

The text also expressly prohibits marriage between a minor and an adult, and any breach would be reported to the Public Ministry, Paraguay’s prosecution service, for investigation. Marriages that are already being formalised and involve anyone under 18 would be suspended until both partners reach 18.

For marriages already celebrated between people under 18, a transitional rule keeps their property separate until the age requirement is met. The sources reviewed do not say whether those marriages would stay legally valid.

Walter Gutiérrez, the minister of children and adolescence, said on a local radio station that Paraguay had already raised the minimum age once, from 14 to 16 with parental authorisation. Under the new bill, he said, the exception clause is simply deleted, which fixes 18 as the strict minimum.

The National Pantheon of the Heroes in central Asunción. (Photo: CivArmy, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons)

How Deputies Voted

The tally was 23 in favour, 15 against and 9 blank, as given by the EFE news agency and the Paraguayan outlet RDN. The Chamber approved the bill after its Children and Adolescence Commission issued a favourable opinion.

Deputy Dalia Estigarribia of the opposition Authentic Radical Liberal Party (PLRA), who chairs that commission, defended the bill and argued for ending the exceptions. She filed it in December 2024 with deputies Johanna Ortega, Guillermo Rodríguez and Walter García, EFE said.

“We are going to do justice by the girls, many of them handed over to early marriages authorised by their parents or by a judge,” Estigarribia said in remarks quoted by RDN and translated here. She also noted that international bodies have been calling for the exception to go.

Deputy Yamil Esgaib of the ruling Colorado Party (ANR), who chairs the Justice, Labour and Social Security Commission, asked colleagues to reject the bill. He argued that its legal consequences need study, especially when a teenager becomes pregnant, and that the reach of de facto unions needs to be defined.

RDN said Esgaib also described early marriage as a way out of adolescent pregnancy, and that the Colorado Party did not vote as one bloc. Some Colorados backed the ban, others opposed it and a third group voted blank, and Deputy Rocío Abed, from the camp of President Peña, announced she would vote yes.

How Common Is Marriage Under 18 in Paraguay

The coalition of children’s rights groups known as CDIA said 6,111 adolescents aged 15 to 17 lived in marriages or early unions in Paraguay in 2025. Of those, 5,625 were female and 486 were male, based on the national statistics institute’s 2025 household survey.

The 2025 survey recorded no legal marriages, against an estimate of 745 in 2024, which CDIA said may reflect a change in how marital status is recorded and not a real decline. The group called the practice a serious violation of rights that affects girls and adolescent women disproportionately.

The Ministry of Children and Adolescence, known as Minna, backs the bill. Gutiérrez said the ministry sent a favourable technical opinion to the Chamber and will repeat it if the Senate asks.

What Happens Next

The bill now moves to the Senate, which must study it and decide whether to back the ban. RDN said the Chamber had put off the debate several times before this vote.

The sources reviewed give no date for the Senate debate. Until senators act, the exception for 16- and 17-year-olds stays in force.

What It Means for You

For families and couples in Paraguay, the bill would make 18 the only age at which anyone can marry, with no waiver from parents or a judge. Nothing changes yet, because the Senate has still to act and the bill is not law.

For US readers, the vote shows how Paraguayan lawmakers handle a child-rights question while Washington is building closer security ties with Asunción. Our guides Paraguay Politics Explained, Who Holds Power in 2026 and Paraguay Geopolitics Explained 2026 show who holds power and how the country positions itself abroad.

Residents and visitors can find day-to-day information in our Asunción expat city guide. Our Paraguay flood report covers the other major story in the country this week.

What Is Not Known

The Senate has not announced when it will take up the bill, and the sources reviewed give no timetable. It is also not known whether senators will keep the Chamber’s text, change it or reject it.

It is not clear whether marriages already celebrated between people under 18 stay valid, because the sources describe only a transitional rule on separate property. The Chamber’s own full text was not opened for this article, so these details rest on its communiqué as relayed by EFE and on Paraguayan newspaper reports.

EFE’s write-up of the CDIA bulletin says 83% of the 6,111 adolescents were female, but its own counts of 5,625 females and 486 males work out to about 92%. We therefore use the counts and not the percentage.

The survey recorded no legal marriages in 2025, so it is unclear how many of the 6,111 are legal marriages that the bill would cover. CDIA itself cautioned that the zero may reflect a change in recording, and it cited an estimate of 745 legal marriages for 2024.

Frequently Asked Questions

What did Paraguay’s lower house vote on?

The Chamber of Deputies voted on 20 October 2026 for a bill that sets 18 as the minimum marriage age with no exceptions. The vote was 23 in favour, 15 against and 9 blank.

What is the current marriage age in Paraguay?

The Civil Code sets 18 as the general minimum age, with an exception for 16- and 17-year-olds who have the consent of parents, a guardian or a judge. The bill would remove that exception.

Is the ban on marriage under 18 law yet?

No, because the bill still has to pass the Senate. The sources reviewed give no date for that debate.

How many adolescents are in early unions in Paraguay?

A coalition of children’s rights groups counted 6,111 adolescents aged 15 to 17 in marriages or early unions in 2025. Of those, 5,625 were female and 486 were male.

Why does it matter for US readers?

The vote came a day after Paraguay and the United States signed two security deals in Asunción. It shows how lawmakers in a close Washington partner handle a child-rights question.

Sources: EFE via Infobae, 20 October 2026; Diario HOY, 20 October 2026; La Nación, 20 October 2026; RDN, 20 October 2026; Diario HOY on Minna, 20 October 2026; EFE via Infobae on the CDIA bulletin, 11 October 2026; Paraguay Chamber of Deputies.

Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief · Editorial standards · Report an error