IBGE: Births Fall and Deaths Rise in Brazil’s 2024 Civil Registry as Family Patterns Shift

Overview

• Live births fell 5.8% to about 2.37 million in 2024, marking a sixth straight annual decline and the lowest level in the series since 2004.
• Registered deaths increased 4.6% to 1,495,386, the first uptick since post‑pandemic declines, with 71.7% occurring at ages 60 and over and 6.9% from external causes; the District Federal posted the sharpest rise at 11.6%.
• Marriages edged up 0.9% to 948,925 yet remained below pre‑pandemic volumes, while same‑sex unions hit a record 12,187, up 8.8% year over year.
• Divorces decreased 2.8% to roughly 428,300, with about 82% granted judicially; for the first time in court rulings, shared custody (45%) surpassed sole maternal custody (43%).
• National averages masked contrasts, with Ceará’s first‑instance divorces up 9.8% even as the country overall declined, and regional shifts in births and deaths varied widely across states.