An inside view of the bank hall, decorated for marriage registration with balloons, flowers and a ceremonial oath podium. Photo: CCTV News

China's very first marriage registration office located inside a bank has opened in North China's Tianjin Municipality, offering couples yet another unconventional place to tie the knot as marriage registration across the country becomes more convenient, flexible and increasingly tailored to younger generations.

Tianjin's Hexi District civil affairs authority and the Hexi branch of Postal Savings Bank of China on August 6 jointly launched the Donghai Marriage Registration Office, making it Tianjin's first marriage registration site inside a bank and the first of its kind in the country, CCTV News reported on Thursday.

Unlike the usual image of couples heading to a government service hall to tie the knot, newlyweds can now walk into a bank branch and walk out with a marriage certificate. According to an early notice posted by the Hexi civil affairs authority on its official WeChat account, the service is currently available only for marriage registrations between Chinese mainland residents.

The new site welcomed its first couples on its opening day, with two pairs registering their marriages there. One newlywed couple said that the setting was "romantic and warm," adding that the experience gave the occasion a stronger sense of ceremony, CCTV News reported. 

Marriage registration has become increasingly convenient across China. On May 10, 2025, newly revised marriage registration regulations took effect, allowing mainland residents to register their marriages nationwide rather than only in places tied to their household registration. The change has made the process convenient particularly for people who live and work for long periods away from their registered hometowns, according to the CCTV report.  

Tianjin's bank-based registration office is only one example of how marriage registration is moving beyond traditional government service halls in China. Since nationwide marriage registration was introduced, cities and tourist attractions across China have been creating new "landmarks" for couples to obtain their marriage certificates, combining registration with travel, sightseeing and even music festivals.

At a marriage registration office in Hangzhou, East China's Zhejiang Province, couples can stroll past small bridges and waterways, explore a romance-themed garden and a corridor highlighting different wedding anniversaries, according to the report.  

At Sayram Lake in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, couples can often be seen lining up for their marriage certificates against a backdrop of turquoise water and snow-capped mountains. Over the past year or so, the Sayram Lake marriage registration center has handled registrations for more than 10,000 couples, most of them visitors from outside the region, per CCTV News. 

On July 11, an even more unusual marriage registration site opened at Discoveryland Theme Park in Dalian, Northeast China's Liaoning Province. Couples can board the "Eye of Dalian" Ferris wheel and receive their marriage certificates about 100 meters above the ground.

Marriage registration has even found its way into music festivals.

According to Ningbo Evening News, 10 couples took to the stage at the 2025 Eastsea city Music Festival to hold a collective wedding ceremony surrounded by cheering festivalgoers. 

Data released by China's Ministry of Civil Affairs on Wednesday showed that 3.275 million couples registered their marriages nationwide in the first half of 2026.

Global Times