ARI Working Paper Series

International marriage has received increasing attention in recent years, both from a theoretical perspective and because of a practical concern with urgent policy issues arising from the emerging trends. This paper focuses on the East and Southeast Asian region. It updates available information about trends in international marriage in the region, categorizes the kinds of international marriages taking place and their relative numerical importance, and notes some key features of such marriages : notably, that the dominant pattern in the wealthier East Asian countries is for men to marry foreign brides, whereas in the poorer countries the dominant pattern is for women to marry foreign husbands; and that men marrying foreign brides are predominantly older, and the spousal age gap is typically wide. The paper discusses factors contributing to the trends in international marriages in this region. It also discusses some of the implications of international marriage trends, including their role in increasing ethnic heterogeneity in countries with restrictive immigration policies, and makes a few forays into the vexed area of policy.