Russia has made getting a divorce way more expensive in order to fund its war efforts

• Russia plans to increase divorce fees to help pay for the Ukraine war, Bloomberg reported.

• The Finance Ministry's proposal raises divorce fees from 650 to 5,000 rubles.

• Fees are also rising on name changes and business complaints, the outlet said.

Divorce in Russia won't be cheap after Moscow drafted a proposal to step up fees for ending a marriage, Bloomberg reported, citing local news reports.

The Finance Ministry motioned to multiply divorce fees to 5,000 rubles, an eightfold increase from the 650 rubles it currently costs. The fees would be equal to about a quarter of the country's minimum monthly wage, the outlet said.

The plan would help raise funds for Moscow's war against Ukraine at a time of increasing financial pressure from the West. In June, the US doubled down on slashing Russia's financial lifelines, taking aim at virtually any foreign entity that still maintains ties to Moscow.

That's bound to add more pain to the country's economy as it continues to pour money into the war effort. Russia has been running a budget deficit since the end of 2022.

Bloomberg wrote that the proposal also included a threefold jump in fees for name changes in official documents and higher fees to file business complaints with the country's antitrust office.

But the focus on divorce may also be tied to Russian concerns over shrinking demographics. The divorce rate in the country is one of the highest in the world, with 683,700 registered in 2023, Bloomberg said.

Meanwhile, President Vladimir Putin has frequently called for Russians to have bigger families amid the country's low birth rate and declining population. Some of that decline may be attributed to the number of soldiers killed in Ukraine and emigration driven by the war.

"If we want to survive as an ethnic group — well, or as ethnic groups inhabiting Russia — there must be at least two children," Putin said in February.

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