A couple pose for photos with their marriage certificates at a marriage registration office in Kaiyang County, southwest China's Guizhou Province, Aug. 22, 2023. Many couples chose to get married on Tuesday, which is the traditional Qixi Festival, or the Chinese Valentine's Day.(Photo: Xinhua)

On Sunday, marriage registration offices in many parts of China announced that they will be working as usual on Chinese New Year's Eve this year. Staff members stated that as Chinese New Year's Eve falls on a working day in 2024, the civil affairs bureaus are preparing for a potential surge in marriage registrations at the end of the year.

According to the holiday arrangement released by the General Office of the State Council for 2024, February 9, Chinese New Year’s Eve, is a regular working day. 

The civil affairs departments in various districts of Shenzhen, South China's Guangdong Province, will handle all marriage registration services as usual. Marriage registration offices throughout Guangzhou will also operate normally on ahead of the Spring Festival. 

According to Guangzhou Daily, wedding service workers suggest that residents in the city  make appointments at different times to avoid overcrowding. The Civil Affairs Bureau of Foshan also announced on its official WeChat account that marriage registration offices in all districts of Foshan will be open on New Year’s Eve. 

Marriage registration offices of Jiangyang District Civil Affairs Bureau in Luzhou, Southwest China's Sichuan Province, and Wujian District Civil Affairs Bureau in Suzhou, East China’s Jiangsu Province have also confirmed that they will work as usual on New Year’s Eve. 

“On New Year’s Eve, we will be conducting marriage registrations as usual in order to better serve couples who want to create beautiful memories on this special holiday,” a representative surnamed Guo from the Civil Affairs Bureau of Jianghan district in Wuhan, Central China’s Hubei Province, told the Global Times on Sunday. 

“We expect that the number of people coming to register on that day may reach a small peak, as it is the first year that New Year’s Eve that is also a regular working day. Historically, Valentine’s Day has also been a popular day for registering marriage certificates, but this year Valentine's Day happens to fall in the middle of the holiday period, so New Year's Eve has become a ‘double happiness’ day. We have prepared in all departments to provide the best service for every couple who wishes to tie the knot,” Guo said.
 
The General Office of the State Council previously announced the holiday arrangement for 2024, stating that from February 10 to 17, there will be a holiday break for the Spring Festival, and it encourages units to arrange for employees to rest on New Year's Eve by combining paid annual leave and other systems. 

As the Spring Festival approaches, the wedding economy is entering its peak season. In 2024, which is the Year of the Dragon in the lunar calendar, considered a “springless” year, many people choose to complete one of their life’s joyous events before the end of the lunar year.

Many netizens have expressed that this year is the first year they may need to work on Chinese New Yea’s Eve. For many couples, getting married on New Year's Eve holds even greater significance.