France to formally scrap marital obligation to have sex

France to formally scrap marital obligation to have sex

By Our Reporter

PARIS (CONVERSEER) – France is set to legally abolish the long-standing concept of “conjugal duty,” the idea that marriage comes with an obligation to engage in sexual relations.

Lawmakers, on Wednesday, 29 January 2026, approved a bill in the National Assembly amending the civil code to clarify that “community of living” within marriage does not imply a duty to have sex.

The proposed legislation also blocks the use of a lack of sexual relations as grounds for fault-based divorce, marking a significant shift in how marital rights and consent are defined under French law.

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