COUPLES who want to register for marriage can now make reservations at any registry office in the 10 districts and new areas, according to a notice from the Shenzhen Municipal Civil Affairs Bureau.

The expansion of the registry service is to meet the demand of newlyweds, improve social services and balance the available resources among registration offices.

According to tradition, Chinese couples like to register their marriages on auspicious days, such as Sept. 9, Sept. 19 and National Day. The online reservation system showed that reservations for the three days had been booked weeks in advance, except for a limited number of slots remaining in the less populated districts like Pingshan, Guangming and Dapeng. The expansion of the service citywide will make full use of the resources of the districts and new areas.

To ensure the availability of the service, the bureau organized training sessions by inviting scholars and experts to give lectures on related marriage regulations, registration rules and the requirements for applying citywide, according to Liao Yuanfei, director of the bureau.

(Han Ximin)