Child marriage has existed from time immemorial in Nepal. Until about 25-30 years ago, it was common to hear stories of children as small as 6 or 8 years old having already been married in matches arranged by their parents. Growing children were told by their elders that they had already been married. They had no other choice but to accept each other as spouses and begin to cohabit when they came of age. Over time however, marriages among children under 10 years old have largely been eradicated. As of 1971, the last time the national census collected data on marriage among children under 10 years of age, only 2.4% of children in the 6-9 age group were reported to have been formally married.
A 1962 law sets the minimum marriage age of 14 for females and 18 years for males. A later revision changed the ages to 16 and 18 respectively, with parental consent. Without parental consent, the minimum ages are now 18 for females and 21 for males. The law has probably helped increasing the age of marriages, but a lack of universal birth and marriage registrations remains however.