Legality of polygamy

[72] Polygamous marriages occur, regardless of legality, as the practice is deeply rooted in culture and often supported by Islam in Africa.

The United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand permit some benefits for spouses of polygamous marriages performed abroad.

In Canada, both bigamy (article 290 of the Criminal code of Canada)[147]) and de facto polygamy (article 293 of the Criminal Code) [148] are illegal, but there are provisions in the property law of at least the Canadian province of Saskatchewan that consider the possibility of de facto multiple marriage-like situations (e.g. if an already married person enters into a second common-law relationship situation without first obtaining a legal divorce from their existing spouse).

[149][better source needed] The vast majority of sovereign states with a Muslim-majority population recognize polygamous marriages: these states span from the West Africa to Southeast Asia, with the exceptions of Turkey, Tunisia, Albania, Kosovo and Central Asian countries.

Polyandry is de facto the norm in rural areas of Tibet, although it is illegal under Chinese family law.

[161] The tables below cover recent pieces of legislation that have been either debated, proposed or voted on; all of which concerns a form of polygamous union.