Transnational Marriages on the Decline: Explaining Changing Trends in Partner Choice among Turkish Belgians Klaartje Van Kerckem Ghent University, Belgium Koen Van der Bracht Ghent University, Belgium Peter A. J. Stevens Ghent University, Belgium Bart Van de Putte Ghent University, Belgium This article reports a decline in transnational marriages among Turkish Belgians between 2001 and 2008 and explains the changing trends through a qualitative study of Turkish Belgians’ current partner preferences and union formation practices. Young people prefer a local marriage because it enables upward social mobility, and the pos- sibility of premarital relationships and lower parental involvement seem to further add to the declining popularity of transnational mar- riages. Despite these changes, however, a considerable percentage of people continues to marry a partner from the country of origin. By identifying four ‘types’ of transnational marriages we highlight the changes and diversification with regards to transnational marriages. INTRODUCTION Notwithstanding an immigration ban in 1974, many Western European countries have continued to receive new immigrants from non-European countries that used to provide them with guest workers. One of the main reasons the ban did not effectively stop immigration is that migrants and © 2013 by the Center for Migration Studies of New York. All rights reserved. DOI: 10.1111/imre.12053 1006 IMR Volume 47 Number 4 (Winter 2013):1006–1038