What Changes When You Get Officially Married: 5 Situations Where “We’re a Family Anyway” Isn’t Legally the Same Thing

Living together without a registered marriage does not always have the same legal consequences as an official marriage. We’ll explain the situations in which this can make a difference—from the birth of a child and shared property to military benefits and inheritance.

Birth of a Child: How a Registered Marriage Changes Things

If the child’s mother and father are in a registered marriage, the law presumes that the child is the couple’s biological child. Therefore, the mother’s husband does not need to separately acknowledge paternity. The child’s parentage is determined based on the marriage certificate and the child’s birth certificate.

If the parents are not married, the situation is different. The child’s descent from the mother is determined based on the birth certificate, and the father’s paternity must be established separately. If both parents agree, they may file a joint application to acknowledge paternity. Such an application may be filed either before or after the child’s birth.

If there is no joint application by the parents to acknowledge paternity, paternity may be established by a court order. Once paternity is established, corresponding rights and obligations arise between the father and the child—in particular regarding child support, upbringing, and inheritance.

Thus, the absence of a registered marriage does not deprive a child of the possibility of having a legally recognized mother and father. Difference in procedure: In a marriage, as a general rule, it is not necessary to separately establish the paternity of the mother’s husband, whereas outside of marriage, this requires a declaration by the parents or, in certain cases, a court order.

Joint Property: Who Owns Property Acquired During Cohabitation

If a couple is in a registered marriage, property acquired during the marriage is, as a general rule, the joint property of the spouses. It is not decisive in which spouse’s name the property is registered or which spouse earned the money.

At the same time, not all property acquired during the marriage is considered joint property. In particular, property that one spouse owned before the marriage, received as an inheritance or gift during the marriage, or purchased with their own funds remains the personal property of that spouse. For example, an apartment that a wife inherited during the marriage generally belongs to her and not to the spouses jointly.

If the marriage is unregistered, this does not mean that everything acquired during their life together belongs solely to the person in whose name it was registered. The Family Code provides that property acquired by a man and a woman while living together as a family without being married is also their joint property, unless they are married to someone else or have agreed otherwise in writing.

The practical difference arises primarily when a dispute arises between the partners. For married couples, the registered marriage itself confirms the existence of the relevant family relationship. For an unregistered couple, it may be necessary to prove that, at the time the disputed property was acquired, the man and woman were indeed living as a family, and not merely together. The court may consider evidence of cohabitation and joint household management, the existence of a shared budget and expenses, the acquisition of property for the family, both partners’ contributions to housing and repair costs, and other circumstances that confirm the reality of the family relationship.

Loans and Debts: When Both Spouses May Be Liable

The mere fact of a registered marriage does not mean that any loan taken out by one spouse automatically becomes a joint debt. As a general rule, enforcement against the obligations of one spouse is directed at their personal property and their share of the joint property.

The situation changes if the agreement was entered into in the family’s interest, and the money or property received under it was used for family needs. In such a case, the agreement—even if signed only by the husband or only by the wife—may create obligations for the other spouse as well. Therefore, it matters not only who took out the loan but also why it was taken out and what the money was actually spent on. For example, a loan for the medical treatment of a child shared by both spouses may involve both of them, whereas a loan that one spouse took out and spent exclusively on their own needs does not, in and of itself, become a family debt.

There is also an important nuance regarding loans taken out before marriage. The mere fact of marriage does not make such a debt joint: as a general rule, the person who entered into the loan agreement is liable for it. If, during the marriage, the loan was repaid using the couple’s joint funds, this does not in itself make the debt joint, but such expenses may be taken into account in any subsequent property dispute between the spouses.

For a couple living together without a registered marriage, the provision of the Family Code under which a contract entered into by one spouse in the family’s interest creates obligations for the other does not apply. Therefore, the mere fact of cohabitation does not make a partner liable for a loan taken out by the other person. If both partners wish to be jointly liable to the bank for the loan, this must be explicitly stated in the contract itself. For example, when both are listed as borrowers or one assumes the relevant obligation under a separate agreement.

If one of the partners is a military servicemember: benefits and social guarantees

An injury or the determination of disability primarily creates rights for the military service member themselves, not for their spouse. In particular, a service member may be entitled to additional payments during medical treatment, as well as a one-time benefit in the event of a determination of disability or partial loss of working capacity. The presence or absence of a registered marriage does not in itself affect these payments.

Marriage registration becomes significantly more important in the event of a service member’s death. During martial law, in cases provided for by law, the one-time financial assistance in connection with death amounts to 15 million hryvnias. This is a total amount, not 15 million for each person: in the absence of specific instructions from the service member, it is distributed among those entitled to the payment, including the spouse, children, and parents of the deceased. At the same time, a service member may specify in advance in a personal directive to whom and in what proportions the assistance is to be paid.

Even a personal directive does not allow for the complete denial of benefits to certain family members. Minors, underage children, and adult children who are unable to work, as well as a widow or widower who is unable to work and the deceased’s parents who are unable to work, retain the right to half of the share of the benefit they would have received in the absence of a personal directive.

The absence of a registered marriage does not automatically result in the loss of the right to benefits in the event of death. The law also includes among the beneficiaries a woman or man who lived with the deceased as a family without being married, provided that neither of them was married to anyone else. However, a partner without a registered marriage must have a court decision that has entered into legal force and establishes the fact of living with the deceased as a family. For an official spouse, such judicial confirmation of the family relationship is not required.

Another situation of practical importance is when a service member is taken prisoner or goes missing in action. Their financial allowance continues to be paid. A service member may draw up a separate personal directive in advance and specify to whom and in what proportions these funds are to be paid. If no such directive exists, 50% of the financial support is distributed in equal shares among the closest relatives as defined by law, including the spouse, legal guardians of minor children, children with disabilities present since childhood, and parents. The remainder of the financial support is held in trust for the service member and paid to him or her upon return.

And this is where the difference is particularly significant: a partner with whom the service member lives without a registered marriage is not automatically included in this list. Therefore, for such a couple, the service member’s personal directive in the event of capture or being missing in action may be of practical importance. In this directive, the service member may designate one or more individuals to whom their financial support will be paid and specify their respective shares. These may include individuals who are not their relatives.

Thus, there is no simple rule stating that “without an official marriage, the partner receives nothing.” In the event of death, a partner in an unregistered marriage may be entitled to a one-time benefit, but the family relationship must be confirmed by a court ruling. However, in the event of captivity or being missing in action, the law explicitly provides for payment to the spouse—but not to a partner in an unregistered marriage—in the absence of a personal directive. That is precisely why state registration of marriage or a personal directive drawn up in advance by a service member can have very practical financial consequences.

Inheritance: Who Inherits Property and in What Order

If a person has not left a will, property is inherited by law in a specific order of priority. The husband or wife with whom the deceased was in a registered marriage belongs to the first order of heirs, along with the deceased’s children and parents. This means that, for example, if the deceased is survived by a spouse, a child, a mother, and a father, they are all heirs in the same first order.

For a partner without a registered marriage, the rules are fundamentally different. They do not become a first-order heir, even if the couple lived together for many years. A person who lived with the deceased as part of the same household for at least five years prior to the deceased’s death belongs to the fourth class of heirs. And, as a general rule, each subsequent class is entitled to an inheritance only if there are no heirs in the preceding class, if they have been disinherited, or if they have not accepted the inheritance or have renounced it.

In practice, the difference can be very significant. For example, a man and a woman lived together for ten years but did not register their marriage. After the man’s death, his mother survived him. In the absence of a will, the mother is a first-order heir, while the partner is only a fourth-order heir. Therefore, ten years of cohabitation alone do not place her on an equal footing with a legally married spouse.

A partner in an unregistered marriage may need to prove that they lived with the deceased as a family for at least five years prior to his death. This goes beyond simply living in the same residence: what matters is a shared household, managing the household together, shared expenses, mutual rights and obligations, and other indicators of a family relationship. If such evidence is insufficient or a dispute arises among the heirs, the fact of living as a family may be established by a court.

At the same time, being in the fourth order of succession does not always mean that a partner must, under any circumstances, wait until all three preceding orders have been exhausted. The order of succession can be changed. In particular, after a person’s death, the heirs may enter into a notarized agreement. Under certain conditions, the order of inheritance can also be changed through the courts. For example, if an heir in the next order of succession cared for the decedent for a long time, provided financial support, and offered other assistance when the decedent was in a helpless state due to advanced age, serious illness, or disability. Simply living together for five years is not sufficient for such a move to a higher order of succession.

There is a simpler way to protect your partner in advance—a will. A person can bequeath their property to their partner regardless of whether they are legally married. However, there is an exception here as well: the law provides for certain individuals who are entitled to a mandatory share of the estate regardless of the terms of the will. These include, in particular, the deceased’s minor children, children who have not yet reached the age of majority but are unable to work, an incapacitated widow or widower, and incapacitated parents. Therefore, a will significantly changes the situation for an unregistered couple, but does not in every case guarantee that the partner will receive all the property.

Олег Пархітько