You’ve probably heard the phrase "common law marriage" tossed around by friends, parents, or even on television. Maybe you and your partner have lived together for five, ten, or fifteen years. You share a bank account, split the grocery bills, and your names are both on the utility statements. It feels like a marriage in every practical sense, so you assume the law treats it like one.
It doesn’t.
In England and Wales, common law marriage is a complete fiction. It doesn't exist. Right now, if you are unmarried and living with your partner, you have virtually zero automatic financial rights if the relationship breaks down or if one of you passes away.
That might be about to change. The government recently launched a massive consultation looking to completely overhaul the legal framework for the 3.5 million unmarried couples living together. But before you celebrate a new era of financial security, you need to know exactly what these proposals actually mean, who qualifies, and why waiting for the law to save you is a massive financial gamble.
The Reality of the New Proposals
The Ministry of Justice announced a ten-week consultation running until August 14, 2026, aimed at modernising family law. The goal is to create a safety net for vulnerable partners, particularly women and domestic abuse survivors, who currently face financial ruin when a cohabiting relationship ends.
But don't mistake this for a marriage certificate by stealth. The government has been very clear that these new rules will offer a distinct, narrower set of rights compared to married couples. They aren't trying to match the financial obligations of divorce; they are trying to prevent destitution.
Under the current proposal, you won't automatically get a 50/50 split of everything. Instead, the legal framework focuses on a clean break. The courts will likely start with the assumption that each person keeps what they legally own. They will only step in to meet specifically defined, narrow financial needs rather than slicing the entire asset pool down the middle.
There's also a strict gatekeeper rule. To even access these new protections, you must meet specific criteria:
- You must have lived together for at least three consecutive years, OR
- You must live together and share a child.
- The court must be satisfied that you are in an enduring family relationship.
If you’ve only been living together for two years and don't have kids, these changes won't apply to you at all. You’ll still be completely exposed under the old rules.
What Happens to Your House
The biggest shock for most unmarried couples happens when they try to divide a property. Right now, if you live in a house owned solely in your partner’s name, you have no automatic right to a single penny from a sale if you split. It doesn't matter if you paid half the mortgage every month or spent your weekends painting the kitchen.
If your name isn't on the deeds, the law uses complex, archaic property rules under the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996 (TOLATA). To get anything, you have to prove in court that there was a common intention that you would own a share. It’s expensive, stressful, and highly unpredictable.
The proposed 2026 reforms aim to change this by allowing judges to grant a financially dependent partner access to a share of a house sale. It’s designed to help the more vulnerable partner secure their financial future and find a place to live.
However, if you own your home as "tenants in common," the new laws won't magically rewrite your ownership shares unless there’s a massive financial disparity that creates an exceptional need. If you want a specific financial split, you still need to handle that yourself.
The Hidden Pension Trap
When married couples divorce, pensions are frequently one of the largest assets on the table. Courts routinely issue pension sharing orders to ensure both parties have an income in retirement, especially if one partner took time out of the workforce to raise children.
For unmarried couples today, pensions are completely off-limits during a separation. You cannot claim a single penny of your ex-partner's pension pot, no matter how long you were together.
While the new consultation explores giving unmarried couples some claims on pensions, it's going to be heavily restricted. Maintenance payments under the new framework are expected to be limited to exceptional, time-limited situations—such as a long-term health condition that prevents you from working. It will not be a meal ticket or an automatic equalization of retirement wealth.
The Absolute Catastrophe of Dying Without a Will
While a separation is messy, dying without a will while unmarried is a financial catastrophe for the surviving partner.
Under the current intestacy rules, if your unmarried partner dies tomorrow without a valid will, you inherit absolutely nothing automatically. Instead, their money, their savings, and their share of the house will go straight to their children, their parents, or their siblings. If they have no living relatives, it goes to the Crown.
The 2026 proposals want to level up these protections. The government wants to give qualifying long-term cohabitants the automatic right to inherit under intestacy rules, bringing them much closer to the position of a spouse.
But here is the catch: this is still just a consultation. Even if the government decides to move forward after August 2026, passing a bill through Parliament takes months, sometimes years. If your partner passes away later this year without a will, these proposals won't help you. You'll still be left in legal limbo, forced to make an expensive claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, which can take years to resolve and drain the very estate you're trying to claim.
You Can Opt Out
The government isn't trying to force everyone into a legal straightjacket. They recognize that some couples choose not to marry precisely because they want to keep their finances entirely separate.
Because of this, the new framework will allow couples to explicitly opt out of the new rights by mutual agreement. If you want to ensure your partner has zero claim on your assets if things go south, you'll be able to sign a formal agreement stating exactly that.
What You Need to Do Right Now
Don't wait for Parliament to fix your financial security. The consultation is a sign of shifting attitudes, but it isn't law yet. You need to protect your money today.
First, write a will. This is the single most important piece of financial planning an unmarried couple can do. It completely bypasses the current intestacy rules and ensures your money goes exactly where you want it to go.
Second, check your property deeds. If you buy a house together, make sure you understand the difference between being "joint tenants" (where the property automatically passes to the survivor) and "tenants in common" (where you own distinct shares that don't automatically pass to the other person). If your contributions are unequal, get a solicitor to draft a Declaration of Trust to record exactly who owns what percentage.
Finally, consider a cohabitation agreement. It might feel unromantic, but it’s basically a business contract for your relationship. It lays out how you split bills, who pays the mortgage, and exactly how assets will be divided if you separate. It gives you certainty right now, meaning you don't have to worry about what the politicians in Westminster decide to do with the law over the next few years. Get your financial house in order today so you aren't left relying on a legal system that is still catching up to how modern families actually live.
