Marital regime options
It’s incredibly important for engaged couples to spend some time considering the various legal protections available, to help ensure they enjoy a happy marriage without placing unnecessary financial risk on each other.
One important decision is the type of marital regime to enter into. While antenuptial agreements (ANCs) are the most common type of marriage contract, there are a number of cohabitation and marriage agreements. Speak to someone qualified, such as a lawyer, in this regard.
Some types of marriage agreements in SA include:
Married in community of property: Everything you own is shared equally between you and your partner, including anything you own when you get married, and anything you earn or create while married.
If you divorce, all assets and debts are split equally.
One of its biggest risks is if one party accumulates large amounts of debt or is implicated or cheated in a business deal for example, the other party is also held liable for their debt. If one partner defaults on debt, the other partner’s income or assets can be taken from them to service that debt.
If you get married without consulting a lawyer, and drawing up another type of cohabitation agreement or marriage contract, you’ll have this by default.
Married out of community of property: You continue to exist as two separate financial entities. Your possessions and debts are yours, your partner’s possessions and debts are theirs.
On death or divorce you keep what you had before marriage, and everything you earned during marriage.
Married out of community of property, with accrual: While both parties maintain their separate financial identities, everything they earn or the growth of assets after marriage is evenly divided between them.
It’s possible to make certain stipulations about items or earnings that can/can’t be included under accrual – e.g. inheritances.
Your will can’t override your marriage contract – only your agreed portion of your assets can be dictated in your will.
Vera Nagtegaal is executive head of Hippo.co.za