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NEWS

11-03-2016

Property effects of marriage and registered partnership

The European Commission adopted on 02/03/2016 proposals to clarify the property rights for international married couples or registered partnerships.

These proposals will establish clear rules in cases of divorce or separation and bring an end to parallel and possibly conflicting proceedings in various Member States, for instance on property or bank accounts. In short, it will bring more legal clarity for international couples. Since it was not possible to reach unanimity among 28 Member States on proposals originally brought forward in 2011, the Commission is now going ahead with 17 Member States willing to join this initiative through an enhanced cooperation.

These regulations will:

  • enable married international couples to choose the law that applies to their property in case of death or divorce;
  • enhance legal certainty for registered partnerships with an international dimension, by submitting the joint property to the law of the country where the partnership was registered;
  • bring legal certainty for international couples (married or in registered partnerships) through a coherent set of rules for identifying which country's court is responsible and which law will apply;
  • increase predictability for couples by smoothing out the process for recognising judgments, decisions and titles throughout the EU.

The regulations do not harmonise or change any of the substantive national law on marriage or registered partnerships.

More information is available here: http://ec.europa.eu/justice/newsroom/civil/news/160302_en.htm.