One of the key opportunities that a marriage contract provides to future newlyweds or spouses is the opportunity to change the regime of joint marital property enshrined in the Family Code to the regime of separate or, in other words, personal property. Separate property can be established not only for the period of marriage, but also used when dividing the property of spouses during a divorce.
Marriage agreements that provide for the regime of separate marital property have some legal differences from other marital contracts, so knowing how marriage agreements on separate property are drawn up will help you write and execute the agreement correctly.
Marriage agreement on separate property - its contents
A prenuptial agreement regulates only issues related to the property of the parties.
In Art. 42 of the Insurance Code clearly defines what can be settled with the help of this contract. According to clause 1, it is determined that it is possible to make a certain property regime:
- Share
- Separated
- Joint
It is important to note that different regimes can be assigned to each type of property. For example, fix separate ownership of cars and shared ownership of real estate that they are going to purchase.
The content of the agreement can only relate to issues of property and in no way should contradict the insurance contract. It is prohibited to enter items:
- Limiting the legal capacity of any of the spouses
- Prohibition of protection in court
- About interpersonal relationships not only between spouses, but also with other relatives
- It is prohibited to limit rights due to disability. spouse
Responsibility of spouses
By putting his signature, the representative of the couple agrees with the contents of the transaction. This does not mean that you can “hang” all your debts on another marriage partner, or divide them unfairly.
When preparing the paper, the principle of fair division should be applied.
If, after a break in the relationship, one of the parties did not comply with the terms of the agreement and caused material and moral damage, then it may be held legally liable, namely:
- compensation for damage;
- payment of penalties;
- payment of interest for the use of other people's property, etc.
USEFUL INFORMATION: Registration of marriage with a person in 2020
These penalties are provided for in Art. 393 – 397 Civil Code of the Russian Federation. The person who signs the contract is obliged to fulfill its terms, otherwise there will be lawsuits and unpleasant showdowns with the ex-spouse.
How to draw up a marriage contract when buying an apartment, a real estate contract
If a prenuptial agreement was not concluded before purchasing the apartment, then it’s time to take this step. Before buying an apartment, it is necessary to clearly discuss how this property will belong to the spouses.
If this is a shared apartment, then you can do without an agreement, since, like everything acquired during marriage, the apartment will be considered jointly acquired property and the division will have to be carried out either by agreement or through the court. If you intend to divide the property, you will have to draw up a marriage contract for real estate
When concluding a contract, you can determine that:
- The apartment belongs to the spouses in shares.
- The apartment belongs to a specific spouse.
- The apartment belongs to the person to whom it is registered after state registration.
If an apartment is purchased with a mortgage, then it is reasonable to determine in the contract how mortgage payments will be made.
Is it necessary to prescribe the legal order of the spouses’ property?
The legal procedure applies only in situations where there is no marriage contract. If there is an agreement between a married couple, the regime of property rights is determined independently and is prescribed in the contract.
A marriage contract, according to the RF IC, is an agreement between future or current spouses, which stipulates their rights and obligations during the marriage and after its dissolution.
The subject of regulation of a marriage agreement is only property legal relations. Therefore, provisions regarding the legal order relating to property are mandatory.
We talked in more detail about what a marriage contract is, how, when and to what extent it is concluded, here, and from this material you will learn what areas of the relationship between spouses this document can regulate.
Is it possible to draw up a marriage contract after purchasing an apartment?
As a general rule, an apartment acquired during marriage will be considered as jointly acquired property. However, there are some circumstances when the role of one spouse in purchasing housing is minimal. In this case, it is reasonable for those getting married to conclude a marriage contract and determine the ownership regime for this apartment and for any other property.
It is also possible that the future spouses took out a mortgage on the property, but it was registered in the name of only one of them. If a mortgage agreement was concluded before marriage, then formally this property does not fall into the list of jointly acquired property, since the marriage was not concluded. In this case, the only option for dividing the apartment, which was paid for by the future spouses actually living together, is a marriage contract defining the regime of the apartment.
It is important to understand that the law allows the conclusion of an agreement where the subject will be both specific property and everything that was acquired during the marriage.
Marriage agreement (contract), sample, form
There are two parties to a marriage contract, and in this it is not much different from most civil contracts. The only clear condition that the legislator sets is that the relations governed by the contract arise after marriage. It doesn’t matter whether it was a contract filled out during the marriage or whether it was drawn up in advance. Both documents will become valid only after marriage.
On the Internet you can see a photo of what a marriage contract looks like. Or you can review such a document at a notary’s appointment.
A sample form 2020 can be viewed at the link.
Standard marriage contract
A standard marriage contract contains the following parts:
- parties to the contract - spouses or future spouses;
- subject of the agreement – property, the regime of which is determined by the agreement;
- procedure for change and termination;
- liability of the parties;
- requisites.
Marriage agreement template
There is nothing complicated in drafting, but it requires certification from a notary. However, before visiting him, you should draw up a sample contract yourself and prepare all the documents confirming the ownership of the property that will appear in the contract.
If at the time of concluding the contract everyone has property that belongs to them personally and they want to fix it in the contract, then in this case it will not fall into the division during a divorce.
Prenuptial agreement before marriage
According to the legislation of the Russian Federation, it is permissible to conclude an agreement before the office. marriage registration. But there is a clear rule, since this contract regulates only the relationship between the spouses, it will begin to take effect when the marriage is concluded. According to Art. 10 of the RF IC, marriage only in the registry office.
The text notes that the agreement will come into force only after registration. If a decision was made not to marry, then this agreement will not be considered valid.
A ready-made prenuptial agreement template for marriage can be found here.
Prenuptial agreement after marriage
At any time, spouses can decide to change the property regime. By mutual agreement, they determine what property will belong to one or another spouse. It is also possible to allocate shares in property, and it is not necessary that these shares be equal.
An example of a marriage agreement on the separate ownership of property can be
Marriage agreement on separate property of spouses, sample
Since many different things are acquired during a marriage, it is quite problematic to clearly indicate who owns this or that property. The most reasonable way is to establish in the contract the rule that whoever the property is registered in is the one who gets it.
The second way is to enter into additional agreements, but since the agreement requires registration with a notary, this will entail new costs.
A standard sample contract can be viewed at this link.
Marriage agreement for property acquired during marriage
As a general rule, all property that was purchased after marriage, with rare exceptions, belongs equally to both spouses. But situations often arise when it is necessary to clearly divide who owns what. In this case, it is enough to conclude an agreement in which it is possible to determine what of the available property will go to one of the spouses and what to the other.
You can either list all valuable things or introduce a general rule that the thing belongs to the person indicated by its owner.
Form of a completed contract.
Marriage agreement, shared ownership, sample
As mentioned above, shares in property can be identified in a marriage contract. In this case, during division, as a rule, no controversial situations arise. When allocating a share in indivisible property, the other party can always count on a compensation payment.
Shares can be allocated in any property, be it a car, house, apartment or securities.
Sample marriage contract sample.
Marriage agreement separate property rights, sample
When changing the ownership regime to separate, you can establish the rule that whoever is indicated as the owner according to the documents will receive this property upon division. However, this is only possible with large things, such as an apartment, car, etc.
It is almost impossible to specify in the contract who will get one of the three sets or televisions, since many such things appear during a marriage. In this case, it is wise to use mix. property regime, dividing what is necessary and dividing the rest in half. If one has a special penchant for game consoles and TV, then this must be stated in the contract.
Separately, it is worth getting ahead of the regime of luxury goods: furs, jewelry and other things that, according to the rule, are not considered the property of the owner if they appeared during marriage.
Features of the contract
The conclusion of a contract is primarily of a material nature.
And the decision to draw it up is connected with the fact that the spouses do not want to give half of their property to their spouse if the marriage turns out to be unsuccessful. After all, there are often cases when only one in a couple works and has a good income, and the second is supported by him. But besides this, concluding a marriage contract with a separate property regime will be relevant in the following situations:
- one of the couple is an entrepreneur, and in order not to limit oneself in actions (exclude moments of obtaining permission from the spouse when formalities require it);
- the marital union is unreliable, and divorce proceedings may soon begin, then by drawing up an agreement you can protect your property;
- when a marriage can be called unequal, and the more successful spouse wants to protect his property values from the attacks of the other half.
By concluding such an agreement, a married couple in the event of a divorce may not have to resort to division of property, since property can only be divided in the manner prescribed by the marriage contract. And if both parties signed it, then going to court for proceedings will make no sense.
Married couples should understand that a contract can be drawn up not only before marriage, but also at any time after its official conclusion. For many, the realization that it is necessary to protect their property comes directly from being in the official status of husband and wife. And such measures are not prohibited by current legislation. Support for this decision can be found in Article 41 of the Family Code.
Conditions of a marriage contract examples
As you can see, any property can be reflected in the marriage contract. questions that may arise not only upon divorce, but also during family life.
For example, young spouses do not have housing and the wife’s parents are ready to buy them an apartment and contribute part of the money (1/2). Each young person also contributes ¼ of the required amount. Since the apartment will be purchased during marriage, and if the wife is registered as the owner, it will be recognized as joint property and in the event of a divorce, the spouse will have the right to claim half the apartment. Parents do not agree to such conditions. To avoid this, it is enough to conclude a marriage contract and reflect the shared ownership of the apartment. In this case, during a divorce, the husband will be able to claim only his part.
Also, a condition of the contract may be the obligation of one of the couple to provide payment for the child’s education after the divorce.
Before marriage, one has living space. You can always conclude an obligation for your spouse to leave someone else’s living space within a certain time.
There are many examples, since the family life of each couple is unique and it is impossible to predict what will happen after a couple of years of marriage. But in any case, a prenuptial agreement is a reliable guarantee that after a divorce the interests of both will be respected.
Peculiarities
The essence of a marriage contract is an agreement between a man and a woman regarding property issues that will apply both during marriage and after divorce. Thus, it represents a transaction, but one that is not entered into by commercial partners, but by close people.
If you study the sample marriage contract, it becomes clear that almost all legal norms apply to it, as in any other civil contract. This:
- voluntary nature;
- appropriate design;
- legal capacity of persons;
- legality of all points.
The document can be signed by the bride and groom or spouses. At the same time, you need to understand that if it is concluded before marriage, it will begin to take effect only after registration with the registry office. If it is signed by a married couple, then the action will begin immediately after certification at the notary’s office. It is also permissible to indicate the timing, for example, the beginning of the action - after the birth of a common child.
