Estate Planning for Unmarried Couples: How to Protect Your Partner in the UK

No. In England and Wales, unmarried partners do not have the same automatic inheritance rights as spouses or civil partners.

The expression common-law marriage is often used to describe couples who have lived together for many years.

However, common-law marriage does not create a recognised marital status in England and Wales.

Living together for ten, twenty or thirty years does not automatically entitle one partner to inherit the other's estate.

Marriage and civil partnership can provide inheritance and tax rights that are unavailable to unmarried couples.

Different succession laws apply in Scotland and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, for example, a surviving cohabitant may be able to apply to the court for financial provision from an intestate estate, subject to statutory conditions and time limits.

For couples in England and Wales, the practical starting point is to ensure that their intentions are recorded in legally effective arrangements.

When someone dies without a valid will, their estate is distributed according to intestacy rules.

In England and Wales, these rules prioritise particular relatives, including spouses, civil partners, children and other family members.

An unmarried partner is not automatically included.

For example, if a person dies leaving two children and an unmarried partner, the children may inherit assets that fall within the intestate estate rather than the surviving partner.

This can create difficulties if the surviving partner relied financially on the deceased or lived in a property owned solely by them.

Can a Surviving Partner Make a Claim?

In certain circumstances, an unmarried partner may be able to seek reasonable financial provision under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975.

Eligibility can depend on factors including cohabitation, financial maintenance and the nature of the relationship.

However, a successful claim is not guaranteed.

Court proceedings can involve expense, delay and disagreement between family members.

Making appropriate arrangements during your lifetime is generally more predictable than relying on a potential claim after death.

Related Telmar article: Do I Need a Will?

A will allows you to identify who should inherit assets passing under your estate and who should administer them.

For unmarried couples, this can be particularly important because the law may not otherwise reflect their intentions.

A will might provide for a surviving partner to receive particular assets, a share of the estate or a right to occupy a property.

It can also make arrangements for children, appoint executors and include appropriate trust provisions.

Should Both Partners Make Wills?

Yes, both partners should consider their own wills.

Even where assets are held jointly, each person may own savings, investments, personal possessions or other property individually.

The wills should be considered together to identify potential inconsistencies.

For example, one partner may intend to leave everything to the other, while the second partner wishes to divide their estate between the survivor and children from an earlier relationship.

These differences should be discussed openly before documents are prepared.

A will should also be reviewed if the couple subsequently marries or enters a civil partnership, because that event can affect an existing will.

For many couples, their home is their most valuable asset.

How it is owned can have a greater immediate effect on inheritance than the wording of a will.

In England and Wales, jointly owned property may be held as beneficial joint tenants or tenants in common.

Joint Tenants

Where partners own a property as beneficial joint tenants, the deceased owner's interest normally passes automatically to the surviving joint owner.

This is known as the right of survivorship.

The property does not pass under the deceased's will.

Tenants in Common

Where partners own property as tenants in common, each has a distinct beneficial share.

That share does not automatically pass to the surviving owner.

Instead, it can pass under the deceased's will or intestacy rules.

Neither joint ownership arrangement is automatically preferable.

The appropriate choice depends on financial contributions, inheritance wishes, family circumstances and whether either partner has children from a previous relationship.

It is also important to distinguish legal ownership from beneficial ownership. A Land Registry title alone may not establish every person's financial interest in a property.

Changing ownership can have legal, tax and mortgage consequences.

This is a particularly important situation to review.

Consider a couple who have lived together for fifteen years.

One partner purchased the home before the relationship began and remains its sole legal owner.

The other contributes towards household expenses and maintenance but is not named on the title.

If the homeowner dies without a will, the surviving partner may not automatically inherit the property.

Depending on the circumstances, they may have potential legal claims relating to financial provision or beneficial ownership.

However, those claims can be complicated and should not be assumed to succeed.

A properly drafted will, together with appropriate consideration of property rights, may provide greater clarity.

In some circumstances, a declaration of trust or cohabitation agreement may also be relevant.

These documents serve different purposes and should be prepared with suitable legal advice.

A trust may be appropriate where someone wants to provide for a surviving partner while preserving assets for other beneficiaries.

For example, a homeowner may wish to allow their partner to remain in the property after death while ensuring that their children eventually inherit its value.

A properly structured trust within a will may be capable of addressing this objective.

However, the terms must be carefully considered.

Questions include who pays maintenance costs, what happens if the surviving partner moves, whether the property can be sold and when other beneficiaries become entitled.

Trusts also introduce trustee responsibilities and potential tax consequences.

They are not automatically required for unmarried couples and should not be presented as guaranteeing protection against every future claim.

Estate planning is not solely concerned with death.

If one partner becomes unable to make decisions because of illness or injury, the other does not automatically gain authority to manage their finances.

In England and Wales, a lasting power of attorney allows someone to appoint trusted individuals to make specified decisions.

There are two types:

• Property and financial affairs LPA: Covers matters such as banking, bills and property transactions.
• Health and welfare LPA: Covers relevant personal welfare and care decisions when the person lacks capacity to make them.

Without suitable authority, the surviving or continuing partner may face difficulties managing financial affairs.

An application to the Court of Protection may be necessary in some circumstances.

A lasting power of attorney must be registered before use, and the appointed attorneys must act within their legal authority.

Related Telmar article: Lasting Power of Attorney Explained.

Pensions and life assurance can provide important financial support following a partner's death.

However, these arrangements do not always operate through a will.

Pension death benefits may be governed by scheme rules, trustee discretion and beneficiary nominations.

Some schemes provide particular benefits to spouses or civil partners, while others may recognise unmarried partners subject to their rules and evidence requirements.

Couples should check the provisions of each scheme rather than assuming that a long-term relationship guarantees entitlement.

Life assurance policies should also be reviewed.

A policy may pay into the deceased's estate or to trustees or beneficiaries under an existing arrangement.

The distinction can affect payment timing, control and inheritance tax treatment.

Unmarried couples do not generally qualify for the inheritance tax spouse or civil partner exemption.

This means that transfers between unmarried partners can have different tax consequences from equivalent transfers between spouses or civil partners.

The standard inheritance tax nil-rate band is £325,000, subject to the applicable rules.

Additional allowances and reliefs may be available, depending on the estate and beneficiaries.

However, unmarried partners cannot normally transfer unused nil-rate bands between themselves in the way that qualifying spouses and civil partners can.

A Practical Inheritance Tax Example

Suppose an unmarried person dies with a taxable estate of £600,000 and leaves it entirely to their surviving partner.

Assume there are no relevant debts, reliefs, exemptions, previous gifts or additional available allowances.

With a £325,000 nil-rate band, the amount above the threshold would be £275,000.

At the standard 40% rate, the illustrative inheritance tax liability would be £110,000.

The actual position could differ materially depending on the estate's composition and available reliefs.

This example demonstrates why the legal status of a relationship matters for inheritance tax planning.

Where unmarried couples have children, estate planning should consider both the surviving partner's financial security and the children's inheritance.

If the children are minors, wills can also address guardianship arrangements.

Particular care may be needed where one or both partners have children from previous relationships.

For example, leaving everything outright to a surviving partner may provide immediate financial security, but it does not necessarily guarantee that assets will eventually pass to the deceased's children.

Conversely, leaving the family home directly to children could create difficulties for a surviving partner who lives there.

Appropriate will provisions, trusts and ownership arrangements may help balance these competing objectives.

There is no universally correct solution.

Before arranging or updating an estate plan, consider the following:

1. Confirm how your home is legally and beneficially owned.
2. Make or review individual wills.
3. Identify intended beneficiaries and replacement beneficiaries.
4. Consider whether either partner needs a right to remain in the home.
5. Arrange appropriate lasting powers of attorney.
6. Review pension death benefit rules and nominations.
7. Check life assurance beneficiaries and trust arrangements.
8. Assess potential inheritance tax exposure.
9. Consider the needs of children and other dependants.
10. Review arrangements after major relationship or financial changes.

Couples may also wish to consider a cohabitation agreement, particularly where they have made unequal contributions towards property or household finances.

Such an agreement is not a substitute for a will.

The legal position for unmarried couples is an area of potential reform.

In June 2026, the UK Government announced a consultation concerning stronger financial protections for cohabiting couples, including proposals relating to inheritance rights.

These proposals should not be treated as rights that have already taken effect.

Until legislation is enacted and commenced, couples should plan according to the law currently applicable to them.

Any estate planning arrangements should be reviewed if future reforms materially change inheritance or cohabitation rights.

Unmarried couples often need to coordinate several legal and financial arrangements.

A will alone may not address property ownership, pensions, inheritance tax or lifetime decision-making.

Professional advice can help identify how these arrangements interact and whether specialist legal or tax input is needed.

At Telmar Estate Planning, a useful starting point is understanding the couple's circumstances, financial arrangements and wishes before considering appropriate planning options.

The aim should be to create clear, proportionate arrangements that protect intended beneficiaries without introducing unnecessary complexity.

A long-term relationship does not automatically provide the same inheritance rights as marriage or civil partnership.

For unmarried couples, wills, property ownership and powers of attorney can be especially important.

Pensions, life assurance and inheritance tax should also be considered as part of the wider picture.

The most effective estate plan is one that reflects how the couple actually lives, owns assets and intends to provide for each other.

Taking time to review these arrangements can help reduce uncertainty and provide greater clarity for both partners and their families.

1. GOV.UK — Marriages and Civil Partnerships: Legal Rights and Responsibilities
   https://www.gov.uk/marriages-civil-partnerships/legal-rights-responsibilities
   Official guidance explaining differences between marriage, civil partnership and cohabitation, including inheritance rights.

2. GOV.UK — Joint Property Ownership
   https://www.gov.uk/joint-property-ownership
   Official guidance on joint tenants, tenants in common and how property ownership affects inheritance.

3. GOV.UK — Inheritance Tax: Thresholds, Rules and Allowances
   https://www.gov.uk/inheritance-tax
   Official guidance on inheritance tax thresholds, exemptions and rates.