Personal and family law
Marital property agreement / Registered partnership agreement
Marital property agreement or registered partnership agreement:
make clear agreements in advance
Are you getting married or entering into a registered partnership? Then it is wise to think about your financial arrangements. Do you want to determine what belongs to both of you and what remains private? Or do you want all your assets and debts to become joint? With a marital property agreement or registered partnership agreement, you record this officially with the notary.
By making clear agreements in advance, you avoid uncertainty in the future. This can be important in the case of, for example, your own business, savings, a home or other valuable assets. The terms are fully tailored to your personal situation and wishes.
Why draw up an agreement?
Since 1 January 2018, you no longer automatically marry or register in full community of property. Without additional agreements, a limited community of property applies. This means that assets and debts from before the marriage or registered partnership in principle remain private.
Do you want to deviate from this? Then you can arrange this through a marital property agreement or registered partnership agreement. This way you decide for yourself how your assets are divided.
What can you record?
With an agreement you can, among other things, arrange
- which assets are joint and which remain private;
- which debts are personal;
- how savings or investments are handled;
- that a business remains private property;
- protection of your partner against business debts;
- how assets are divided in the event of a divorce;
- that you choose full community of property.
For entrepreneurs, marital or registered partnership agreements are often especially important. By keeping business and private matters separate, you prevent your partner from becoming liable for business risks. You also prevent the continuity of your business from being jeopardised in a divorce.
When should you arrange this?
It is often most practical to record a marital property agreement or registered partnership agreement before the marriage or registered partnership. At that point, no joint assets have usually arisen yet.
Even after the marriage or registered partnership, you can still draw up, amend or terminate an agreement. To do so, you go to the notary together. The agreements made are recorded in a notarial deed and then entered in the matrimonial property register of the court.
What can we do for you?
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Frequently asked questions
A registered partnership is almost the same as a marriage. You must also first give notice of your intended partnership to the municipality, either digitally or in person. The partners then sign a declaration at the town hall in the presence of witnesses.
The differences from a marriage are the following:
- You do not have to say "I do" to each other.
- You can end the registered partnership with a notary or lawyer. If there are minor children or if you disagree with each other, you must go to court, just as with a marriage.
A registered partnership can be converted into a marriage. The reverse is not possible. - A registered partnership is not always recognised in other countries, or different rules apply.
Before 2018, if you got married without arranging anything with the notary, you were automatically married in community of property. That meant that all assets and debts from before the marriage and everything that arose during it were joint. In a divorce, everything has to be split in half.
If you get married in the Netherlands now and arrange nothing, you are automatically married in a limited community of property. Everything that was yours privately before the marriage remains so during the marriage. Everything acquired during the marriage is joint and will have to be shared in a divorce.
When one of the partners has considerable assets, or debts, or when one or both are entrepreneurs or run a financial risk in some other way, you can choose to make a marital property agreement.
With a marital property agreement or partnership agreement, you stay in control of your financial future. You determine which assets and debts are joint and which remain private. This way you can ensure that assets you build up during your marriage or registered partnership, such as savings or a valuable art collection, remain yours personally.
Such agreements also offer important advantages for entrepreneurs. You can keep your business outside the joint estate, so that business and private interests remain separate. This protects your partner against any risks of your business and provides clarity for the future.
Should your relationship unfortunately end, you avoid having to share the full value of the business. This allows your company to continue and you retain the continuity you need.
