Do cohabiting partners have the same rights as spouses?
Essentially no — unmarried cohabiting partners in Lithuania do not have the same rights as spouses, and there is still no working registered-partnership procedure, so the myth "we live together, so we are legally a family" is misleading. The Civil Code does contain partnership (cohabitation without registering a marriage) provisions, but they never entered into force, because the implementing law was never passed. The Civil Union bill failed in the Seimas several times, most recently in 2024. However, in April 2025 the Constitutional Court ruled that limiting partnership to a man and a woman, and the total absence of any legal regulation for same-sex couples, violates the Constitution and degrades human dignity. Most importantly, and often overlooked: until the legislator sets up a registration procedure, couples legalise their partnership through the courts — in 2025 a Vilnius court ordered the registry to register a same-sex couple. On top of that, cohabitants do not inherit from each other by law and have no automatic shared-property regime.
📋 The rules
- Cohabitants have no automatic spousal rights (shared-property regime, inheritance by law)
- The Civil Code's partnership provisions never entered into force — the implementing law is missing
- The Civil Union bill failed in the Seimas, most recently in 2024
- In 2025 the Constitutional Court held that the absence of partnership regulation is unconstitutional
- Until there is a procedure, partnership is legalised through the courts (recorded in the marriage-contracts register)
🔓 Exceptions
- Cohabitants can protect shared assets with notarial agreements on joint fractional ownership
- A will can leave property to a partner, since by law the partner would not inherit
- De facto relations and contributions to shared property can sometimes be proven in court, but this is difficult
⚠️ Penalties & fines
Here the cost is not a fine but legal vulnerability. When one cohabitant dies, the other does not inherit by law — the property goes to the deceased's relatives, and the surviving partner may lose even a jointly built home if it is registered in the deceased's name and there is no will. Often overlooked: the joint community-property regime does not apply to cohabitants, so on separation each keeps only what is registered in their name, and contributions to the other's property must be proven in court. A partner also has no automatic right to receive information at a hospital, to represent, or to make decisions for a seriously ill partner; an unmarried couple cannot jointly adopt the same child. These gaps are only partly filled by wills, notarial agreements and powers of attorney, and without them the whole risk falls on the couple itself.
📎 Official sources
- Constitutional Court · 2025 ruling on partnership →
- e-seimas · Civil Code (cohabitation without registering marriage) →
- Registrų centras · marriage-contracts register →
❓ Frequently asked
Do cohabiting partners inherit from each other?
No, under the law unmarried cohabiting partners do not inherit from each other, so when a partner dies the property passes to the deceased's relatives. For a partner to receive anything, a will must be drawn up, otherwise the surviving person may lose even a jointly acquired home.
Can you register a partnership in Lithuania?
There is still no working registered-partnership procedure, because the Seimas has not passed the implementing law. In 2025 the Constitutional Court ruled this situation unconstitutional, so couples currently legalise their partnership by turning to the courts.
What did the Constitutional Court decide?
In 2025 the Constitutional Court held that limiting partnership to opposite-sex people and the absence of any regulation for same-sex couples violates the Constitution. The Court stated that a family may also be founded on partnership, regardless of the sex of the persons.
How can you protect shared property without marriage?
Cohabitants can conclude notarial agreements on joint fractional ownership, clearly stating who owns which share of the property. It is also worth drawing up wills and powers of attorney, because without them a partner has neither inheritance nor representation rights.
Can an unmarried couple adopt a child?
Only spouses can jointly adopt the same child, so an unmarried couple cannot adopt together. In exceptional cases a single unmarried person is allowed to adopt, but that is decided by a court in the light of the child's interests.
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