🏠 What rights do we have if we live together without marrying?

With conditions

Quick answer

Conditional — cohabitation gives rights similar to marriage, but only once it meets the statutory conditions. Under the Family Act cohabitation is a life union of an unmarried woman and an unmarried man lasting at least 3 years, or shorter only if a shared child is born in it or it is continued by marriage. Here the main myth falls: simply moving in together does not grant rights "automatically" — without the duration or a child, the partners have no marital rights toward each other. Once the conditions are met, the union has personal and property effects like marriage: property acquired through work is marital (joint) property, there is a mutual right to maintenance, and in inheritance the cohabiting partner is treated as a spouse. The union is registered nowhere, so in a dispute its existence and duration must be proved by documents, witnesses and other evidence before a court.

📋 The rules

Definition: cohabitation is a union of an unmarried woman and an unmarried man lasting at least 3 years (Family Act).
Shorter duration: the 3-year condition need not be met if a shared child is born in the union or it is continued by marriage.
Property: property acquired through work during the union is governed by the rules on marital property — as a rule joint and in equal shares.
Maintenance: cohabiting partners have a mutual duty of maintenance under the same conditions as spouses.
Inheritance: under the Inheritance Act the cohabiting partner is treated as a spouse and inherits in the first order of succession.

🔓 Exceptions

Impediments as for marriage: cohabitation rights do not arise if a marriage impediment would exist between the partners (for example, one is already married).
Same-sex couples: a same-sex couple does not form cohabitation but an informal life partnership (at least 3 years) or a formal life partnership.
Proof: because it is recorded nowhere, the existence and duration of the union are established by the court on the evidence submitted.

⚠️ Penalties & fines

Cohabitation carries no fine, but its informality is costly when it ends. Because it is registered nowhere, in a dispute you must first prove that it existed at all and how long it lasted, and without that you lose any claim to a share of the property, to maintenance and to inheritance. If the 3-year condition is not met and there is no shared child, a partner legally remains a "stranger" — with no claim to the other's property and no statutory inheritance. Without a will or agreement, property registered in one partner's name is legally theirs, so the other must prove their contribution in litigation, with court and lawyer costs. There is also no clear procedure on separation as with divorce; everything is settled by lawsuit. That is why a longer union is worth arranging in writing — by a property agreement or a will.

📎 Official sources

Last verified: 2026-07-12

❓ Frequently asked

How long must we live together to have rights?

As a rule at least three years, since that is how long cohabitation must last under the Family Act to have marriage-like effects. That condition is not required if you have a shared child in the union or continue it by marriage, when the rights arise earlier.

Do we inherit from each other without marriage?

Yes, under the Inheritance Act a cohabiting partner is treated as a spouse and inherits in the first order of succession. The condition is that the union met the statutory requirements, and in a probate dispute you will have to prove its existence and duration.

Whose is the property we acquired while living together?

Property acquired through work during cohabitation is as a rule joint marital property and is split in equal shares. What each partner owned before the union or received by gift or inheritance remains that partner's separate property.

Does the same apply to same-sex couples?

Not through cohabitation, but through a life partnership of same-sex persons. An informal life partnership lasting at least three years gives similar rights, while a formal life partnership is entered before a registrar and recorded in a register.

How do we prove that cohabitation exists?

Because the union is recorded nowhere, its existence and duration are established by a court on the evidence. Useful proof includes a shared address, bills, witness statements, shared children and anything else that confirms a lasting life union.

🔎 Common searches

What people search to land here:

“cohabitation rights croatia”
“how long cohabitation croatia”
“cohabitation inheritance croatia”
“cohabitation property split”
“cohabitation shared child”
“proving cohabitation croatia”