Marriage Versus Living Together

Some countries do not recognize common law marriage; it is either you are married or not. A woman could live with a man for twenty years and bear him 10 children but without that tiny piece of paper called a marriage certificate, you have no rights whatsoever.

Ladies please note; marriage has its advantages over living together in the following instances:

Moving In With Him

A woman who lives with her husband in his own house has the right to stay in the house even if they are no more together. She even has the right to take steps to ensure that he does not sell the house over her head. If it is a rented apartment, she can choose to stay in the apartment even if her name is not included in the tenancy agreement and the landlord/landlady has no choice but to accept the rent payment from her.

Unless you have a proof of written agreement of some sort with your live-in lover, you are only entitled to a reasonable notice, if your partner decides to kick you out. Reasonable notice could be anything from a couple of days, weeks or in rare cases, months. If your partner lives in a rented apartment, the landlord/landlady do not have to accept the rent from you.

Money Matters

A husband has legal obligation to support his spouse and children. Any money in a joint bank account (even if the man is the only one paying in) belongs to the both of you. Any item you buy for mutual use belongs to you both. But in the course a divorce, the judge may order that the items remain with whoever gets the house and custody of the children. Anything bought for the woman from a joint bank account belongs to the woman alone.

You have no legal claim whatsoever to your partner's earnings, even if you are unemployed, although the court will order him to pay child support. No court will transfer a man's belongings to his live-in lover.

Other Men's Options

Most men will never consider asking out a married woman and will regard you as out-of-bounds; you'll be thought-of as someone else's property.

No ring on the finger? You will be regarded as fair game by most men.

What To Address Each Other

You do not need to worry about what to call each other because everyone will know what you are talking about when you say "my husband" or "my wife". You would be addressed as Mrs. X wherever you go.

Let's face it; no one has an accepted word to call you. Many have suggested, "Spouse equivalent", "cohabitee", "cohabitant", "live-in lover" but the most accepted title are "boyfriend" and "girl-friend"

Till Death Parts Us

Wives are entitled to widow's benefits based on their husband's insurance contributions. If he is gets pension from his place of work after his retirement, you would likely continue to collect his pension from his pension scheme.

Since you are not legally married, you can't get state benefits allocated to widows.

Think it through before moving in with your partner, weigh the pros and cons before making your decision. Whatever you choose, be happy.