Should You Register Your Common-Law Relationship in Manitoba?

Many Manitoba couples live together for years without ever marrying, and most never think about whether to register. The question usually comes up later, when a child is born, when you buy a home, or when the relationship starts to struggle.

This article explains what registration changes in law, not how to file. The short version: registration gives you certainty about when your rights begin, and that matters because different Manitoba laws use different tests for unregistered couples.

This article covers the law of Manitoba.

Registration is optional, but it has legal effects

Registering a common-law relationship with the Vital Statistics Agency is voluntary. Nothing forces you to do it, and unregistered couples can still be treated as common-law partners if they meet the time-based tests.

What registration does is remove the guesswork. Under The Family Law Act, a common-law partner is someone who has registered a common-law relationship under The Vital Statistics Act, or who has lived together in a conjugal relationship for long enough. Partners who registered have the same rights under that Act as married spouses.

Support rights: registered versus unregistered

Under The Family Law Act, an unregistered couple becomes common-law partners after at least three years of conjugal cohabitation, or at least one year if they are together the parents of a child. A registered couple does not wait. Registration makes you common-law partners right away, with no three-year or one-year-with-a-child period.

For how the cohabitation period is counted and what spousal support can look like for common-law partners, see our related articles on how long you must live together and on spousal support for common-law partners.

Property and homestead rights use their own definitions

This is where unregistered couples can be surprised. The one-year-with-a-child route is part of The Family Law Act definition. The Family Property Act and The Homesteads Act have their own definitions, which refer to registration or at least three years of conjugal cohabitation. Whether the shorter period helps with property or homestead rights depends on the details of those statutes, so it is worth confirming with a lawyer.

Once you meet the definition (registered, or three years of cohabitation), common-law partners are covered by the same equal-sharing accounting as spouses under The Family Property Act. There is an exception: couples who had cohabited three years and separated before a transition provision in that Act came into force are generally excluded, unless they resumed cohabiting and then registered or cohabited at least 90 days after that date. Each partner who is covered can apply for an accounting and an equalization of assets, and the combined value is generally divided into two equal shares unless the court orders otherwise.

The Homesteads Act also applies to people in common-law relationships. An owner generally cannot dispose of the homestead during their lifetime without the written consent of the spouse or common-law partner, and these rights exist whether or not the non-owner is on title. Because the statutes are detailed and have exceptions, a lawyer can confirm how they apply to your situation.

The gap for couples with a child

Put those pieces together and an unregistered couple with a child can end up with rights that begin at different times. After one year together, they may be common-law partners for support purposes under The Family Law Act. For property and homestead purposes, the definitions refer to registration or three years of cohabitation.

• Support under The Family Law Act: one year of cohabitation can be enough if you are parents of a child together.
• Property under The Family Property Act: the definition refers to registration or three years of cohabitation. The details and any exceptions depend on your situation, so it is worth confirming with a lawyer.
• Homestead rights under The Homesteads Act: the definition refers to registration or three years of cohabitation. The Act contains further provisions and exceptions, so a lawyer can confirm how it applies to you.
• Registered couples avoid the mismatch because registration counts under each of these laws.

If you are in this in-between period, it is worth getting advice on exactly where you stand rather than assuming the shorter period applies to everything.

Deadlines and names when the relationship ends

Registration also changes the clock for a property claim. For common-law partners, an application under The Family Property Act must be made within 60 days from registration of the dissolution if the relationship was registered, or within three years from when the partners began to live separate and apart if it was not. The deadlines are very different, so do not assume you have plenty of time.

On names, common-law partners who separate can revert to an earlier surname by filing a declaration with the Vital Statistics Agency.

• Write down the date you began living together and the date any child was born.
• Gather any existing cohabitation, property or homestead documents, including anything you signed about the family home.
• Decide whether certainty about your rights matters to you before a major step, such as buying a home together.
• If you have separated, note the date right away, because the property deadline depends on it.
• Talk to a Manitoba family lawyer before registering, signing an agreement, or letting a deadline run.

Frequently asked questions