Getting married changes your legal and financial position in ways that living together, however long, simply does not. In England and Wales, there is no such thing as “common-law marriage”, so the rights a spouse obtains on the wedding day are not available to an unmarried partner at all.
This guide sets out the legal benefits of marriage, the tax and money advantages that often surprise people, and the trade-offs worth weighing up before you decide.
In short: Marriage gives you automatic inheritance rights if your partner dies without a Will, an unlimited inheritance tax exemption between spouses, the ability to transfer income tax allowance through Marriage Allowance, tax-free transfers of assets between you, next-of-kin status in medical decisions, and the protection of the financial settlement rules if the relationship later ends. An unmarried partner has none of these automatically, no matter how long you have been together.
Do married couples really get benefits?
Yes. Some benefits are financial (tax savings you can claim from HMRC), and some are legal protections that apply automatically the moment you marry. The clearest way to see them is to compare a married couple with a couple who live together but have never married, because the gap between the two is wide and not always where people expect it.
The most valuable benefits tend to be the ones you only notice in a crisis: when someone dies, becomes seriously ill, or the relationship breaks down. That is exactly when an unmarried partner discovers how little the law protects them.
The financial benefits of marriage
Marriage opens up several tax reliefs and allowances that are not available to cohabiting couples.
Finances
A significant benefit of marriage is that there are certain tax breaks and exemptions. These include the married couple’s allowance, the ability to transfer assets between spouses to minimise tax liabilities and the fact that on death there is no inheritance tax to pay by the surviving spouse.
Alongside these tax benefits it’s important to realise that if you marry, you will become financially tied to your partner. In the event of the marriage ending in divorce all assets are considered joint and will be available to be divided to meet the needs of both parties. This will include any income, property, savings, investments, pensions and inherited wealth.
Prior to marriage, it is often sensible to consider signing a prenuptial agreement. This is a document which sets out a couple’s financial rights and obligations, which is then referred to during a divorce. This can be an effective way of protecting any premarital wealth.
Inheritance rights
In the UK, if you die without a valid Will in place, your estate will be distributed according to the Rules of Intestacy. Unmarried partners have no automatic right to inherit under the Rules of Intestacy, which can create a number of complications.
Therefore, a significant legal advantage of marriage, is that that you and your partner obtain inheritance rights, even if neither of you have a Will.
Even if you are married, it is still important for you and your partner to have valid Wills so that you can clearly set out wishes for your estate in the event of your death.
Worried about how your finances would be protected? Request a free 30-minute initial consultation with a family law specialist: call 0800 321 3832 or request a callback.
The legal benefits of marriage
Beyond money, marriage gives you legal standing that an unmarried partner has to arrange for deliberately, if it is available to them at all.
Inheritance and intestacy protection
If you die without a Will (known as dying intestate), the intestacy rules in England and Wales give your surviving spouse a substantial share of your estate automatically: the personal possessions, a fixed statutory legacy, and a share of the rest. An unmarried partner inherits nothing automatically under the intestacy rules and may have to bring a court claim to be considered.
Parental responsibility
A married father automatically has parental responsibility for children of the marriage. For unmarried fathers, parental responsibility depends on being named on the birth certificate or acquiring it separately, which can create complications if the relationship breaks down.
Financial protection if the relationship ends
This is the protection people understand least until they need it. If a marriage ends, the court has wide powers to divide property, savings, pensions and income fairly between the couple, whatever the legal ownership. Cohabiting couples have no equivalent regime; on separation, an unmarried partner generally keeps only what they legally own and has no claim on the other’s pension or income.
Marriage vs living together: a quick comparison
| Right or benefit | Married couple | Unmarried couple |
|---|---|---|
| Inheritance if partner dies without a will | Automatic share under intestacy rules | Nothing automatic |
| Inheritance tax on transfers between you | Unlimited exemption | Taxable above the nil-rate band |
| Transfer unused IHT allowance to partner | Yes | No |
| Marriage Allowance (income tax) | Yes | No |
| Tax-free transfer of assets between you | Yes (no gain, no loss) | No |
| Next of kin status | Automatic | Not automatic |
| Claim on partner’s pension if you separate | Yes, via the court | No |
| Financial settlement powers on separation | Yes | No |
Are there any benefits to staying unmarried?
For some couples, not marrying suits them. You keep full financial independence, your assets remain your own, and there is no divorce process to go through if you separate. Marriage also brings legal responsibilities as well as benefits, and some people prefer to keep their finances entirely separate.
The risk is that staying unmarried leaves you without the automatic protections above. Many cohabiting couples close that gap deliberately, with a cohabitation agreement setting out how property and finances are shared, and with wills and lasting powers of attorney in place. The point is that an unmarried couple has to arrange this protection; a married couple gets much of it by default.
Common-law marriage: the myth that leaves couples unprotected
One of the most damaging misunderstandings in family law is the belief in “common-law marriage”. There is a misconception that living together for several years gives a couple the same rights as a married couple. It does not. There is no such status in the law of England and Wales, regardless of how long you have lived together or whether you have children.
This is why cohabiting couples are so often caught out on death or separation: they assumed a protection that was never there. If you are not married and do not intend to be, it is worth taking advice on how to protect each other deliberately.
Should you sign a prenuptial agreement?
A prenuptial agreement is not a sign of pessimism; it is a way of setting out clearly what would happen to property and finances if the marriage ever ended, which can be particularly sensible where one partner brings significant assets, a business, or children from a previous relationship into the marriage. While prenuptial agreements are not automatically binding in England and Wales, the courts give them significant weight when they are properly prepared.
Frequently asked questions
Do married couples pay less tax in the UK?
Often, yes. Through Marriage Allowance, a couple can transfer £1,260 of personal allowance and save up to £252 a year in income tax, and spouses can move assets between them tax-free to use both partners’ allowances. The larger savings usually come on inheritance, where transfers between spouses are exempt from inheritance tax.
Is it worth getting married for financial reasons alone?
For many couples the financial protections are significant, especially around inheritance tax and pensions, but it depends on your circumstances. The biggest advantages tend to apply when there is a meaningful difference in income or wealth between you, or when you want to protect each other on death. A family solicitor or financial adviser can tell you what marriage would actually be worth in your situation.
What benefits do married couples get that unmarried couples do not?
Automatic inheritance if a partner dies without a Will, an unlimited inheritance tax exemption between spouses, the ability to transfer tax allowances, automatic next-of-kin status, and the right to a financial settlement (including a share of pensions) if the relationship ends. Unmarried couples get none of these automatically.
Does getting married affect my pension?
It can. A spouse is more likely to receive survivor benefits from a workplace or private pension, may be able to inherit part of a deceased spouse’s State Pension, and on divorce, the court can share pensions between the couple. Cohabiting partners usually have no automatic claim on each other’s pensions.
Does common-law marriage exist in the UK?
No. There is no legal status of common-law marriage in England and Wales, regardless of how long a couple has lived together. Cohabiting couples do not gain marriage-style rights automatically and need to put protections, such as a cohabitation agreement and wills, in place themselves.
Do I lose any rights by getting married?
Marriage brings legal responsibilities as well as protections. The main consideration is that, if the marriage ends, your assets and income can be taken into account in a financial settlement, whereas an unmarried person generally keeps what they legally own. A prenuptial agreement can be used to set expectations in advance.
What is the difference between marriage and a civil partnership?
Civil partnerships give almost identical legal and financial rights to marriage, including the inheritance tax and pension benefits described above, and are open to both same-sex and opposite-sex couples. The differences are mainly in formation and terminology rather than the legal protections involved.
Speak to our family law team
Whether you are planning to marry, weighing up a prenuptial agreement, or want to protect yourself as an unmarried couple, we can explain exactly where you stand and what to put in place.
For advice on the legal implications and benefits of getting married, or any other associated matter, take advantage of a free 30-minute telephone appointment to discuss your situation, by calling 0800 321 3832 or completing our online form.
This article was written by Alison Ratchford, a divorce and family law chartered legal executive family litigator at Woolley & Co, Solicitors, and reflects the law in England and Wales. Woolley & Co is regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA number 563859) and recognised as a Leading Firm for Family Law by the Legal 500. It is intended as general information, not legal advice; tax allowances and thresholds change each year, so check current figures before acting.
Alison Ratchford
Divorce and family lawyer Warwick
