A cohabitation agreement in BC is a written contract between unmarried partners that decides in advance how property, debt, and support will be handled if the relationship ends, replacing the province’s automatic 50/50 rules with terms you choose together. You can sign one before moving in or at any point during the relationship, and it becomes binding once both partners sign after full financial disclosure and independent legal advice.
Why the Agreement Matters: BC’s Default Rules Kick In at Two Years
Under the Family Law Act, you become a spouse once you have lived with your partner in a marriage-like relationship for a continuous period of at least two years, or sooner if you have a child together.1British Columbia Laws. British Columbia Family Law Act There is no paperwork or registration involved. It happens by operation of law, which is why so many couples are caught off guard.
The moment you cross that threshold, Section 81 creates a presumption that all family property is divided equally and all family debt is shared equally on separation, no matter who earned more or whose name is on the title. Family property is broad: bank accounts, pensions, retirement savings, business interests, and corporate shares acquired during the relationship all count.2British Columbia Laws. British Columbia Family Law Act – Property Division Family debt works the same way. Your partner’s car loan or credit card balance from during the relationship can become half yours.
Section 85 protects some assets from the split as “excluded property”: anything a spouse owned before the relationship began, inheritances, gifts from third parties, and most insurance or legal settlement proceeds.2British Columbia Laws. British Columbia Family Law Act – Property Division Here is the catch most people miss. Only the original value stays protected. Any increase in value during the relationship is family property and gets divided. If you owned a condo worth $400,000 before moving in together and it is worth $600,000 at separation, the $200,000 gain is on the table.
A cohabitation agreement is how you change that outcome.
What to Put in the Agreement
A Full Inventory of Property and Debt
Start with a complete list of what each partner owns and owes before moving in together. Every asset that qualifies as excluded property needs to be documented with its fair market value at the start of cohabitation. Real estate, pension statements, business valuations, investment accounts, and vehicles all belong in the record. This baseline is what protects the original value from future division and makes the agreement harder to challenge later.
Debts deserve the same detail. Student loans, credit card balances, car loans, and mortgages should each be identified and assigned to the responsible party. The agreement should also spell out how new debts taken on during the relationship will be treated, especially joint obligations like a shared mortgage.
Spousal Support
You can include terms about spousal support, from a fixed monthly amount to a complete waiver. Courts will generally respect what you agreed on, but a full waiver becomes harder to enforce if circumstances change dramatically and one partner ends up financially dependent.
Future Inheritances
Inheritances are already excluded property under the Act, but their treatment gets complicated if they are mixed with family assets or used to buy joint property. Your agreement can include a clause explicitly protecting future inheritances even when the exact amount is unknown at signing. Family lawyers routinely draft flexible clauses that allow the actual figures to differ from estimates. Acknowledge the expected inheritance in your financial disclosure and estimate it as precisely as you can. If you leave it out entirely and later receive a large inheritance, its status as excluded property is not guaranteed once the money lands in a joint account or funds a shared purchase.
Children: A Limited Tool
You can include terms about parenting arrangements and financial contributions for children, but courts retain the power to override any parenting terms that are not in the child’s best interests.3British Columbia Laws. British Columbia Family Law Act – Care of and Time with Children Child support in particular cannot be contracted away. Anything the agreement says about kids works as a starting framework, not a binding final word.
Full Financial Disclosure Is Not Optional
The single most common reason cohabitation agreements get thrown out is incomplete financial disclosure. Section 93 of the Family Law Act lists a spouse’s failure to disclose significant property, debts, or other relevant information as a standalone ground for the court to set aside the entire agreement.2British Columbia Laws. British Columbia Family Law Act – Property Division Hidden income or undisclosed assets discovered after the fact can result in the agreement being voided, cost penalties, or the court imputing income based on your lifestyle.
Both partners should exchange recent bank statements, tax returns, and appraisals for significant assets before signing. The disclosure does not need to be forensic, but it needs to be honest and reasonably thorough. A net worth statement prepared with a financial advisor or accountant gives each side a reliable snapshot and creates a paper trail showing good faith.
Signing Requirements That Make It Binding
The Family Law Act requires the agreement to be in writing and signed by both parties.1British Columbia Laws. British Columbia Family Law Act Best practice is to have each signature witnessed by an adult (19 is the age of majority in BC). What matters most for enforceability is that the agreement reflects genuine consent and informed decision-making.
Each partner should get independent legal advice from a separate lawyer before signing. This serves two purposes: it makes sure you actually understand what you are giving up, and it creates a paper trail showing the agreement was voluntary. Lawyers who provide this advice typically sign a Certificate of Independent Legal Advice confirming they explained every clause, reviewed the risks and consequences, and satisfied themselves that the client was not under pressure.4Law Society of British Columbia. Independent Legal Advice Checklist That certificate becomes powerful evidence if the agreement is ever challenged.
Sign multiple originals so each person keeps one. Many people store theirs in a safety deposit box or leave a copy with the lawyer who provided the independent legal advice.
When a Court Can Set the Agreement Aside
A signed cohabitation agreement is not bulletproof. Under Section 93, the BC Supreme Court can set aside all or part of an agreement if any of the following existed when the parties signed:
- A spouse failed to disclose significant property, debts, or other information relevant to the negotiation.
- A spouse took improper advantage of the other’s vulnerability, including ignorance, financial need, or emotional distress.
- A spouse did not understand the nature or consequences of what they were signing.
- Other circumstances existed that would make a contract voidable under general contract law, such as fraud or misrepresentation.
Even when none of those problems existed at signing, the court can still set aside an agreement that has become “significantly unfair” over time. The court weighs how long ago the agreement was made, whether the spouses intended it to create certainty, and how much each person relied on its terms.2British Columbia Laws. British Columbia Family Law Act – Property Division An agreement negotiated when both partners earned similar incomes can look very different ten years later if one partner has left the workforce to raise children.
Independent legal advice and thorough financial disclosure eliminate two of the four grounds and make the third much harder to argue. Cutting corners on the process tends to cost more in the long run.
Keeping the Agreement Current
An agreement written when you first moved in together may not reflect your life five or ten years later. Reviewing it every few years, and especially after major events like the birth of a child, a career change, a significant inheritance, or the purchase of a home, keeps the terms aligned with your actual circumstances. Amendments should follow the same formalities as the original. Put them in writing, sign them, and have each partner get fresh independent legal advice on the changes. An outdated agreement is not necessarily worthless, but it becomes harder to enforce if a court finds it significantly unfair given how long ago it was signed and how much your lives have changed since.2British Columbia Laws. British Columbia Family Law Act – Property Division
What the Agreement Does Not Cover
A cohabitation agreement governs property division on separation. It does not replace a will and does not control what happens to your estate when you die. Under the Wills, Estates and Succession Act, a common-law partner who has lived in a marriage-like relationship for at least two years is a spouse for estate purposes, and Section 60 lets a surviving spouse apply to vary a will that does not make adequate provision for their maintenance and support.5British Columbia Laws. British Columbia Wills, Estates and Succession Act A court may consider your cohabitation agreement as one factor when deciding what counts as adequate support, but it cannot on its own prevent a will variation claim. If you and your partner sign an agreement giving each person their own assets on separation, update your wills to reflect the same intentions.
The agreement also does not change your status under federal rules. The Canada Revenue Agency treats you as common-law after 12 continuous months of living together in a conjugal relationship, or immediately if you have a child together, and you must file your taxes accordingly.6Canada Revenue Agency. Marital Status A common-law partner may also qualify for a Canada Pension Plan survivor’s pension after one year of cohabitation.7Government of Canada. CPP Survivor’s Pension These federal rules operate independently of any private contract.
The Two-Year Deadline After Separation
If you separate and want to pursue property division, pension splitting, or spousal support under the Family Law Act, you have two years from the date of separation to start a court proceeding.8British Columbia Laws. British Columbia Family Law Act – General Miss that window and you lose the right to claim. This deadline catches people who separate amicably, assume things will be worked out informally, and realize years later that their former partner has no intention of honoring the original understanding. A cohabitation agreement does not extend this limitation period, but having one reduces the chance you will need to go to court in the first place.