Cohabitation Agreements

Couples who live together without registering a marriage are not treated as spouses under Vietnamese law. Property acquired during the relationship does not become common property automatically, and neither partner inherits from the other.

Wise Counsel advises unmarried couples on recording their financial arrangements and on resolving matters if the relationship ends.

What we help with

• Advising on the legal position of unmarried couples in Vietnam
• Drafting agreements recording who owns what and who contributed what
• Recording arrangements for a jointly purchased home or business
• Advising on how each partner's assets pass on death, and the need for a will
• Advising on parental rights and obligations towards children of the relationship
• Resolving property claims when the relationship ends
• Advising on registering the relationship as a marriage where the couple wishes to
• Advising foreign partners on the residence consequences of the arrangement

Without a will, a long-term partner inherits nothing under Vietnamese law. For unmarried couples that is usually the most urgent gap to close.