What is civil marriage and cohabitation? What is the difference between an official marriage and a civil one? Life without registration

Citizens of the Russian Federation distinguish two types of marriage: official and civil.

One of these unions is documented and registered, the other is considered an ordinary cohabitation of two people.

But are such definitions accurate and true in legal terminology?

What is the difference between a civil marriage and an official one?

Separation of concepts

Many citizens of the Russian Federation consider civil marriage to be an unofficial marriage that was not registered with the registry office. Actually this is not true.

The very concept of civil marriage was originally an alternative to church marriage, when people got married.

A civil marriage is nothing more than an official marriage. From the point of view of our legislation, the very concept of “civil” indicates that the relationship was legalized in the civil registry authorities.

Many people in everyday life call civil marriage those unions whose members have not registered the relationship at the legislative level.

Although the couple is a de facto family, such relationships are called “cohabitation”; it has no legal force.

On the territory of Russia, the concept of civil marriage appeared in December 1917, the year the church lost its powerful influence on the state structure.

A special regulation was created that regulated relations between people based not on church norms, but on secular ones.

After the final adoption of the legislative regulations, this type of marriage became the only legal one and was completely separated from the church one.

All those relationships that were registered in the marriage and birth registration departments of the councils gave certain rights and responsibilities to the spouses.

If a couple got married in a church, even in compliance with all religious canons, such relationships had no legal force and were not endowed with any state privileges. Moreover, such a union was still called marriage.

Around the same time, the concept of “de facto marital relations” was introduced into legislation.. In order for them to become a civil marriage, it was enough for a man and a woman to share a bed and run a joint household.

In the current Family Code and the Code on Marriage and Family, the concept of “cohabitation” is used instead of this term.

Civil marriage and official marriage - what's the difference?

There are several points that clearly separate cohabitation and legal marriage.

Each aspect has both pros and cons. Let's take a closer look at each of them.

Official and civil marriages must be registered by law. Relationships in a legal union are regulated not by the civil code, but by the family code.

There are much more subtleties in such legal regulation, which take into account specifically marital and family relations, and not just civil ones.

Many girls wonder why a guy doesn’t want to get married, but wants to live in a civil marriage.

It's all about responsibility. Many people consider it necessary to live together and get to know each other better, this has its own benefits - no responsibilities.

Partners cannot, for legal and moral reasons, demand that each other fulfill any obligations, since, in fact, there are none.

Another possible plus is that in case of disagreements, you can simply separate without divorce or paperwork.

Statistics show that adherents of civil marriages very often do not take relationships seriously. The concept of cohabitation often undermines the stability of unions.

Divorce is a long and nervous procedure; quite often during it, people wonder whether such an extreme is even necessary or whether it is possible to improve relations with their other half.

Since in an official marriage, relationships between people are regulated by the Family Code, each spouse has a number of personal, property rights, and rights in relation to children.

People who have not approved their relationship in the registry office cannot draw up marriage contracts.

This is one of the most important aspects of any relationship, committed or not. When they are born into a formal marriage, both parents are equally responsible for them.

Even when a couple separates and the child remains with one of the spouses, the other is obliged to pay alimony to support the common child.

When a child is born to cohabiting people, a man must undergo a DNA test to confirm paternity in order to obtain rights to the child.

The downside is that men often refuse to carry it out and renounce their rights to their own children, so they evade paying alimony. In this case, all responsibilities for maintaining the baby are transferred to the mother.

If a woman is left without material support, she either works harder to provide for herself and her child, or lives on benefits and benefits.

As for a man’s rights to a child, if he abandoned him, he cannot take any part in his upbringing, has no right to all payments and benefits, the child’s personal property and his inheritance.

Another important point: people in a civil marriage cannot adopt a child. Establishing guardianship can also be accompanied by some difficulties.

The distribution of property between spouses depends entirely on when it was acquired.

Therefore, there are several types of property:

• common shared ownership;
• common joint property.

If items of property (movable and immovable property) were acquired by a person before marriage, they are inviolable and it will not be possible to claim them.

If a car, apartment, equipment, etc. were bought by married people, then each spouse can claim exactly half of all this property.

Quite often, people do not divide cars and other items of property; they simply pay off or sell their share in the event of a divorce.

When there is no marriage certificate, the property is divided into the property of one spouse and the other. There is no need to divide it and none of the partners can in any way lay claim to the property of the other partner.

If a couple, being in a civil marriage, bought something from equipment or real estate using common funds and there was no unspoken agreement to divide it in half, it will be necessary to confirm the fact of a joint purchase in court.

To do this, you will have to raise contracts, checks and even look for witnesses.

There are situations when people live happily in a civil marriage for 40 years, but after the separation or death of one of the spouses, there is nothing left for the other.

Debt obligations

The fact that the earnings of both official partners are considered common is an absolute plus. However, the debts of one of the spouses will also be considered common. When a husband or wife takes out a loan, they both have to repay it equally.

If a situation occurs that one of the participants in the marriage evades payment of the debt, the bank has every right to transfer the obligation to repay the loan to its second participant.

As for cohabitation, the need to pay off loans and other debts rests only with the person indicated in the agreement or receipt.

In fact, cohabitants are complete strangers and a creditor, even with the help of the law, will not be able to force an illegitimate husband or wife to pay debts for their partner.

Inheritance

This is another interesting aspect regarding official marriages and cohabitations, because it directly affects the issue of property. We are talking about whether a spouse can claim the inheritance of the other spouse in the event of his death.

If people are officially married, then the division of property occurs legally. All property of the deceased is divided equally among his immediate relatives.

If there are none, all property goes to the spouse. You don't even need a will for this division..

If it exists and the spouse is not listed in it, then he may not receive anything. Such cases often lead to lawsuits between widowers and relatives of the deceased.

When a couple is not married, it becomes very difficult to receive an inheritance from a former conditional spouse. A partner cannot claim any share of the property unless named in the will. All property will go to the next of kin of the deceased person.

If the couple cohabited for quite a long time and managed to have children together, this procedure for receiving an inheritance will apply to them.

However, if after the birth of the child the fact of paternity was established in court and all the necessary documents were drawn up, the child is one of the closest relatives of the deceased and can claim an inheritance without a will.

These are 5 main factors that significantly differentiate the concept of official/civil marriage and cohabitation.

Video: Civil marriage. Legal consequences

Conclusion

So, which is better, civil/official marriage or cohabitation? Let us once again summarize the main differences between such unions from each other:

Being in an official marriage, spouses have much more rights and guarantees, and can also resolve all conflicts and disagreements at the state level.

Children who were born in a legal marriage have all the privileges. Even in the event of divorce, one of the parents will be obliged to provide financially for the child until his 18th birthday.

When people simply cohabit, the family code does not apply to them and it becomes impossible to assign certain marital obligations to the spouses.

Unofficial spouses and their children often become financially vulnerable due to the fact that the couple approached the creation of a marriage union without due responsibility.

In addition, these types of “marriages” are considered very unstable and often end unsuccessfully.

Civil marriage is a fashionable form of union between a man and a woman in our time, which has both admirers and opponents. What is a civil marriage? Family or cohabitation?

Over the past two decades, there has been a stable trend in society: the number of divorces is increasing, and the number of people wishing to enter into a legal marriage will only decrease. Young people choose a so-called civil marriage, which in fact is a simple cohabitation, rationally explaining this by the desire to first test the strength of the relationship.

However, studies conducted in different countries show that official marriages entered into after people have lived together for some time break up in twice as often than those who were not preceded by cohabitation! But is the previous “trial” marriage the reason for the breakup of families? Or does the problem lie in the decline in the significance and value of the family institution itself?

Family crisis in modern society it is becoming more and more aggravated. The family is transformed, some of its problems are resolved, others become aggravated and new ones appear. Among trends, indicating a crisis in the institution of the family, the following can be distinguished:

Some experts also consider so-called civil marriages negative indicator and an indicator of an aggravated family crisis.

Disputes and disagreements regarding the acceptability of unregistered legal relationships between a man and a woman do not subside. Opinions radically opposite:

• Unofficial marriage is a kind of preparation, “ school of marriage».

You must first live together for some time as husband and wife. This is necessary to test the relationship, in order to be confident in the partner before the official marriage is concluded. After the “trial”, entering into a legal marriage is easier and calmer, since there is confidence that it will not end in divorce, because the partners have already “got used to it.” Why rush to sign at the registry office without getting to know each other well and without realizing that you can trust?

• Unofficial marriage - self-deception.

Cohabitation is an illusion of family. In such relationships there is no main thing - responsibility! A man and woman call themselves husband and wife, but they understand that they are still free. In the event of a conflict (and they happen to everyone), “common-law” spouses would rather separate than start working on the relationship, because nothing is holding them back. In such a “trial” marriage there are no legal rights and obligations.

For example, if a man becomes a father, he will still have to prove his paternity. The cohabitants still have the understanding that all this is “for fun”, it seems serious, but not too much, so they are in no hurry to work on the relationship and build a strong family.

Whatever opinions people hold, the statistics are inexorable - the number of officially unregistered but cohabiting couples is growing rapidly. Why don’t modern men and women rush to the registry office?

Civil marriage - cohabitation?

Today in the post-Soviet space, only one couple out of three chooses a legally formalized union, in Europe and America it is even less common - one out of four. But just a century ago everything was completely different, and the world has changed beyond recognition over the last hundred years.

In the Russian Empire there were no registry offices, people got married in the church and there, in the parish books, the clergy recorded the facts of the creation of families, the birth of children and death. After the revolution of 1917, citizens of the USSR who wanted to legalize relations had to go not to church, but to a special institution - the registry office. This is how civil marriages began to take place.

Civil marriage is a marriage between a man and a woman, registered in the registry office. Thus, a civil marriage is an official, that is, legally formalized, legal marriage. This is a marriage by law and right.

A civil registered marriage is called as opposed to a church marriage - a wedding. Therefore, a civil marriage concluded in the registry office is also called secular.

It is not entirely clear why cohabitation began to be called civil marriage at some point. Perhaps because people did not take state-legalized unions as seriously as they did weddings? After all, you can only get married once in your life, but you can sign at the registry office as many times as you like.

The fashion for open relationships began around the 60s of the last century. It was then that the concept of “civil marriage” began to be misunderstood and this confusion in definitions continues to this day.

Marriage- this is a family relationship regulated by society and registered in the advisory state bodies between one man and one woman who have reached marriageable age, giving rise to their rights and obligations in relation to each other.

Thus, those relationships that are mistakenly considered a civil marriage are more correctly called cohabitation.

Because the word “cohabitation” is impartial, lawyers and sociologists sometimes replace it with the phrase “ actual marriage', but people still say 'civil marriage'.

Actual marriage(popularly known as civil) is the joint residence (cohabitation) in one house or housekeeping of two adults who are not related by marriage or family relations, people who have emotional and sexual relationships.

Cohabitation- this is a relationship similar to a marriage, but its form is not legally recognized; it is an unregistered cohabitation of a man and a woman.

Cohabitants do not have the same rights as legal spouses and this can cause many problems. For example, cohabitants do not have the right to division of jointly acquired property in the event of termination of the relationship, the right of inheritance by law and other rights. For the state, people who live as husband and wife, but have not formalized their relationship, are strangers to each other.

Motives for entering into actual marriage

Family- a small social group of society, the most important form of organizing everyday life, based on marital union and family ties. Family is a need and necessary “habitat” for a cultured person. It is known that married people live longer and generally live happier lives compared to single people.

Motives for starting a family vary between men and women, depending on age, level of education, occupation, but more often they are based on the following desires:

Couples who start living together actually start a family without informing the state. Most often people do this:

• without higher education,
• those whose parents were not married,
• having negative experience in previous marital relationships.

Most common reasons for non-accession into an official civil marriage, and de facto marriage preferences are:

• testing relationships for strength and finding matches in lifestyle, establishing compatibility in everyday life;
• a sense of freedom, no need to take on traditional responsibilities and stereotypical family roles;
• the opportunity to avoid serious mistakes, protect yourself from risks and disappointments;
• unpreparedness for marriage, but a desire to live with a loved one;
• waiting for marriage registration (when people are going to get married after some time specified by them);
• “rehearsal” of an official marriage without establishing the terms of its conclusion;
• material benefits of living together;
• the acceptability of this type of marriage (people equate cohabitation with official marriage and do not see the difference between them).

Main motive entering into actual marriage – the presence in the partner’s personality of suitable traits and qualities of character that inspire confidence.

It is interesting that the motives for not entering into an official marriage differ between men and women.

Women they are in no hurry to formalize a union with male cohabitants mainly for two reasons:

• checking relationships
• They are waiting for a proposal from a man, but they can’t wait for him!

Men They explain their reluctance to get married for one single reason - they want to remain single, even if they sincerely love and have a positive attitude towards their partner.

It turns out that for a woman cohabitation is an illusion of marriage, and for a man it is an illusion of freedom.

To be or not to be?

Unfortunately, statistics refutes the main argument of supporters of de facto marriages: premarital cohabitation does not guarantee a happy and strong family. Conclusions drawn from numerous studies over the past two decades show that “trial” marriage is an excuse for people who are afraid to take on responsibility and not wanting to part with freedom.

Lovers often say: “The stamp in the passport means nothing, we can live together well without it. The main thing is that we love each other." But what's stopping you from putting a stamp if it doesn't change anything? It's not hard to do!

People living in de facto marriages have love and awareness of the convenience of living together, but often lack determination accept responsibility for maintaining the relationship and Creation complete family.

The actual husband and wife rejoice at the opportunity to be and live together, take care of, look after, help each other, make love, relax, arrange their home, and so on. They get to know each other better and become close people, but, noticing their partner’s shortcomings, they often find themselves unwilling to come to terms with them.

A person usually does not have thoughts like: “My brother is not suitable for me, I need to find another!”, because a brother is a member of the family. A cohabitant or cohabitant is not yet a family member, so even the most loving, devoted and honest partner may have the thought: “We are not relatives yet. If something happens, you can find someone else.”

It will be useful for a man and woman living together in an unregistered marriage and wanting to understand the relationship to answer the following: questions:

• Am I ready to start a legal family?
• Is my desire to build a happy family sincere and serious?
• Do I understand that to create a harmonious relationship, you need to learn to give in, forgive and overcome selfishness, conflicts and difficulties together?
• Am I ready to take on the responsibility of being with the person I choose for the rest of my life?
• Do I want to live my whole life with my chosen one?
• Perhaps I'm afraid of official marriage? And if “yes,” then what exactly is it that scares me?
• Does my life partner love me? Do I love him?

Whether or not to formalize a relationship is a personal matter for each person. How a particular actual union will develop and whether it will develop into an official marriage will be determined not by soulless statistics, but by a specific married couple.

A society that preaches freedom of choice and a wide range of types of relationships may devalue, make traditional legal marriage unfashionable and make it too difficult, thereby changing the way of the modern family, but each person must understand for himself what constitutes his happiness and how significant it is for him have a strong family.

1. J. Gray “Recipes for happy relationships”, “Mars and Venus: how to preserve love”, “Secrets of happy wives” and other books by the author
2. S. Covey “7 Habits of Highly Effective Families”
3. V. Satir “You and your family. Personal Growth Guide"
4. K. Rogers “Marriage and Its Alternatives”
5. Yu.A. Druzhinina “Imaginations of different generations about modern forms of marriage and family”
6. A. Tolokonin “Secrets of successful families. View of a family psychologist”
7. A. Bowman “Long. Happily. Together"
8. J. Anderson, P. Schumann “Strategy of family life. How to wash the dishes less often, have sex more often and quarrel less.”
9. B. Feiler “Secrets of happy families. Male gaze”

The relationship between a man and a woman plays an important role in a person's life. Today you can encounter various forms of so-called marriage. This is a relationship in a couple that is registered in one way or another. The actual marriage requires special attention. What it is? How is it different from civilian? What are the pros and cons? We will have to answer all these questions further. In reality, everything is much simpler than it seems. We also have to understand how to properly formalize the relationship officially. Not everyone knows the features of such a process.

Civil marriage

First, let's understand a little terminology. Today, a distinction is made between de facto and civil marriage. What it is? Let's start with the second concept. From the point of view of the law, a civil marriage is a relationship officially registered in the registry office. In other words, this is living together after the wedding. This is precisely the meaning of civil marriage among lawyers.

However, this terminology is often used in a different meaning. Civil marriage most often refers to the process of living together between a man and a woman. In this case, people live under the same roof, conduct everyday life together, but their relationship is not officially registered in the registry office.

Actual union

The next important term is actual marriage. What kind of concept is this? How is it different from a civil marriage? Further in the text the legal interpretation will be understood. Actual marriage is the process in which people live together, build relationships and even give birth to children. Unlike official registration, this scenario is not recorded anywhere.

In other words, actual marriage is the cohabitation of a man and a woman, an analogue of a generally accepted (non-legal) civil marriage. This form of relationship is often intermediate between “just meeting” and “husband and wife status.” Despite this, actual marriages in Russia are spreading quite quickly. People are in no hurry to go to the registry office to register their relationship. And there are reasons for this. The concept of actual marriage is now clear. But what are the pros and cons of this form of relationship?

Pros of civil marriage

The official form of joint farming has its advantages and disadvantages. What is it about? First of all, it is necessary to find out why the population is attracted to painting in the registry office. Why register relationships if you can do without this feature? The fact is that among the main advantages of a civil marriage is the security of family relationships. After registration at the registry office, citizens will be considered official spouses. Their relationship will be regulated in accordance with the Family Code of the Russian Federation.

In addition, civil marriage:

• Gives husband/wife special rights. For example, in some hospitals, only official spouses are allowed to visit patients.
• Gives the parties security and clarity of relations of both a property and non-property nature.
• When children are born, official marriage eliminates most problems. For example, children will be able to take their father's surname without additional paperwork. In addition, parenting is easier in a formal relationship.
• The division of property during a divorce will be carried out in accordance with the RF IC. In addition, spouses can enter into a marriage contract in advance. It will help clarify the principles of division of common property.

Accordingly, this form of relationship provides certain guarantees. As already mentioned, de facto marriage still occurs quite often in Russia. Why are citizens in no hurry to formalize relationships?

Disadvantages of registration at the registry office

It is enough to think carefully about the consequences of such a decision. As has already been emphasized, civil marriage gives the husband and wife special rights. This is a completely new stage in a relationship that requires a lot of responsibility. Some people simply find it advantageous not to sign. There are not many disadvantages to a civil marriage. These include:

• Responsibility to relatives, spouses and children. Family relations, as emphasized earlier, are regulated by the Family Code of the Russian Federation.
• It is not so easy to end a relationship in the event of conflicts. Actual marriage allows people to simply move away and not think about each other. Officially registered relationships require additional paperwork during divorce.
• Having common children greatly complicates the divorce process.
• After the dissolution of an official marriage, the spouses still have some obligations to each other and to their children. Proving them is not difficult.

That is why everyone decides for themselves what to do. Registration of marriage is a fairly simple procedure. And its termination often means problems. However, the actual marriage requires special attention. What positive and negative sides does it have?

Pros of cohabitation

In reality, everything is not as simple as it seems. Previously, in Russia, a de facto union had significance. It was enough to share one bed and lead a common life in order to be officially registered as a family. But in 1944 everything changed. From that time on, citizens had to undergo official registration of relationships at the registry office. In this case, persons living together could indicate the duration of the actual relationship. What makes an actual marriage stand out? All people speak out for and against this form of relationship. For some, living under one roof is enough; for others, it is important to have a stamp in their passport for peace of mind.

Among the positive aspects of actual marriage are:

• Lack of responsibility to your spouse. As was emphasized earlier, in conflict situations people can simply disperse without consequences.
• Freedom. Many people understand that actually living with a citizen is a kind of freedom. Today you can live with one person, tomorrow - with another. Nobody owes anything to anyone.
• Property relations. An undoubted advantage is the fact that everything acquired in an actual marriage is not recognized as joint. What is bought by the husband belongs only to the husband. And all the wife’s property is only her property.

Perhaps all these features can also be considered disadvantages. A de facto marriage means a minimum of responsibility and a maximum of legal disputes if the parties have obvious conflicts.

Property

Special attention must be paid to property issues related to cohabitation. Often people disagree on the principle “whoever bought what belongs to him.” But such situations are ideal. Often, the breakdown of people's relationships is accompanied by mutual hostility and conflicts. What does actual marriage mean? The division of property in this case will be carried out under the guidance not of the country’s Family Code, but of the Civil Code. What does this mean? All joint property acquired through actual cohabitation is divided as common property. In other words, if a man has not invested a penny in the purchase of his common-law wife’s apartment, he has no plans for her. Otherwise, the courts take into account who contributed what share when acquiring property.

• joint farming is not considered work;
• the earnings of citizens and their other incomes are not considered joint;
• The degree of participation in the transaction and the personal investments of each party are taken into account.

It is noted that actual marriage with division of property is often accompanied by litigation. Therefore, such disputes are often settled fairly. Not always, but very often this is the case. The only disadvantage of the process is that domestic work will not be taken into account by the court.

About legal consequences

Are de facto marriages currently recognized? Quite. In court, if desired, you can prove the fact of running a joint farm. But in practice such cases are extremely rare. What are the legal consequences of unregistered relationships? Among them are the following features:

• children do not receive their father's surname "by default";
• the father can assign his surname to minors only after recognition of paternity;
• Anything acquired during marriage is not considered joint property.

Important: children born in a civil and de facto marriage have the same rights. The only difference is that in the second case you will have to prove your relationship with the father. For this purpose, genetic testing was invented long ago.

Registration of relations

Marriage, legal and actual, implies a certain behavior of citizens. The fact is that in the first case you will have to officially register the relationship, for example at the registry office. But in actual cohabitation, no such manipulations are necessary. Marriage registration is handled by the Wedding Palace. Citizens who decide to become husband and wife must:

• Collect a certain package of documents. Usually the passports of the parties are sufficient. If the bride is pregnant, in order to speed up the registration procedure, you can bring a doctor's certificate with you.
• To write an application. It is filled out at the registry office.
• Pay the marriage registration fee. Today in Russia such an operation will cost 350 rubles.
• Set a date for painting. Usually on this day people celebrate their wedding.
• Wait until the relationship is registered. On the appointed date and time, come to the Wedding Palace, confirm the operation and receive a certificate in the prescribed form.

In fact, everything is much simpler than it seems. However, not everyone can enter into a civil marriage. What restrictions exist in Russia?

Restrictions and prohibitions for registration

There aren't very many of them. Usually, a civil marriage means a mutual decision to conduct a common household in an official manner. The decision should be made by the bride and groom without pressure or threats. Otherwise, registration can be cancelled. Today, actual marriage has no restrictions. But not everyone is allowed to go civilian. It is necessary to remember the following features of registration at the registry office:

• Applicants can only be adults. In some cases (most often when the bride is pregnant), marriage is permitted from the age of 16.
• The decision to paint can only be made independently. This is a mutual decision of the future spouses.
• You cannot marry close relatives. Consanguinity is a barrier to registration.
• Only legally capable persons can participate in the process.
• A wedding in Russia is held between a man and a woman. Same-sex marriage is prohibited in the country.

In principle, any adequate couple who has reached the age of majority can apply to the registry office to formalize the relationship. But people with non-traditional sexual orientation in Russia will have to be content with cohabitation.

Beginning of actual marriage

Now it’s clear how a civil marriage differs from a real one. In fact, everything is not as difficult as it might seem at first glance. How does the actual relationship begin? How is this period characterized? Nothing special. Civil marriage, as already noted, requires citizens to register with the registry office, accompanied by the issuance of a certificate. After this, the couple will be considered official spouses. The actual marriage begins from the moment the parties live together. As soon as people come together and organize common life and leisure, their relationship can be considered valid. No registration or celebration. The same applies to the dissolution of a de facto marriage. People move away and stop running a joint household.

Examples

Now some visual examples. Not everyone is clear about the difference between the concepts mentioned. What is a de facto marriage? Examples from life often demonstrate that this form of relationship is only possible between 100% honest people who love each other. In other cases, you have to obtain security and some kind of government guarantees by registering with the registry office.

So, if a couple meets and lives together (it doesn’t matter with whom, even with the spouse’s parents), then this is a de facto marriage. In this case, the parties themselves agree on how they will conduct their lives. For example, a woman takes on “female” responsibilities - maintaining the house, cooking, and a man takes on “male” responsibilities - repairing, nailing, moving. Each such couple often has their own income. The income of a guy and a girl is considered personal; people pay equal shares for common expenses.

Let's assume that this family has a child together. Such a unit of society lives with the spouse in an apartment or one purchased by him after the start of a relationship with the child’s mother. What will happen in this case during a divorce? Mother and child risk being left on the street. Especially if the woman does not have her own home and job. For example, a man promised to bear all the costs of maintaining the family in exchange for the woman taking care of the house and children exclusively. It is difficult to obtain alimony for a minor - you will have to prove the relationship of the child with the spouse. In fact, during a “divorce,” husbands simply throw their wives out into the street and completely forget about the children.

Now it should be clear what actual marriage is. Examples from life are sometimes different. Let's say a guy and a girl have been dating for a long time and living together. Children are born to them, property is registered primarily in the woman’s name for one reason or another. And then mom falls in love and leaves for another man. The former de facto spouse will be left without property and will have to seek paternity through the court. Accordingly, de facto and civil marriage are two completely different forms of relationships. But, as already mentioned, it is possible to prove in court the conduct of a joint farm. How exactly?

On the recognition of marriage

If you prepare in advance, then recognizing the actual type of marriage will not be difficult. To do this, you will have to prove running a joint farm. Are de facto marriages currently recognized? Yes, but only through the court. The following can be presented as evidence of a relationship:

• recordings of telephone conversations;
• joint photographs;
• correspondence;
• witness statements;
• video materials;
• medical reports (in case of acknowledgment of paternity);
• payment slips confirming joint purchases.

In fact, anything that can indicate a relationship between two people serves as evidence in court. Recognition of the actual marriage takes place. All of the above evidence helps not to recognize the marriage as officially registered, but to indicate the conduct of a joint life, emphasize the presence of shared ownership and kinship with children.

What to choose

Now it is clear what actual marriage is. Its pros and cons are obvious. In addition, its differences from a civil union are also no longer some kind of secret. Some couples don't know what exactly to choose. Which relationship option is most beneficial? Civil marriage with official registration is the union that is preferred. Such a scheme for running a joint household protects spouses as much as possible from deception and injustice. Yes, getting married will be a rather serious step with increased responsibility. But in such relationships there are more pros than cons.

The actual union cannot be crossed out either. This is a normal stage in the development of relationships. The main thing is not to stay in such an alliance for too long. For example, you can submit an application to the registry office, then move in together and live in a de facto union until the official registration. It is this decision that becomes the most logical.

It is noted that long-term residence without a registered relationship in Russia is most often welcomed by men. The stronger half of society considers their cohabitants to be ordinary girls, while women believe that they have the status of wives, but without a stamp in their passport. It is noted that people who live for a long time without painting either live like this all the time, or sooner or later separate. Having a wedding in this situation is not so easy - it is not always possible to prove the need for action.

Results

From now on, it is clear how actual marriage relations differ from those formalized in the registry office. We can say that this arrangement means the freedom of the spouses, the absence of responsibility and any guarantees. Therefore, officially formalized relationships are considered to be a more reliable union. In addition, neither the state nor the church recognize cohabitation. Such relationships are often regarded as fornication and a mockery of the institution of family. However, it is not always possible to register with the registry office. This is especially true for people with non-traditional sexual orientation in Russia. Actual marriage is an intermediate link between the statuses of “boyfriend and girlfriend” and “husband and wife.” A normal stage of a relationship that should not be delayed. Everyone decides for themselves how to live. But a civil marriage gives spouses special rights, duties and responsibilities.

Established ideas about marriage are a thing of the past. And although the so-called “civil marriage”, that is, free, without property obligations, cohabitation between a man and a woman is becoming the norm, people do not fully understand what it is.

In fact, the concept of civil marriage is misunderstood. A traditional, official marriage is precisely a civil one. It gives spouses, especially the woman - the expectant mother, a feeling of confidence and security. However, adherents of cohabitation (which is popularly called civil marriage) are confident that the seal and stamp in the passport extinguish feelings, since they put “shackles of obligation” on people.

People make their own decisions about what kind of life they want to live. It would be a good idea to consult with a lawyer about what to expect from such a marriage. You also need to be well aware of the consequences of breaking up the relationship.

What is considered an official marriage?

The Family Code of the Russian Federation indicates the characteristic features of the union of a man and a woman:

• voluntariness;
• freedom of choice;
• equality;
• monogamy (monogamy).

This document indicates how the marriage is officially registered (clause 2, article 1 of the UK). This is what the registry office is for. After marriage, the state guarantees:

• its universal recognition;
• protection;
• respect for certain rights.

Significant differences between cohabitation and official marriage

The law states that the mother’s husband will be recognized as the father of a child born in marriage (Clause 2, Article 48 of the Family Code). However, a child may be born in special situations:

• after divorce;
• after the death of his father.

In order for the spouse (former or deceased) of the mother to be recognized as the father of the child, the baby must be born no later than 300 days after the divorce or death of the father. There is a presumption of paternity in effect. In other words, a man is recognized as a father by default, although he has the right to file a lawsuit asking not to recognize him as a father, since the child is not his own.

Similar circumstances during cohabitation are regulated by paragraph 2 of Art. 51 SK. If the child was born out of wedlock, you will need:

• cohabitants submit a joint application to recognize the man as the father of the child;
• father to submit a statement of similar content.

Let’s say the “common-law husband” (simply a cohabitant) does not want to submit such an application. Then at the registry office the illegitimate child receives the mother’s surname. She will be entered in the column where the father's last name should appear. The mother chooses the name. The middle name is also chosen according to the personal preference of the mother.

However, a man can prove his paternity. The results of genetic testing are provided as evidence to the court. There are life situations when this is required.

For example, citizen R. contacted a lawyer and wanted to give his child his last name. As it turned out later, his former partner (the child’s mother) died, and the baby was raised by the mother’s parents. However, their daughter left the child a large inheritance in the form of an apartment in the capital, and the grandparents obtained guardianship.

Citizen R., with the assistance of a lawyer, managed to prove his paternity. However, the guardians' lawyers were able to correctly substantiate their clients' position:

• the father knew about the existence of the child, but was not interested in him and did not pay child support;
• guardianship is formalized according to all rules.

Property division

It is worth noting that in an official marriage, spouses have jointly acquired property. It is common property unless a marriage contract has been drawn up, which has its own nuances from the point of view of the law.

According to general rules, it does not matter:

• that only one of the spouses, who worked or had other income, contributed money to the family budget;
• that the property is registered in the name of one spouse.

And yet, lawyers advise dividing property not only during a divorce (which is natural), but also during a marriage, in order to make the marital relationship more comfortable. By the way, property can be divided within 3 years after a divorce.

Article 35 of the Family Code (clause 1) indicates that mutual consent of the spouses is required in order for joint property to:

• own;
• dispose of;
• use.

If one of the spouses independently manipulates the common property, the other spouse has the right not to recognize the legality of these actions. But in case of cohabitation, the property is owned by the one who acquired it (clause 2 of Article 218 of the Civil Code). As evidence you can present:

• checks;
• other documents confirming the buyer’s identity.

In this case, it is very difficult to prove that the other cohabitant also contributed a certain amount to purchase the property.

Legal assistance

A lawyer defending the position of a former cohabitant who wants to get his money back for property faces serious challenges.

1. It is required to prove that the other party to the conflict did not have the opportunity to purchase the property on their own, since they did not have the funds to do so.

2. It will be necessary to identify witnesses who would confirm that the property was purchased with the client’s money.

3. In some cases, the identity of the person who recorded the jointly acquired property plays a role. Perhaps such “civil marriages” are repeated with enviable frequency and strengthen the financial condition of the defendant. There is evidence of fraud.

Also, the money that the cohabitants had, as it were, in joint ownership and was intended for current purchases, when the relationship is dissolved, becomes not just a subject of dispute. One of the former cohabitants may claim that another member of the failed family simply stole them.

There are situations when one cohabitant files a police report against the other, accusing him of ordinary theft. After all, in essence, these people remain strangers to each other, since they can separate at any moment. Therefore, in order for them to understand their relationship, they need the help of a lawyer.

A competent lawyer will first of all competently advise a citizen who approaches him on any issue regarding family law. Perhaps the conflict situation can be resolved at the negotiating table. Otherwise, you will need legal support in court.

When a man and woman begin to live together, they do not expect that in a couple of years, if the partner is not satisfied with something, they will run away. A woman, most often, expects a legal marriage. A man, in most cases, believes that the existing civil union (in fact, cohabitation) is quite normal, and the situation does not require change.

Are citizens who have not received a marriage certificate legally protected under the 2016 legislation? What is the difference between an official marriage and cohabitation between spouses? Don't children born into a de facto family suffer?

Registered union and actual family relations

Until 1917, only church marriage was considered legal. The husband and wife, having consecrated the union, could claim to inherit the property of the deceased spouse. Only children born after the wedding were recognized as legitimate. In modern society, civil marriage is called official, legal, secular, as opposed to church marriage. Citizens who have not registered a union in the registry office will not be married in a church in 2016.

According to the legislation of the Russian Federation as of 2016, a legal marriage is a union of a man and a woman, recorded by the registry office.

It presupposes marital relations, mutual moral support, and running a joint household.

Registration of a marriage union is aimed at creating a family and having children. After signing the documents, the spouses have legal rights and mutual responsibilities. Only a registered marriage presupposes that the partners have common property, even if one of them does not work but runs a household.

What modern young people call civil marriage is actually called “cohabitation” in the language of the law in 2016. This is the residence of two people of different sexes in the same living space, running a joint household, and owning common property.

Cohabitants also treat each other with respect, love and care. Actual family relationships lead to the birth of children. In fact, a civil marriage is no different from an official union; it is also created to build a family.

But the spouses of such a family do not feel completely protected. For example, in a situation where a girl came to live in a man’s apartment. They can be together for more than a year, both work, but the woman will not be allowed to change anything in the man’s home. Moreover, any quarrel can provoke a break, after which the girl will be left with nothing on the threshold of the house that she lovingly furnished.

A man who enters into an unregistered relationship can suffer no less. For example, a couple lived together for 7 years. During this period they bought a house and a car. To make the woman feel legally protected, the man registered all the new property in her name. As a result of a car accident, the common-law spouse died. All property acquired by the spouses was inherited by the wife's relatives. A man can only get at least some of his things through the courts.

Are civil and official unions equal?

Although a de facto union and an official marriage in everyday life are perceived as a family, only a registered marriage, according to the Family Code of the Russian Federation for 2016, presupposes the legal protection of spouses. Advantages of legal marriage:

There are points that do not suit people who registered an official marriage:

Only after the union has been formalized can a man and woman sign a marriage contract regulating property issues and other aspects of family life.

Rights and responsibilities of actual husband and wife

Legal marriage allows spouses to receive not only psychological comfort, but also legal protection. There are no clearly defined rights and obligations of spouses who have entered into a civil union:

Actual marriage is not supported by the state and in the eyes of society remains cohabitation.

Most women who want to gain moral security and are in a civil marriage claim that they are married. Men who prefer freedom, having created an actual family, say that they are not married. According to statistics for 2010, there are 65,000 more married women in Russia than married men.

When a man and a woman break up, grievances and property disputes often arise. For example, if you took out a loan for a car, but issued it to a partner, the property will remain with him, and you will have to pay the balance of the loan. Partners have to protect property rights after a breakup through the courts, guided by the Civil Code of the Russian Federation.

Citizens note only some of the advantages of de facto marriage:

Legal protection of the child

The state carefully protects the rights of children. Therefore, without legally establishing the legal relationship between actual husband and wife, the 2016 law provides for the retention of parental responsibilities in full.

A child born in a civil marriage has the same rights to material support, moral support and education from his mother and father as those born in an officially concluded union.

If a minor citizen appears in a legal family, his mother and father will automatically recognize him.

At the birth of a descendant in a de facto family, according to the Family Code of Russia for 2016, the father must officially recognize the minor. If this does not happen, the mother, in order to receive financial support, seeks to establish paternity by going to court. Sometimes you have to resort to witness testimony and medical genetic examination.

In 2016, a law has not yet been adopted that equates a civil union to an official marriage. Although a similar proposal was made back in 2015. It was assumed that the basis for recognizing cohabitation as legal should have been a long period of cohabitation - two years. As a result, the actual family would be no different from the officially registered marriage:

1. Both partners would have equal rights to property acquired during the marriage.
2. The disabled spouse would be entitled to the assistance of the partner.
3. The divorce would have to be done through the courts.

Despite the fact that the collection of signatures has begun, 100,000 have not yet been reached and in 2016 only a union registered in the registry office is a legal marriage.