More couples are choosing to build a life together without getting married. They may share a home, combine finances, raise children, care for one another, or spend decades together as committed partners.
But when it comes to estate planning, unmarried couples do not automatically receive many of the legal protections that married spouses have.
In Connecticut, an unmarried partner generally does not have an automatic right to inherit from you simply because you have been together for many years. Your partner may also lack the legal authority to manage your finances or make certain decisions for you if you become incapacitated.
That makes estate planning for unmarried couples especially important. With the right documents in place, you can make your wishes clear and give your partner the legal authority and protection you intend.
What Happens If an Unmarried Partner Dies Without a Will?
If you die without a valid Will, Connecticut’s intestacy laws determine who inherits your probate property.
For married couples, a surviving spouse generally has inheritance rights under these laws. An unmarried partner does not have the same status.
Depending on your family situation, your property could pass instead to relatives such as your children, parents, siblings, or more distant family members. This can happen even if you and your partner have lived together for decades.
A properly prepared Last Will and Testament allows you to name your partner as a beneficiary and specify which assets or property you want them to receive.
However, a Will is only one part of the planning process.
Protecting the Home You Share
For many unmarried couples, their home is their largest shared asset.
How the property is titled can have a significant impact on what happens when one partner dies. Depending on how ownership is structured, the deceased partner’s interest may pass directly to the surviving owner or become part of the deceased partner’s estate.
Couples should understand:
- How the deed is currently titled
- Whether there are survivorship rights
- Who contributed toward the purchase or mortgage
- Who is responsible for ongoing expenses
- What should happen to the property when one partner dies
- Whether the surviving partner could afford to remain in the home
- If you would like your partner to have the right to live in the home for a certain period of time, but eventually pass to other beneficiaries
Simply assuming that your partner will automatically receive your share of the house can create serious problems later.
An estate planning attorney can review the deed along with your overall estate plan to determine whether the ownership arrangement supports your goals.
Don’t Forget Beneficiary Designations
Not every asset passes through a Will.
Retirement accounts, life insurance policies, and certain financial accounts may transfer according to the beneficiary designation on file. Other assets may pass through joint ownership or transfer-on-death arrangements.
For unmarried couples, reviewing these designations is particularly important.
You may want your partner to receive certain assets directly, but an outdated beneficiary form could name a parent, sibling, former partner, or someone else instead.
Beneficiary designations should be reviewed periodically and whenever there is a significant life change.
Related Article: Why You NEED an Estate Plan In Your 20s and 30s
Who Will Make Financial Decisions If You Become Incapacitated?
Estate planning is not only about what happens after death.
Imagine that you are hospitalized after an accident, stroke, or serious illness and are temporarily or permanently unable to manage your finances.
Your unmarried partner does not automatically have unrestricted authority to access your individual bank accounts, pay bills from those accounts, manage investments, handle legal matters, or conduct other financial transactions on your behalf.
A properly drafted Power of Attorney allows you to appoint someone you trust, including your partner, to handle financial and legal matters when authorized under the document.
Without appropriate planning, your loved ones may need to pursue a court proceeding to obtain authority to manage your affairs.
Who Will Make Healthcare Decisions for You?
Healthcare planning can be equally important.
An Advance Healthcare Directive allows you to identify the person you want to make healthcare decisions if you cannot communicate or make those decisions yourself.
For an unmarried couple, documenting these wishes can help eliminate uncertainty about who should speak for you and reduce the possibility of disagreements between your partner and other family members.
Your estate plan can also address your wishes regarding medical treatment and end-of-life care.
Consider Whether a Trust Makes Sense
Some unmarried couples may benefit from incorporating a trust into their estate plans.
Depending on your circumstances and goals, a trust may help you:
- Provide for your partner after your death
- Give your partner the right to remain in a home
- Control what happens to assets after your partner dies
- Provide for children from a previous relationship
- Coordinate the distribution of significant assets
- Reduce the amount of property passing through probate
Trust planning can be particularly useful when one or both partners have children from previous relationships or when there are substantial differences in the partners’ finances.
Related Article: Estate Planning for Blended Families in Connecticut: Protecting Everyone You Love
Estate Planning When Children Are Involved
Unmarried couples with children may have additional considerations.
If you have minor children, your Will can nominate the person you would want to serve as guardian if necessary. Your estate plan can also establish how and when children receive an inheritance.
Blended families require even more careful planning.
For example, you may want your partner to be financially secure while also making sure certain assets eventually pass to your children. Those goals may require more than simply naming your partner as the outright beneficiary of everything you own.
Consider Estate and Gift Tax Issues
Marriage can provide certain estate and gift tax advantages that are generally unavailable to unmarried couples.
For example, transfers between U.S.-citizen spouses can often qualify for the unlimited marital deduction for federal estate and gift tax purposes. Unmarried partners do not receive that same treatment simply because they are in a committed relationship.
Connecticut also has its own estate and gift tax system, so couples with significant assets should consider the potential tax consequences of transferring property during life or at death.
Tax laws and exemption amounts can change, making individualized planning especially important for higher-net-worth couples.
An Estate Plan Can Give Your Relationship Legal Protection
Marriage is not the only way to build a committed life together, but unmarried couples often need to be more intentional about creating legal protections.
A comprehensive estate plan may include:
- A Last Will and Testament
- A Power of Attorney
- An Advance Healthcare Directive
- Updated beneficiary designations
- Appropriate ownership of real estate and financial accounts
- One or more trusts, when appropriate
The right combination depends on your assets, family relationships, children, property ownership, and long-term goals.
Estate Planning for Unmarried Couples in Connecticut
If you and your partner are not married, do not assume that the law will automatically treat your partner the way you would want.
Taking the time to create an estate plan can help ensure that the person you have chosen to share your life with has the authority to help you during incapacity and receives the protection you intend after your death.
At Reed Wilson Case, we help individuals and couples throughout Connecticut create estate plans designed around their relationships, families, assets, and goals.
Whether you have recently moved in together or have shared your lives for decades, reviewing your estate plan now can help you both prepare for the future.
Disclaimer: The information provided in this article does not, and is not intended to, constitute legal advice and is for general informational purposes only.
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Marketing & Technology Director at RWC, LLC, Attorneys & Counselors at Law
Ukraine born and Israel / Miami, FL raised. University of Miami graduate in the Marketing field.
Mom to a girl, a boy, and a Siberian Husky.
