Cohabitation (living together) agreement

32 Reviews

Document overview

This cohabitation agreement template can be used to create a written record of understanding between the parties currently cohabiting or planning to do so in the future. The agreement allows you to agree on the distribution of finances, responsibilities and assets and the provision of child arrangements.
Compliant
Compliant with the latest law in
  • ACT
  • NSW
  • NT
  • QLD
  • SA
  • TAS
  • VIC
  • WA
Document propertied
Document properties
  • Length:16 pages (4200 words)
  • Available in:
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About this cohabitation agreement

Australia's family law allows the parties to marriages and de-facto relationships to enter into agreements about what might happen if their relationship ends in a separation.

These sorts of agreements are referred to in the law as Binding Financial Agreements.

It is the requirement of the Family Law Act 1975 that both parties must receive independent legal advice before signing the agreement. If both parties have failed to do so then the agreement will not be legally binding.

Under section 90UB/90UC of the Family Law Act 1975 Act de facto couples can now make a financial agreement that will protect their assets and financial resources.

This cohabitation agreement helps you to work out and set down all the practical arrangements that need to be covered when two people who are neither married nor civil partners, set up house. It helps you to set down all the arrangements that you need, both now and on a future separation.

It does not try to tell you what is best for you, but to steer and guide you into considering and dealing with the most important issues. It covers arrangements about your home, business assets, who owns what, everything about money - and even provisional children arrangements.

This document does not require any particular action after completion. Just print two copies, get certified by a solicitor that you have taken advice, both of you sign both copies, date both with same date and each keep one. Your completed document is valid and binding at law until you are married or a child is born.

You are bound by it. Use it at any stage of your relationship, before marriage.

However, if you marry or enter a civil partnership in the future, the status of the document changes. It becomes like a pre-nuptial agreement. The effect is that if you then separate, the court will take this document into account, but will not be bound by it.

Example uses of this document:

  • You want to make secure arrangements for when you separate or have children;
  • Flatmates setting up new arrangements;
  • You want to live together but also stay in control of your own company or business assets.

Agreement contents

  • How you deal with your house or flat
  • Keeping your own business property
  • Separate ownership of assets
  • Banking and cash arrangements
  • Living expenses
  • Finance and borrowing
  • Children arrangements - now and on termination
  • What happens if / when you separate
  • Division of capital assets
  • What one of you might pay to the other for self and children
  • If one of you dies
  • Explanatory notes and guidance
Sample cohabitation (living together) agreementFront cover
Click to View Sample

Recent reviews

Great Service
06 March 2024
This is an excellent service! We decided to use New Lawman as what we were trying to achieve was quite straightforward. The quotes we received from local solicitors were out of all proportion to the document we needed. The template provided was easy to understand and edit and we have ended up with an agreement that is fit for purpose in a fraction of the time it would have taken appointing a local firm. We would definitely recommend Net Lawman to other users on the basis of cost, speed of response and user friendliness.
Robin Bulow
Review of the United Kingdom version
Great Service
14 August 2023
This document was easy to amend to create the agreement we wanted.

Very reasonable price too, saved us hundreds of pounds compared to getting a solicitor to draft us a co-habitation agreement.

I would use this company again for any other legal documents I need in the future.
Fiona Pullen
Review of the United Kingdom version
Great Service
16 July 2023
My biggest concern about using Net Lawman was I had never heard of the firm and, until I did my research, thought the company wasn't legit.

I thought the price was good and as it turned out very good value for money.

The fact that I could edit the document and your guidelines made it easy so that is the most important feature.

It means that we can both relax knowing what is going to happen with every eventuality dealt with.

I would definitely recommend Net Lawman to others as the document was easy to open and edit.
Ian Alexander
Review of the United Kingdom version
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