What happens when an unmarried partner dies without a will?

Does a cohabiting partner inherit under the intestacy rules?

No: a cohabiting partner has no right to inherit under the intestacy rules of England and Wales, whatever the length of the relationship. Intestacy means dying without a valid will, and the statutory rules then give the estate to relatives in a fixed order, beginning with a spouse or civil partner and then children, parents, siblings and more distant family. Unmarried partners are not in the list. If there is no relative at all, the estate passes to the Crown.

The Law Commission's work on intestacy shows what the rules do protect. The Inheritance and Trustees' Powers Act 2014, which received Royal Assent on 14 May 2014, simplified the sharing of assets so that a surviving spouse or civil partner takes the estate where there are no children or other descendants ^[5]. The reform improved the position of married couples and civil partners, but it did not extend the statutory shares to cohabitants.

The effect can be harsh. A couple who have lived together for thirty years, brought up children and shared a mortgage may find that, if one dies without a will, the survivor receives nothing from the estate as of right, with the deceased's children, parents or siblings taking instead. The House of Commons Library notes that cohabitation gives a couple no general legal status and that many people do not realise it ^[3], which is why intestacy is often the point at which the gap is discovered.

The rules were designed for a society where nearly all couples were married. As the Commons Library records, cohabiting couples in England and Wales rose from about 1.5 million in 1996 to about 3.6 million in 2021 ^[3]. A separate page explains why common law marriage is a myth.

Surviving spouse and surviving cohabitant in England and Wales (October 2026)

Question	Surviving spouse or civil partner	Surviving cohabitant
Automatic share on intestacy	Yes, under the intestacy rules (whole estate if no descendants)	None, however long the relationship [3][5]
Claim under the 1975 Act	Yes: reasonable provision, whether or not needed for maintenance [1]	Yes, if the test is met: provision reasonable for maintenance [1]
Qualifying condition	Marriage or civil partnership	Lived in the same household as a couple for the two years before death (deaths on or after 1 January 1996) [1]
Time limit for a court claim	Six months from the grant of representation, extendable with permission [2]	Same [2]
Inheritance tax exemption	Yes: spouse or civil partner exemption [7]	No: unmarried partners are not named among the exemptions [7]
Reform status	-	Consultation June-August 2026; Cohabitation Rights Bill [HL] introduced 5 June 2026 [8][11]

Who can claim under the 1975 Inheritance Act?

The Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 lets certain people ask a court for reasonable financial provision from an estate when a will, the intestacy rules or both fail to provide it. Section 1(1) lists the applicants: a spouse or civil partner, a former spouse or civil partner who has not remarried, a person who meets the cohabitation test, a child of the deceased, a person treated by the deceased as a child of the family, and a person who was wholly or partly maintained by the deceased immediately before death ^[1]. The deceased must have died domiciled in England and Wales ^[1].

The standard of provision differs by category. For a spouse or civil partner, the court asks what would be reasonable in all the circumstances, whether or not the provision is needed for maintenance. For everyone else, including a cohabitant, the standard is what would be reasonable for the applicant's maintenance ^[1]. That gap is the heart of the difference between married and unmarried survivors: a spouse can argue for a share of the wealth, while a cohabitant must show a need for support.

Courts weigh a number of factors, including the applicant's needs and resources, the size and nature of the estate, any obligations of the deceased to other people, and the beneficiaries' needs. An award may be a lump sum, periodical payments or a transfer of property. These powers are discretionary and fact-dependent, which makes the outcome uncertain and the process costly.

A person who was maintained by the deceased can use a separate route in section 1(1)(e), which requires that the deceased made a substantial contribution in money or money's worth towards the person's reasonable needs, other than under a commercial arrangement ^[1]. A cohabitant who does not meet the two-year test, or who was financially dependent, may therefore have a second basis for a claim.

What does the two-year cohabitation rule mean?

The two-year rule means that a cohabitant qualifies to apply only if, for the two years ending immediately before the death, he or she lived in the same household as the deceased and as if they were a married couple or civil partners ^[1]. The category was added in 1995, and it applies where the deceased died on or after 1 January 1996 ^[1]. It was reworded by the Civil Partnership (Opposite-sex Couples) Regulations 2019 (SI 2019/1458), which took effect on 2 December 2019, so the older phrase "as husband or wife" is no longer used ^[1].

The rule has three practical consequences. First, the period is continuous and measured backwards from the death, so a relationship of many years that began to break down shortly before the death, with the couple living apart, can fall outside it. Second, the test is about the quality of the relationship as well as the address: sharing a house as lodgers is not enough, whereas a couple who live together in a committed relationship are covered. Third, the applicant must still prove that the estate failed to make reasonable provision for maintenance, because meeting the two-year test only opens the door to the court.

Time limits are strict. An application for a financial provision order must normally be made within six months of the date on which representation of the estate is first taken out, and a later application needs the court's permission ^[2]. An application may also be made before representation is taken out ^[2]. Anyone considering a claim should seek legal advice promptly, because late claims depend on a discretion that is not guaranteed.

The 1975 Act is therefore a safety net rather than a right. It gives a long-term partner a way into court, but it does not give an entitlement, and the claim is usually against the deceased's own family, which makes it both emotionally and financially difficult.

What did the Law Commission recommend in 2011?

In 2011 the Law Commission recommended that unmarried partners be given a right to inherit under the intestacy rules, but the recommendation has not been implemented. Its report on intestacy and family provision claims on death proposed a draft Inheritance (Cohabitants) Bill under which partners who had lived together for five years would inherit from each other on intestacy; where the couple had a child together, the period would be two years, provided the child was living with the couple when the deceased died ^[5].

The government's response was split. On 21 March 2013 it accepted Parts 2 to 7 of the report, which led to the Inheritance and Trustees' Powers Act 2014, but it said that the cohabitant recommendations in Part 8 would not be implemented during that Parliament ^[5]. The Commons Library likewise notes that the 2011 recommendation, that unmarried partners inherit from each other under the intestacy rules without going to court, has not been implemented ^[3]. The Law Commission's earlier report on cohabitation, published on 31 July 2007, is described on its project page as setting out final recommendations on cohabitants' property and finances when a relationship ends by separation or by death ^[4].

The picture changed in 2026. On 5 June 2026 the Ministry of Justice opened a consultation called "A fairer end to relationships" for England and Wales, which closed on 14 August 2026 and which included inheritance provision for cohabitants on death as one of its three parts ^[8]. A Gazette notice says the consultation proposed modernising the intestacy rules and improving access to financial provision from the deceased partner's estate ^[9]. The consultation paper itself proposes that qualifying cohabitants would inherit automatically where a partner dies without a valid will, subject to a clear definition and a minimum period of living together, and seeks views on removing the two-year qualifying period under the 1975 Act where the couple had children together ^[12]. A law-firm summary adds that the definition would be the same as for separation ^[10].

Alongside this, the Cohabitation Rights Bill [HL], a private member's bill introduced in the House of Lords by Lord Marks of Henley-on-Thames, would give a surviving cohabitant the right to inherit under the intestacy rules, for couples with a dependent child or who have lived together for at least three years ^[11]. The bill had its second reading on 17 July 2026, when a Government minister said the intestacy proposals in the bill went further than the Government was considering ^[13], and Parliament's bills record shows it at committee stage in the Lords ^[14]. Neither the consultation nor the bill is law. The government's response had not been published when this page was last checked on 28 October 2026.

How does Scotland treat a surviving cohabitant?

Scotland gives a surviving cohabitant a statutory claim on intestacy that England and Wales do not. Section 29 of the Family Law (Scotland) Act 2006 allows the survivor of an intestate cohabitant who was domiciled in Scotland to apply to the Court of Session or the sheriff, within six months of the death, for a capital sum from the net intestate estate or a transfer of property from it ^[6].

The court considers the size and nature of the estate, benefits the survivor receives from elsewhere because of the death, other claims against the estate and any other relevant matter ^[6]. The order cannot give more than the survivor would have received as a spouse or civil partner, and the section operates only on what remains after the legal rights and prior rights of any surviving spouse or civil partner have been met ^[6]. The section applies to intestacy only, so a cohabitant left out of a valid will cannot use it.

Scotland is a useful comparison for the reform debate in England and Wales. A Scottish cohabitant needs no minimum period and can go to court for a share of the estate, while an English or Welsh one receives nothing by operation of law and can only claim maintenance under the 1975 Act after two years. The Scottish scheme is itself under review, as the page on cohabitation rights in Scotland explains.

Northern Ireland has its own succession law, which was not examined for this article.

How can cohabiting couples protect each other?

The most reliable protection is a will, because a will can leave property to an unmarried partner and the intestacy rules cannot. Without one, the law decides who inherits, and the partner is outside the list. A will does not stop a claim by a child or other applicant under the 1975 Act, but it makes the partner the starting point.

The form of ownership of the home matters too. If a couple own a house as joint tenants, the survivor takes the whole property automatically when one dies, regardless of the will. If they own it as tenants in common, each owns a share that passes under the will or the intestacy rules. If the house is in the deceased's sole name, it forms part of the estate. It is worth checking at the Land Registry how the title is held.

Tax is an additional reason for planning. The gov.uk guidance on inheritance tax says there is normally no tax on assets above the £325,000 threshold left to a spouse, civil partner or charity ^[7]. Unmarried partners are not named among those exemptions, so a large estate left to a cohabitant can attract tax at 40 per cent above the threshold ^[7]. Pensions, life insurance written in trust and joint bank accounts may pass outside the estate and are worth checking.

A cohabitation agreement can record what a couple intends about their home and finances, though it is not a substitute for a will ^[3]. For the wider legal position of unmarried couples, see the page on cohabitation law reform in England and Wales. Specialist advice is advisable, as the details depend on the facts, and this page is general information rather than legal advice.

Frequently asked questions

Can a cohabiting partner stay in the family home after a death?

Not automatically. If the home was owned jointly as joint tenants, the survivor takes it by survivorship. If it was in the deceased's sole name, the estate decides who owns it, and a survivor may have to rely on a will, a claim under the 1975 Act or a claim based on a trust. Rented homes depend on the tenancy terms.

Do unmarried partners benefit from the spouse exemption for inheritance tax?

No. The gov.uk guidance lists spouses, civil partners and charities as recipients of assets above the £325,000 threshold without tax, and unmarried partners are not named. A cohabitant who inherits a large estate may therefore face tax at 40 per cent on the part above the threshold.

Does a jointly owned home pass to the surviving partner?

It depends on how the home is owned. If the couple are joint tenants, the survivor takes the whole property when the other dies. If they are tenants in common, the deceased's share passes under the will or the intestacy rules, which give an unmarried partner nothing.

How long do you have to bring a claim under the 1975 Act?

Six months from the date on which representation of the estate is first taken out, normally the grant of probate or letters of administration. The court can give permission for a later application, but it is not guaranteed. A claim may be made before the grant is issued.

Does a will protect an unmarried partner?

Yes, to a large extent. A will can leave property to a partner, which the intestacy rules do not. It can still be challenged by a person with a claim under the 1975 Act, such as a child, but the partner's position is much stronger with a will than without one.

Could the law on cohabitants' inheritance change soon?

Possibly, but nothing has been enacted. The Ministry of Justice consultation that closed on 14 August 2026 included inheritance for cohabitants, and the Cohabitation Rights Bill [HL] would give a surviving cohabitant intestacy rights. As of 28 October 2026 neither has become law.