Moving into your partner's home: whose home is it?

This is general information, not legal advice. It covers England and Wales – Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own rules. For your own situation, talk to a solicitor.

Does the home become yours too?

No. Property you owned before you moved in together stays yours, and the same goes for your partner. If your partner is the sole owner, you may have no right to remain in the home if you're asked to leave, according to Citizens Advice. The only way to claim a long-term share is usually to show a beneficial interest – for example through what you have paid towards the home, or an understanding you had that you would share it. Read more in Cohabiting or married?.

What are home rights, and do you have them?

Home rights are the right not to be made to leave a home the other partner owns or rents, without a court order. They only apply to spouses and civil partners (Family Law Act 1996, section 30). An unmarried partner can apply to court for some kinds of occupation order, but usually only for a limited period.

What if you pay towards the home?

Paying towards the mortgage or a new kitchen doesn't change who owns the home by itself. An interest in land can only be created in writing, signed by the person creating it, and a declaration of trust about a home must also be in writing (Law of Property Act 1925, section 53). If you put money into your partner's home, keep the receipts and write down how it should count if things change. A cohabitation agreement and a declaration of trust are the places for that.

What if your partner rents?

If you're the unmarried partner of a tenant, you usually have no right to stay if the tenant asks you to leave – in private and social housing alike. Citizens Advice suggests becoming joint tenants instead, which gives you equal rights and responsibilities. A sole tenancy can be changed to a joint one if the tenant and the landlord agree, and many social landlords require partners who live together to be joint tenants. Check what the tenancy agreement says about who may live there before you move in. How to split the rent is covered in Splitting the rent when you earn different amounts.

What happens if your partner dies?

For some tenancies, the law protects you. Someone who was living with the tenant as if they were a married couple or civil partners counts as the tenant's spouse when an assured periodic tenancy passes on (Housing Act 1988, section 17), and when a council tenancy in England does (Housing Act 1985, section 86A). It has to be your only or principal home, and it doesn't apply if the tenant had already taken over the tenancy from someone else.

Ownership works differently. Without a will, a surviving unmarried partner doesn't automatically inherit anything, unless you owned property jointly. If you had lived together as a couple for the whole two years before the death, you can ask the court for reasonable financial provision from the estate (Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, section 1). A will is simpler.

What changes when you move in?

• Council Tax: someone who lives alone gets 25 per cent off the bill. When you move in, the discount ends, and partners who live together are jointly responsible for the bill. Tell the council – a discount you're no longer entitled to can lead to a fine.
• Universal Credit: if either of you claims, you must make a joint claim for your household, and moving in with your partner is a change you need to report as soon as it happens.
• Driving licence: change your address with DVLA. It's free, and you can be fined up to £1,000 if you don't.

Should you pay your partner rent?

No law says you have to. Many couples split the bills, the groceries and the Council Tax, while the owner pays the mortgage alone. What matters is that you both agree and can see who pays for what.

What should you write down?

• Who owns the home, or whose name is on the tenancy.
• What each of you brings: furniture, appliances, anything of value.
• How you split the bills, the mortgage and any renovations.
• What happens to the home if you separate or one of you dies – that belongs in a cohabitation agreement and a will.
• Everything else about the move is in Moving in together.