Last updated: July 2026
by Jess Knauf, Director of Client Strategy at Mediate UK. Reviewed by Belinda Atkins, Managing Director, Family Legal Ltd. Information reflects current family law and mediation requirements in England and Wales as of 23 July 2026.
Key Takeaways
- The law has not changed yet. The Ministry of Justice consultation “A fairer end to relationships” opened on 5 June 2026 and closes at 11:59pm on 14 August 2026.
- The proposals would cover couples who have lived together for at least three years, or who live together and share a child.
- Protection would apply automatically, but couples could opt out by formal agreement.
- There would be no automatic 50:50 split. The starting point is that each person keeps what they legally own.
- Any new law needs parliamentary time, so unmarried London couples separating today still fall under the current property-based rules.
COHABITATION LAW REFORM 2026
Cohabitation law reform 2026 refers to the government consultation on giving unmarried couples in England and Wales financial rights when they separate and inheritance rights when a partner dies without a will. The consultation runs from 5 June to 14 August 2026. Nothing has become law yet, so cohabiting couples separating now still rely on property and trust law.
If you live with your partner in London and you are not married, cohabitation law reform 2026 is the most significant thing happening in family law this year for you. On 5 June 2026 the Ministry of Justice launched a consultation called “A fairer end to relationships”, proposing what it describes as some of the biggest reforms to family law in decades. This guide explains what is actually being proposed, what it would mean for unmarried couples in London, and the practical steps worth taking now while the law stands still.
One point first, because it matters more than any other: none of this is law yet. The consultation closes on 14 August 2026, and the government has said any legislation will follow when parliamentary time allows. If you and your partner are separating this summer, the old rules still apply to you.
Where the law stands for unmarried London couples today
There is no such thing as common law marriage in England and Wales, however long you have lived together and whether or not you have children. The government’s own consultation notes that almost half of people (47%) still believe the status exists. That gap between what people assume and what the law provides is where the real damage happens.
At present, a separating cohabiting couple cannot ask the family court to divide their finances the way a divorcing couple can. Instead, disputes over the home are dealt with in the civil courts under the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996, known as TOLATA. Those courts cannot order maintenance, cannot share a pension and cannot make a lump sum payment. They can decide who owns what share of a property and whether it should be sold. That is close to the whole of it.
Where there are children, a parent can apply for child maintenance through the Child Maintenance Service, or apply to the family court under Schedule 1 of the Children Act 1989. Schedule 1 orders are made for the child, not the parent, and they are rarely used. The consultation records just 285 Schedule 1 applications in 2022, against 119,700 child maintenance applications.
Why this bites harder in London
A partner in Islington or Lambeth who paid the bills and the nursery fees for eight years, while the other name sat alone on the deeds, may walk away with nothing. In a city where a family flat can carry a seven figure value and a deposit often comes from one side’s parents, the sole owner rule produces sharper outcomes than almost anywhere else in England and Wales. We see the same pattern across our Waterloo, St Pancras and Sutton offices: the money argument is not really about fairness, it is about who signed the mortgage.
What cohabitation law reform 2026 actually proposes
The consultation on GOV.UK brings together three connected areas rather than dealing with cohabitation on its own.
- Financial remedies on divorce: a “codification-plus” model, putting settled case law on needs and sharing into statute, plus binding qualifying nuptial agreements.
- Cohabitants on separation: a new statutory framework of rights for eligible unmarried couples, deliberately narrower than the divorce regime.
- Cohabitants on intestacy: automatic inheritance rights for qualifying cohabitants where a partner dies without a valid will.
Who would qualify
Eligibility would be limited to adults aged 18 or over in committed, romantic, interdependent relationships who have either lived together for at least three years, or who live together and share a child. Where there is a child of the family, the three year requirement falls away entirely. Flatmates and siblings would not be covered, and nor would couples already married to each other.
What the courts could and could not do
This is where most of the press coverage has been loose, so it is worth being precise. The proposed framework is not marriage by the back door.
| Issue | On divorce today | Proposed for cohabitants |
|---|---|---|
| Starting point | Equal sharing of matrimonial property | Each person keeps what they legally own |
| Basis for any award | Sharing, then needs | Defined needs only, no sharing principle |
| Maintenance | Available | Exceptional and time limited only |
| Pension sharing | Available | Available where needed |
| Children | First consideration | First consideration |
Two further limits are built in deliberately. Cohabitants would not be able to achieve a better outcome than a married couple in comparable circumstances, and the court would be pushed towards a clean break sooner than it is on divorce. The remedies themselves, property adjustment, lump sums and pension sharing, would look familiar to anyone who has been through a financial settlement on divorce, but the route to them would be narrower.
“We have sat with a lot of unmarried London couples who assumed that fifteen years together and two children counted for something legally. It does not, and finding that out during a separation is a horrible way to learn it. The reform would help, but the opt-out design means the couples who most need protection may still be talked out of it. Our advice has not changed while we wait: write down what you have agreed, and do it before you need it.”
Jess Knauf, Director of Client Strategy, Mediate UK
Inheritance: the quieter half of the reform
If your partner dies without a will, you currently inherit nothing automatically. The intestacy rules run through spouses, children and other relatives, and cohabitants sit outside that list completely. The only route is a court claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, which requires two continuous years of living together immediately before the death and is limited to maintenance.
The consultation proposes extending intestacy rights to qualifying cohabitants, aligning their right to administer an estate with any new entitlement, and removing the qualifying time period for a 1975 Act claim where the couple had children together. For a bereaved partner in a London flat held in one name, that is the difference between a home and a claim.
Separating from a partner you were not married to?
Mediation resolves property and children disputes without a TOLATA claim, and it is quicker and far less expensive than fighting it out through solicitors. Talk it through with us first if you are not sure where you stand.
What London couples should do while cohabitation law reform 2026 is still a consultation
Waiting for Parliament is not a plan. Four things are worth doing now, whether you are settled, wobbling or already separating.
Step 1: Put a cohabitation agreement in place
A cohabitation agreement records who owns what, who pays what, and what happens to the property if you separate. It is not automatically binding today, but a properly drafted one carries real weight, and under the proposals a formal deed would become the mechanism for opting out. The same discipline applies to a separation agreement if you have already parted.
Step 2: Make a will
Every problem in the intestacy half of this consultation disappears if there is a valid will. It is the single cheapest protection available to an unmarried couple, and it works today rather than in 2028.
Step 3: Sort out the children’s arrangements properly
Parental responsibility, school places and holiday time do not depend on marriage, and unmarried parents have exactly the same access to mediation and to the family court as married ones. Our guide to child arrangements covers how agreements are reached and recorded. Where a dispute involves children, you may qualify for the £500 family mediation voucher, which is not means-tested. A finance-only case does not qualify.
Step 4: Respond to the consultation before 14 August
It is open to the public, not just to lawyers, and it asks direct questions about the three year threshold, the opt-out and how domestic abuse should count. You can respond through the Ministry of Justice consultation portal. If you have lived through the gap in the current law, your account carries weight that a practitioner’s submission does not.
Family Law Service
Facing a property dispute with an ex-partner you were not married to?
TOLATA claims are the route most cohabiting couples are stuck with until the law changes, and they are notoriously expensive to run through solicitors. Our fixed-fee TOLATA support gives you a clear view of where you stand before you commit to anything.
What happens after 14 August 2026
The government will analyse responses and publish a formal reply, usually within twelve weeks of closing, although consultations of this size often take longer. Draft legislation would follow only when parliamentary time allows, and the wording of the consultation gives no date. A realistic view is that any new rights for cohabitants are years away rather than months, and the framework that eventually reaches the statute book may look different from the one being consulted on.
In the meantime, mediation remains the practical answer for most separating couples in London, married or not. It is quicker than a civil property claim, considerably less expensive than running a TOLATA case through solicitors, and it lets you deal with the house, the children and the finances in one conversation rather than three sets of proceedings. You can see how the process works in our overview of family mediation services in London, and what an initial meeting involves in the London MIAM guide.
On cost, Family Legal Ltd is a Legal Aid Agency contracted provider for family mediation, so legal aid mediation is available through our mediation service. It is means-tested, so we cannot promise eligibility, but you can check quickly using the legal aid checker or the GOV.UK guidance on whether you can get legal aid. A MIAM is free if you qualify. Otherwise, current fees are set out on the costs and payments page.
Summary
Cohabitation law reform 2026 is a live Ministry of Justice consultation, not a change in the law. It proposes a needs-based statutory framework for couples who have lived together three years or who share a child, applying automatically with the option to opt out, plus automatic inheritance rights on intestacy. The starting point would remain that each person keeps what they legally own, and cohabitants could not do better than a married couple in the same position.
Until legislation passes, unmarried London couples are still governed by TOLATA and Schedule 1, which is a narrow and expensive combination. A cohabitation agreement, a will and a clear written arrangement for the children give you far more protection today than waiting for reform will. The consultation closes on 14 August 2026 and is open to anyone.
Frequently Asked Questions
Has cohabitation law changed in 2026?
No. The government opened a consultation on 5 June 2026 which closes on 14 August 2026. Any change requires legislation, which the Ministry of Justice says will be introduced when parliamentary time allows. Unmarried couples separating now still rely on TOLATA and the Children Act 1989.
How long do you have to live together to qualify under the proposals?
Three years, unless you live together and share a child, in which case there would be no minimum period. Both partners must be 18 or over and in a committed, interdependent relationship.
Would unmarried couples get a 50:50 split of the house?
No. The equal sharing principle that applies on divorce would not apply to cohabitants. The court would start from legal ownership and depart from it only where necessary to meet defined needs, with children’s welfare as the first consideration.
Can we opt out of the proposed cohabitation rights?
Yes. The framework would apply automatically to eligible couples, but both partners could agree to opt out. This would need a formal deed, with independent legal advice and financial disclosure on both sides, in the same way as a nuptial agreement.
Do I inherit if my unmarried partner dies without a will?
Not automatically under the current law. You would need to bring a claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, which normally requires two continuous years of cohabitation immediately before the death. The consultation proposes giving qualifying cohabitants an automatic entitlement instead.
Can mediation help unmarried couples in London?
Yes. Mediation is open to any separating couple regardless of marital status, and it covers property, finances and children’s arrangements. For most cohabiting couples it is significantly quicker and less expensive than a TOLATA claim, and any agreement reached can be written up formally afterwards.
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