Free Cohabitation Agreement Template

In Ontario, an unmarried couple may be considered common-law after 3 years of cohabitation or immediately after having a child together. Many couples don’t expect that this status can trigger significant legal and financial obligations.

These can include spousal support claims, property disputes, debt repayment responsibility, and estate support claims. By outlining expectations early, a Cohabitation Agreement reduces uncertainty, limits financial vulnerability, and helps partners avoid costly legal disputes. It also keeps control with them, rather than allowing the courts to make personal decisions for them.

Learn to manage legal obligations related to common-law status by reading our blog, Common-Law Ontario: Minimize Financial Risks with a Cohabitation Agreement.

In Ontario, a couple might use a Cohabitation Agreement for various situations. They might create one if they plan to purchase a common-law home or remain in a long-term, unmarried relationship. Another reason a couple may want to draft this Agreement is that one or both partners have a complicated financial history.

A Cohabitation Agreement can be used to:

• Clarify what happens if one spouse contributes to the other’s property
• Outline how property will be divided
• State who will move out of the home
• Clarify how the Agreement will be changed due to major life changes
• Detail how assets will be divided when partners purchase them together
• Determine how each person’s debts will be managed
• Outline household expenses and shared finances
• Detail spousal support payment details
• Outline repayment terms for shared debts

A Cohabitation Agreement is a highly personal legal contract that varies from couple to couple. There are no regulations around which terms you must agree on in your Agreement. That said, it’s best to be as clear and detailed as you can.

Fundamentally, a Cohabitation Agreement should have your and your partner’s personal information. This includes your full legal names, respective occupations, address, and the date you started cohabiting. Further, you can choose to include the following details in your Agreement:

The Division of Tasks and Expenses

You can outline how you and your partner will be dividing household expenses during cohabitation. For example, some expenses can be paid from a joint account, while others are split between you. Couples often split expenses by income, type, and percentage.

You can also outline important non-monetary rights and obligations, like which tasks each of you is responsible for and which are shared.

Address Personal Assets

If you own assets, you can list which ones you want to keep to yourself in your Cohabitation Agreement. This ensures that your partner doesn’t have access to your assets should the relationship dissolve.

You can also outline which assets you’d like to share with your partner in your Agreement. These can include vehicles, property, jewellery, and more. You can divide assets equally or by each partner’s financial situation or contribution. Another option is for one spouse to pay out the value of an asset to the other, so the other spouse has total ownership.

Division and Ownership of Property

You can state who owns what property and how you will divide ownership in the case of a separation. In addition to real estate, “property” can actually include jewelry, bank accounts, pensions, and business assets.

You can document your intention to keep property and assets separate with a Cohabitation Agreement. This reduces the risk of future claims arising from constructive trust, unjust enrichment, or joint family venture. Doing this gives you greater control over your property and helps protect your financial interests. Without clearly stated property terms, a court may decide these issues after a dispute arises.

It’s also best to coordinate your Cohabitation Agreement with a Will when addressing inheritances or estate planning. Although a Cohabitation Agreement can document intentions and limit specific claims, only a Will or Trust can determine how your estate is distributed.

Debt Details

In addition to assets, it’s important to include personal and shared debts in your Agreement. If you or your partner had acquired debts before cohabiting, you can state who will be responsible for repaying them. Also, you can indicate which of your debts are shared and how you will divide them during repayment.

Child Support and Education

In Ontario, if you have dependent children with your partner or from a prior relationship, you can include them in your Agreement. You can detail how you will handle children’s education, child support obligations, and children’s moral training.

This includes how you’ll raise children, the religion they’ll practice, and the educational path they’ll pursue. Adding such information ensures you and your partner are on the same page about critical matters concerning children.

The Agreement cannot address parenting time (formerly known as access) or decision-making responsibility for children (formerly known as custody). If you need to, you can include these details in a Separation Agreement. The courts will consider the best interests of the children and decide on child custody matters.

Child support terms must comply with Ontario’s Child Support Guidelines and are subject to court review in the best interests of the child. A Cohabitation Agreement cannot override a child’s right to support. It also can’t stop a court from stepping in to protect a child’s best interests, or take away legal rights if doing so would be unfair or illegal.

Spousal Support Obligations

In Ontario, spousal support details can be included in your Cohabitation Agreement and enforced. Failing to include this information can put either partner at a disadvantage if the relationship ends. You can also include spousal support limitations or releases based on changing circumstances, such as salary changes.

So long as your Cohabitation Agreement meets the criteria for a valid domestic contract under Ontario Law, it’s legally binding. If anyone plans to challenge your Cohabitation Agreement, they must prove that it’s invalid in court.

Like any contract, a Cohabitation Agreement must contain certain elements to be legally enforceable. In addition, a Cohabitation Agreement needs to be:

Made in writing;

• Dated and signed by each partner, before two witnesses
• Dated and signed by each witness;
• Signed by parties and witnesses 18 or older;
• Clear in identifying both partners and the nature of their rights and obligations;
• Signed once both parties have disclosed their assets, liabilities and circumstances.
• The absence of full financial disclosure may render the Agreement invalid.

Your agreement must be witnessed by two witnesses over the age of 18. Ontario law doesn’t require your witnesses to be authorized officials, like lawyers or paralegals. However, we recommend having your Agreement commissioned by a notary public.

Commissioning offers strong evidence to establish your Cohabitation Agreement’s validity and authenticity. This process reduces the likelihood that your Agreement’s legitimacy will be questioned in future disputes, should you need to take legal action.

Additionally, commissioning is advisable if you plan to use your Cohabitation Agreement internationally. Commissioning may be helpful in jurisdictions outside Ontario or Canada, but acceptance depends on the receiving authority’s requirements.

You can meet with a notary online and have your Cohabitation Agreement commissioned in under 7 minutes. Get extra peace of mind in less time than a coffee break — from the comfort of your home or office.

Drafting a Cohabitation Agreement is simpler than ever before with our free Ontario Cohabitation Agreement template. Simply fill in the relevant sections and have a perfectly formatted Cohabitation Agreement sent to your email.

Once both parties have signed the agreement, book an online notary appointment to have it commissioned for added credibility.