A family law lawyer is sounding the alarm: 8 out of 10 future newlyweds overlook this crucial detail, which can transform the fairy tale into a real administrative and financial nightmare.
In addition to the tax and family advantages it implies, marriage is above all a magical moment for couples. It is an opportunity to celebrate your love in front of your loved ones, to swear love and fidelity for life, or to prepare a grandiose party that you will remember for the rest of your life. “When you get married, you spend a lot of time managing your form”underlines Maître Chloé Belloy, lawyer specializing in family law. Planning such a ceremony can take months, between choosing the room, the caterer, the musicians, the photographer, the decoration, and of course the famous white dress… so much so that we often forget the essentials.
Because yes, marriage is also an administrative commitment. “In the honeymoon phase, we completely miss out on the rights and obligations that come with it. And it’s the same with PACS, since only 10 % are made by authentic deed before a notary“explains Me Belloy. Result: couples, whether married or in a civil partnership, are not aware of what really applies to them legally. And in the event of a separation, it’s a cold shower. Even those who think they have looked into the issue do not always follow through, with consideration often reduced to the protection of the surviving spouse or tax advantages. Thus, most couples ignore an essential decision: the choice of matrimonial regime.
“People are not going to educate themselves at all about the impact of the prenup (or lack thereof) on their property, their property, their rights and their financial obligations.”deplores the lawyer. In France, according to figures observed by the notarial body, more than 80% of marriages take place without a contract. But not always by choice. In reality, a 2024 Ifop study showed that one in two French people believe they do not have enough knowledge to choose their matrimonial regime. Worse: a third of married people ignore their own diet. “What is unfortunate is that since no one understands the ins and outs, both feel wronged at the time of divorce. These are such complex rules that everyone has, at least at one time, a feeling of injustice. And not necessarily on the choice of the regime as such, but on the way in which it will be applied, because there are plenty of exceptions even when we think we know the rules. In 100 % of cases, it creates frustration.”
It is wrongly believed that there are only two types of matrimonial regimes. In reality, there are four main ones: community reduced to acquisitions (the default regime in France), separation of property, participation in acquisitions, and universal community. The risk of not choosing, or of not knowing the specificities of your plan, is to discover them at a time when administrative disappointments are not welcome. “Unfortunately, in marriage, it always ends badly: either it’s divorce or it’s death. And what people forget is that depending on their matrimonial regime, there are not the same rights for the surviving spouse, and therefore potentially not the same impacts for the children, etc.”reminds us Ms. Chloé Belloy.
If only for a breakup, the lawyer is convinced: there would be many fewer conflictual separations if couples were better informed. “If we understood well at the start, and if we made our choices evolve throughout life – because we can change our matrimonial regime – we would arrive at a much quicker outcome. And when we see that a contentious divorce can take at least three years, or even ten years or more sometimes, we say to ourselves that it’s really a waste of time and money.” Chloé Belloy notably remembers a client who had decided to save in a personal account with the aim of being able to leave her husband and ensure true financial independence: “She had been saving for five years, so when I told her her husband would get half because they were under the community system, she was shocked.”
To couples who believe that establishing a marriage contract is a killer of love, which would amount to considering divorce from the start, the lawyer responds: “It’s like a will, it doesn’t reduce life expectancy but it protects the people you love. When you take out home insurance, it doesn’t mean you think it’s going to burn. The marriage contract is proof of love. What’s not romantic is not being able to talk about it.” In short, the only solution to protect yourself and truly protect others is not to put everything in common or to separate everything, but simply to choose with full knowledge of the facts, based on your own situation.
