Cohabitation Agreement FAQ – 20 common questions about the Cohabitation Act and division of property

Facts checked: October 1, 2026 · Cohabitees Act (2003:376)

Here you will find short, legally delimited answers to common questions about cohabitation agreements. The most important starting point is that the cohabitation agreement determines whether the division of property rules of the Cohabitees Act shall apply to all or specific cohabitation property – it is not a general agreement regarding everything the cohabitees own.

1. What is a cohabitation agreement?

It is a written agreement pursuant to Section 9 of the Cohabitees Act where cohabitees or prospective cohabitees can decide that a division of property shall not take place or that specific property shall not be included in the division of property.

2. Must a cohabitation agreement be in writing?

Yes. The agreement must be in writing and signed by both parties.

3. Must the cohabitation agreement be witnessed?

No. The Cohabitees Act contains no requirement for witnesses for cohabitation agreements.

4. Must it be registered with the Swedish Tax Agency?

No. Unlike a prenuptial agreement, there is no registration requirement for cohabitation agreements.

5. What is cohabitation property?

A joint home and joint household goods acquired for joint use may be cohabitation property. Household goods include, for example, furniture and home appliances.

6. Are cars, boats, money, or shares included?

No, not as cohabitation property simply because of the cohabitation relationship. The Cohabitees Act is significantly narrower than the rules regarding spouses' marital property.

7. Is a home automatically mine if I paid for everything?

Not necessarily in the event of a division of property under the Cohabitees Act. If the home was acquired for joint use, it can be cohabitation property even if one cohabitee paid the entire purchase price and is the sole registered owner.

8. Does it matter when the home was purchased?

Yes, but the timing is not the sole deciding factor. The issue is primarily whether the home was acquired for the cohabitees' joint use. Therefore, the phrase “everything purchased before moving in is automatically protected” is too simplified.

9. Can we agree that no division of property shall take place?

Yes. It is explicitly possible according to Section 9 of the Cohabitees Act.

10. Can we just exclude the home?

Yes, cohabitees can agree that specific property shall not be included in the division of property. Describe the property clearly enough.

11. Can we agree in a cohabitation agreement that the home should be divided 70/30?

Section 9 is designed to opt out of the division of property or to exclude certain property. If the goal is a specific financial distribution, ownership shares, financing, potential claims, and sometimes promissory notes need to be handled separately. Do not use the cohabitation agreement as if it were a general agreement regarding ownership shares.

12. We have contributed different down payments – what should we consider?

Check three different issues: who owns which share of the home, how the contributions have been financed, and whether the home should be covered by the Cohabitees Act’s division of property. A cohabitation agreement may need to be combined with, for example, a promissory note.

13. Can the cohabitation agreement determine who is to pay the bank loan?

Not in relation to the bank. An internal agreement between cohabitees does not automatically change the payment liability that follows from the loan agreement with the lender.

14. Can a cohabitation agreement regulate inheritance?

No. Cohabitees do not automatically inherit from each other. If cohabitees wish to provide each other with the right of inheritance, a will is normally required, within the limits set by, among other things, the rules on statutory shares (laglott).

15. When must a division of property be requested after separation?

Normally no later than one year after the cohabitation relationship ended. The division of property does not happen automatically just because the cohabitees move apart.

16. What is divided if a division of property is requested?

After the deduction of debts according to the Cohabitees Act, the net value of the cohabitation property is added together and, as a main rule, divided equally. Adjustment may occur in certain cases.

17. Can the person who needs the home the most get it?

In some cases. Section 16 regulates the distribution of cohabitation property, and Section 22 also contains a special possibility to take over a rental apartment or tenant-owned apartment that is not cohabitation property if the requirements of the law are met.

18. What happens if a cohabitee dies?

Then only the surviving cohabitee may request a division of property. The request must be made no later than at the estate inventory proceeding. The cohabitee does not automatically inherit from the deceased.

19. Is there any minimum protection in the event of death?

Yes. If the cohabitation relationship ends due to death, the surviving cohabitee has, according to Section 18, to the extent that the remaining cohabitation property is sufficient, the right to receive property from the division of property corresponding to two price base amounts.

20. Can the cohabitation agreement be changed?

Yes. Cohabitees can change a previous agreement through a new written and signed agreement.

When do we need more documents?

• Will: if you want to give each other inheritance rights.
• Promissory note: if one party has a repayable claim against the other, for example after uneven financing.
• Co-ownership agreement: can be relevant for jointly owned property and practical ownership issues.
• Division of property agreement: documents the actual division of property once the cohabitation relationship has ended.

For a comprehensive review, see Cohabitation Agreement – what applies and what can the agreement regulate?.

Sources

• Cohabitees Act (2003:376)