Common law marriage is a legal relationship created without a formal ceremony or marriage license when couples meet specific requirements including living together, presenting themselves as married, and intending to be married. However, most states have abolished common law marriage and don’t recognize new common law marriages formed within their borders. Only a handful of states still allow couples to establish common law marriages, making this an increasingly rare form of marital status.
Our friends at Robinson & Hadeed regularly encounter confusion about common law marriage as many people believe living together for a certain period automatically creates a marriage, which is not true in any state. A family lawyer can help you understand whether your state recognizes common law marriage, whether your relationship meets the requirements, and what rights you have regarding property and support if your relationship ends.
States That Recognize Common Law Marriage
As of 2025, only a small number of states recognize new common law marriages. These states include Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Montana, New Hampshire (for inheritance purposes only), Oklahoma, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Texas, and Utah, plus the District of Columbia.
All other states have abolished common law marriage and will not recognize new common law marriages created within their borders. However, states that don’t recognize common law marriage typically recognize common law marriages validly created in other states under the full faith and credit clause of the Constitution.
If you established a valid common law marriage in a state that recognizes it, then moved to a state that doesn’t, your marriage is still valid. The state where you currently live must recognize your existing common law marriage even though they wouldn’t allow you to create a new one.
Requirements For Common Law Marriage
Simply living together, even for many years, doesn’t create a common law marriage. States that recognize common law marriage require specific elements to establish the marital relationship.
Common requirements include:
- Both parties must have capacity to marry (legal age, not already married, mentally competent)
- Mutual agreement or consent to be married
- Cohabitation as a married couple
- Holding out or representing yourselves publicly as married
- Intent to create a marital relationship
The length of cohabitation doesn’t determine common law marriage status. No state requires living together for a specific number of years. You could establish a common law marriage after a few months or fail to create one after decades together depending on whether other requirements are met.
Proving Common Law Marriage
Establishing that a common law marriage exists requires evidence beyond simply living together. You must prove all required elements were present.
Filing joint tax returns as married provides strong evidence of common law marriage. This documentation shows you presented yourselves publicly as married to the government.
Using the same last name, wearing wedding rings, referring to each other as husband and wife, and introducing each other as spouses demonstrates holding out as married.
Shared bank accounts, joint property ownership, listing each other as spouses on documents, and beneficiary designations all support common law marriage claims.
Written agreements stating your intent to be married can establish the mutual consent element, though few couples create such documents.
What Common Law Marriage Means Legally
Common law marriages carry the same legal status as ceremonial marriages. Common law spouses have identical rights and obligations as couples who married with licenses and ceremonies.
Property acquired during the relationship qualifies as marital property subject to division if the common law marriage ends in divorce. Courts apply the same property division laws to common law marriages as to formal marriages.
Spousal support or alimony becomes available in common law marriage divorces. The lower-earning spouse can request support using the same legal standards applied in traditional marriages.
Inheritance rights exist for common law spouses. Without a will, a common law spouse inherits according to intestacy laws just like a ceremonial spouse would.
Ending Common Law Marriages
Common law marriages don’t end informally. You can’t simply separate and stop living together to dissolve a common law marriage any more than you could dissolve a ceremonial marriage that way.
Divorce is required to legally end common law marriages. The same divorce procedures, property division rules, and support considerations apply whether your marriage was common law or ceremonial.
When Common Law Marriage Doesn’t Exist
Most long-term relationships are not common law marriages even in states that recognize them. Missing any required element means no marriage was created.
Many couples live together without intending to be married. They’re simply cohabitating partners, not spouses. Without mutual intent to create a marriage, no common law marriage exists regardless of how long they’ve lived together.
Not holding out publicly as married defeats common law marriage claims. If you consistently introduce each other as boyfriend/girlfriend or partners rather than spouses, you haven’t held yourselves out as married.
Rights For Unmarried Couples
Couples who aren’t married, including those in states that don’t recognize common law marriage, have limited legal rights regarding each other’s property.
Property belongs to whoever holds title. If one partner bought the house and it’s in their name alone, the other partner typically has no ownership interest regardless of how long they lived there.
No automatic right to support exists when unmarried couples separate. You can’t request alimony or palimony in most states just because you lived together for years.
Cohabitation agreements can create enforceable property rights for unmarried couples. These written contracts specify how property will be divided if the relationship ends and can establish support obligations.
Protecting Yourself In Unmarried Relationships
Create written cohabitation agreements addressing property ownership, financial contributions, and what happens if you separate. These contracts protect both partners by establishing clear expectations.
Keep careful records of financial contributions to shared property. If you contribute to mortgage payments on your partner’s house, document these payments to support potential claims if you separate.
Maintain separate property when possible. Property in your name alone can’t be claimed by your partner in most circumstances.
Use contracts and legal documents to create rights that don’t exist automatically. Will provisions, beneficiary designations, powers of attorney, and property ownership documents protect partners who aren’t married.
Common Law Marriage Myths
The myth that living together for seven years creates common law marriage persists despite being false. No state uses a specific time period to establish common law marriage. The seven-year rule has no basis in any state’s law.
Presenting yourselves as married just to friends and family isn’t sufficient. Holding out requires broader public representation as spouses, not just among close social circles.
Having children together doesn’t create common law marriage. Unmarried couples can have children without becoming married under common law or any other theory.
Filing joint tax returns alone doesn’t establish common law marriage, though it’s strong evidence supporting other proof of the required elements.
Interstate Issues
Moving between states creates questions about common law marriage status. If you established a valid common law marriage in Colorado and later moved to California, your marriage remains valid in California despite that state not recognizing new common law marriages.
Establishing common law marriage requires being in a state that recognizes it during the period when you met the requirements. You can’t retroactively claim you created a common law marriage in a state that doesn’t recognize them.
Proving Or Disproving Common Law Marriage In Court
Disputes about whether common law marriage exists often arise after one partner dies or when couples separate. One person claims the relationship was a marriage while the other denies it.
The person claiming common law marriage exists bears the burden of proving all required elements. Evidence must show capacity, mutual consent, cohabitation, holding out, and intent.
Witnesses who can testify about how you presented your relationship publicly become important in these disputes. Friends, family, employers, and others who interacted with you as a couple might provide relevant testimony.
Tax And Benefit Implications
Common law spouses must file taxes as married. You can’t file as single if you’re in a common law marriage even without a marriage certificate.
Benefits like Social Security spousal benefits, inheritance rights, and insurance coverage extend to common law spouses with proof of the marriage.
Moving Forward With Common Law Marriage Questions
Common law marriage exists in only a small number of states and requires more than simply living together, demanding proof of mutual intent to marry, cohabitation, public representation as spouses, and other elements that many long-term couples never establish. Understanding whether your state recognizes common law marriage, whether your relationship meets the specific requirements, and what rights you have as either a common law spouse or an unmarried partner helps you protect your interests and plan appropriately for your future. If you believe you’re in a common law marriage and need to establish or disprove that status, or if you’re in a long-term relationship without marriage and want to protect your property rights, reach out to discuss your state’s laws and whether your circumstances create a common law marriage or whether other legal tools better serve your needs.