More couples in China are choosing to live together without marrying than at any point in the country's modern history, yet the question of cohabitation rights in China remains one of the most misunderstood areas of family law for both local residents and foreigners. 

Research published by Beijing Normal University found that the premarital cohabitation rate in China surged from 4 percent in the 1980s to 40 percent in the 2010s. Despite this social shift, the law has moved very slowly. 

This guide explains exactly what rights you have, what you do not have, and what you can do to protect yourself.

How Chinese Law Treats Cohabitation

The Core Position

China's Civil Code (effective January 1, 2021) does not create any legal category for unmarried cohabitants. In plain terms:

• The marriage and family provisions apply only to registered marriages
• Cohabiting partners are treated as legal strangers when it comes to property, inheritance, and financial support
• The length of cohabitation makes no difference — one year or twenty years gives you the same legal standing

There is No Common-Law Marriage

Many people assume that living together long enough eventually creates legal rights. In China, it does not, at least not for relationships formed after February 1, 1994.

Before that date, couples who presented themselves as husband and wife could, in limited circumstances, have their relationship treated as a de facto marriage. 

The 2001 Marriage Law ended that recognition for new relationships, and the 2021 Civil Code maintained the same position.

If you moved in with a partner after February 1994 without registering the marriage, you are cohabitants in the eyes of the law — nothing more.

Why the legislature left cohabitation unprotected

When legislators deliberated on the Civil Code, some members repeatedly urged that nonmarital cohabitation be given legal recognition. 

A legislative spokesperson confirmed the decision not to include it, explaining that Chinese society has yet to generally accept it, that legal protection would have a major impact on the institution of marriage, and that there is no consensus on the many legal issues it would raise.

What the 2025 Supreme People's Court Interpretation Changed

The Supreme People's Court Interpretation (II) on the Application of the Civil Code's Marriage and Family Book (effective February 2, 2025) is the most significant recent development for cohabitants. 

For the first time, it gives courts a structured framework for dividing property when an unmarried couple separates.

Under Article 4 of the Interpretation, the rules work as follows:

• If there is an agreement on property acquired during cohabitation, that agreement governs
• If there is no agreement, each party keeps their own wages, bonuses, labour income, intellectual property income, and individually inherited or donated property
• Jointly purchased property is divided based on the proportion of each party's financial contribution, with courts also considering factors such as whether there are shared children and the living situation of both parties
• Compensation may be awarded where one party bore a disproportionate share of domestic duties, such as raising children or caring for elderly family members, though courts have discretion on the amount

This is meaningful progress. But it is not equivalent to the marriage property regime. Without an agreement or clear evidence of joint contribution, everything earned and purchased in your own name stays yours alone. There is no 50/50 presumption.

Property Rights for Unmarried Couples

When a registered marriage ends, Chinese law defaults to a 50/50 split of marital property. When a cohabiting relationship ends, there is no such default.

What happens to property in practice:

• Everything registered in your name stays with you
• Everything registered in your partner's name stays with them
• If you paid the deposit on a jointly occupied apartment but the title is in your partner's name, you have no automatic right to recover that money
• To claim a share, you must produce documentary evidence of your contribution: bank transfers, signed contracts, receipts

Practical consequence: Joint purchases during cohabitation should always be supported by clear written records specifying each party's contribution. Without that documentation, disputes are extremely difficult to resolve and expensive to litigate.

Table 1: Key Rights Compared: Married vs. Cohabiting Couples in China

Children Born Outside Marriage

This is the area where cohabiting couples have the clearest and strongest legal protections.

Children's rights

Under Article 1071 of the Civil Code, children born outside marriage have equal legal rights to children born within marriage:

• No organization or individual may discriminate against or harm them
• Both parents owe the child care, education, and financial support
• The child has inheritance rights from both parents
• The fact that parents never registered a marriage has no bearing on any of these rights

Child support

• The non-custodial parent must pay child support regardless of whether the parents were ever married
• The amount is calculated based on the child's needs, the paying parent's income, and local living standards
• This obligation is identical whether parents were married or simply cohabiting

Custody arrangements

Custody disputes between unmarried parents follow the same framework as disputes in divorce proceedings:

• Children under two: Custody typically goes to the mother
• Children aged two to eight: The court assesses both parents' circumstances and acts in the child's best interests
• Children over eight: The child's own preference is considered by the court

One practical complication: Where parents were not married, establishing the father's legal identity requires either his name on the birth certificate or, where disputed, a paternity action in court. Both parents' names should be registered from the outset.

Inheritance Rights for Unmarried Partners

This is one of the most significant gaps in protection for cohabiting couples.

The stark reality:

• When a married person dies without a will, the surviving spouse is a first-priority heir
• When an unmarried partner dies without a will, their partner receives nothing from the estate
• It does not matter how long the couple lived together or how much either contributed to shared assets
• The estate passes to the deceased's statutory heirs: their spouse (if married to someone else), children, and parents

The only reliable protection is a will.

If you and your partner are unmarried and want each other to inherit, both of you need wills that expressly name the other as a beneficiary. Without wills, you have no standing as intestate beneficiaries.

Note for foreigners: Cross-border inheritance involving Chinese assets and foreign nationals adds further complexity. Chinese courts will generally apply Chinese law to assets physically located in mainland China, regardless of what a foreign will says.

Domestic Violence Protections

This is an area where the law explicitly protects cohabitants, and it is important to know about.

China's Anti-Domestic Violence Law (effective March 1, 2016) applies to:

• Married couples
• Family members
• Persons who have lived together, including unmarried cohabiting couples

Unmarried couples can seek a protection order from the courts. Applications are dealt with within 72 hours of receipt and, in emergencies, within 24 hours. 

The 2023 amendment to the Law on the Protection of Women's Rights and Interests (effective January 1, 2023) has further strengthened protections for women in cohabiting relationships. 

This is one of the few areas where the law explicitly acknowledges and protects people outside of registered marriages.

Table 2: Property Rules Under the 2025 SPC Interpretation

Practical Protections Available to You

Given the limited statutory protections, the responsibility falls on couples to protect themselves through private legal arrangements. The tools available are:

1. Cohabitation agreement

• A written agreement setting out how property is owned, how it will be divided if the relationship ends, and what financial arrangements apply
• Chinese courts recognise these agreements between couples where neither party is married to someone else
• The 2025 SPC Interpretation confirms that a prior agreement governs first
• It should be clear, written, signed by both parties, and ideally notarised

2. Wills

• Both parties should make wills if they want the other to inherit
• Without a will, an unmarried partner receives nothing on intestacy
• This is the single most important document for cohabiting couples to put in place

3. Clear property records

• All joint purchases should be documented with bank transfer records and signed contracts
• Each party's contribution should be clearly identified in writing at the time of purchase
• If you are buying property together, both names should appear on the title deed

4. Named beneficiaries

• For life insurance and pension products, both parties should name each other as nominated beneficiaries
• This operates outside the inheritance system and does not require a will

5. Birth registration

• Where children are involved, both parents' names should be on the birth certificate from birth
• This protects the child's rights and establishes the father's legal obligations from the outset

⚖️ Note from our team: We regularly advise unmarried couples, both Chinese nationals and foreigners living in China, on how to structure their arrangements to reduce legal risk. The absence of a legal status does not mean the absence of options. Getting proper advice before a crisis arises is always far cheaper and less stressful than resolving a dispute after one.

Cohabitation and Foreign Nationals in China

Foreigners living in China face all the same limitations described above, plus some additional ones:

• Property disputes: If the relationship ends, Chinese courts handle disputes over assets in China under Chinese law. A foreign court order over Chinese property will not be recognized or enforced here.
• Children with a Chinese national co-parent: China is not a signatory to the Hague Convention on parental abduction. Custody orders from foreign courts cannot be enforced in China. This is a serious and underappreciated risk.
• Medical emergencies: Hospital procedures in China typically require a family member or registered spouse. An unmarried partner will not automatically be recognized as next of kin.
• Property title: Foreign nationals face additional restrictions on buying property in China. Where an unmarried foreign national has contributed financially to a property in their Chinese partner's name, recovering that contribution after separation can be extremely difficult.

Conclusion

The gap between the social reality of cohabitation in China and the legal protections available to cohabiting couples is considerable and has not been meaningfully closed by the 2021 Civil Code. 

The 2025 Supreme People's Court Interpretation has brought more structure to property disputes between cohabitants, which is a step forward, but it falls well short of creating a comprehensive legal framework.

If you are living with a partner in China without registering your marriage, you should not assume you have any automatic legal claim to their property, their estate, or financial support if the relationship ends. 

You do have automatic protections relating to any children you share, and you have access to domestic violence protections. Beyond that, the responsibility to protect yourself rests with you.

A cohabitation agreement, a will, clear property documentation, and proper beneficiary designations are not optional extras. They are the legal architecture you need to fill the gap that statute does not fill.

FAQs About Cohabitation Rights in China

Does China recognize common-law marriage for long-term cohabiting couples?

No. For relationships that began after February 1, 1994, China does not recognize common-law marriage or any equivalent legal status for cohabiting couples. Regardless of how many years you have lived together, you are treated as legally unrelated for the purposes of property, inheritance, and financial support unless you have registered your marriage.

What happens to property if an unmarried couple in China separates?

Under the 2025 Supreme People's Court Interpretation, each party generally keeps property in their own name and their individually earned income. Jointly purchased property is divided in proportion to each party's proven financial contribution. There is no 50/50 default rule as there is for divorcing married couples. A prior written agreement between the parties takes precedence if one exists.

Can an unmarried partner inherit in China if their partner dies without a will?

No. Under China's statutory inheritance rules, an unmarried partner is not an heir. The estate passes to the deceased's first-priority statutory heirs: spouse (if married), children, and parents. An unmarried partner has no entitlement unless named in a valid will. Making a will is the only reliable way to ensure an unmarried partner inherits.

What rights do children have if their parents are not married in China?

Under Article 1071 of the 2021 Civil Code, children born outside of marriage have the same legal rights as children born within marriage. Both parents owe the child the duties of care, education, and financial support. The non-custodial parent must pay child support, and the child has inheritance rights from both parents. The marital status of the parents has no effect on the child's rights.

Can a cohabiting couple in China get a domestic violence protection order?

Yes. China's Anti-Domestic Violence Law (effective March 1, 2016) applies to people who have lived together, including unmarried cohabiting couples. An application for a protection order must be dealt with within 72 hours and within 24 hours in emergency situations. This is one of the limited but meaningful legal protections that explicitly cover cohabiting partners.

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