Everything has been decided, rings, a date and a venue for your wedding, and it’s all moonlight and roses. But what about your Ante-Nuptial contract (ANC): have you given that any thought? This contract sets out the terms of possession of assets, treatment of future earnings, control of the property of each, and potential division if the marriage is later dissolved and further, equally and importantly, directs how your assets will be distributed in the event of death.
Benefits of an Ante-Nuptial Contract:
- Preventing your intended marriage from automatically being in Community Of Property
- If either party is declared insolvent, the other spouse is protected from the insolvent spouse’s creditors
- Spouses will not be held liable for any debt that the other spouse may incur during the marriage
- The respective spouses will not be held liable for any debt that the other spouse might have incurred prior to the marriage
- Spouses will not need to obtain each others consent when dealing with their own property
If no contract is signed you will automatically be married in ‘Community Of Property’, this means all assets and liabilities are equally shared and jointly owned by spouses.
An ANC is an essential document that, under South African law, determines whether your marriage will exist in one of the following marriage regimes:
- an ANC that excludes community of property, community of profit and loss, and the accrual system (all assets and liabilities of the spouses are separate, unless otherwise provided for in the ANC)
- an ANC that excludes community of property and community of profit and loss, but includes the accrual system (each spouse declares his/her estate’s nominal value at commencement of the marriage and retains their assets and liabilities (unless expressly excluded) until death or divorce, whereby the accrual of each will be calculated and divided)
An Ante-Nuptial Contract must be signed before the marriage and must be signed in the presence of a notary and two competent witnesses. The notary will then register the contract with the local Deeds Registry.