Do you have a child and live in a common-law relationship with your partner? Major legal changes might affect you! As of June 30, 2025, a new law has come into effect in Quebec that offers greater protection and more rights to common-law partners who have children. Here’s an overview of the changes that may impact you and your partner.
Common-law partners are people who live together and present themselves as a couple, without being married or in a civil union. These couples are often referred to as common-law couples or “de facto” couples. In Quebec, two out of five couples are in a common-law relationship.
New protection if you have a child
The new parental union regime automatically applies to common-law couples who have one or more children born or adopted on or after June 30, 2025. The regime does not apply to couples without children, nor does it apply automatically to those whose children are all born or adopted before this date.
The new law grants common-law couples in a parental union similar rights to those of married or civil union spouses.
One notable change brought by the new law is the creation of a parental union patrimony. This patrimony includes some of your belongings and property that must be shared with your partner if you split up. The value of these assets is generally divided equally between the two partners.
The assets included in the parental union patrimony are:
- the family residences,
- furniture,
- the cars and other vehicles used by the family.
The new law also provides protection for the family residence. In case of separation, the court can allow the parent who has custody of the children to stay in the family home temporarily, even if the home is solely owned by the other parent.
You can choose to accept or opt out of the regime
Are you in a common-law relationship and have children born or adopted before June 30, 2025? You and your partner can choose to be subject to the parental union regime. To do so, you must both agree and sign a contract in the presence of a notary or two witnesses.
If your children were born or adopted after June 30, 2025, the parental union regime applies to you automatically. While you cannot opt out of the entire regime, you can choose to opt out of the parental union patrimony. To do so, both partners must agree and sign a notarial act.
You can also choose to add or remove specific assets from the parental union patrimony. For example, you may want to exclude a vehicle or a cottage from the patrimony. Again, this requires your partner’s consent and the signature of a notarial act.
Stronger financial protection
In some cases, a partner in a parental union may be entitled to financial compensation from the other partner in the event of separation. This is called a “compensatory allowance”. Until now, only married or civil union spouses could claim this right.
The goal of the compensatory allowance is to restore financial balance after separation. A former partner may be entitled to receive compensation if they lost out financially while contributing to the other’s financial gain.