Short answer. Property you acquired together is treated as co-owned equally. Under Article 147 of the Family Code, when two people who are free to marry each other live exclusively together without marrying, wages, salaries, and property acquired through their work or industry are owned in equal shares under the rules on co-ownership.
What the law says
properties acquired while they lived together shall be presumed to have been obtained by their joint efforts, work or industry, and shall be owned by them in equal shares
Family Code, Article 147 — Property of Unions Without Marriage (Both Capacitated). Read the full provision →
Equal shares and the presumption of joint effort
Article 147 of the Family Code creates a regime of equal co-ownership for couples who are legally free to marry but choose not to. Wages and salaries are owned in equal shares. Property acquired through work or industry is governed by co-ownership rules. Critically, the law presumes that property acquired during cohabitation was obtained through joint efforts — the partner who stayed home to care for the family is deemed to have contributed to acquisition even without direct income, because care and maintenance of the family and household count as contribution.
The consent requirement during cohabitation
Neither partner can sell, mortgage, or otherwise dispose of their share of the co-owned property during the cohabitation without the other's consent. Article 147 states: "Neither party can encumber or dispose by acts inter vivos of his or her share in the property acquired during cohabitation and owned in common, without the consent of the other, until after the termination of their cohabitation." This protection applies to both partners and is in effect as long as the cohabitation continues.
How Article 147 differs from marriage property regimes
Unlike a married couple's conjugal partnership or absolute community, the property regime under Article 147 is co-ownership — each partner holds a defined share rather than an undivided stake in a common fund. When the cohabitation ends, each partner takes their share. There is no formal settlement proceeding required in the way an estate or conjugal partnership dissolution would require, but disputes about what property falls under Article 147 and how shares are valued can become complex.
Who qualifies for this regime
Article 147 applies specifically to couples who are capacitated to marry each other — meaning neither person has a legal impediment to marrying the other. Both must be of legal age and free from any existing valid marriage. The article also applies to void marriages where both parties are in good faith. A different article governs couples where one or both parties have a legal impediment to marry — the rules in that situation are less protective.
Cases citing this provision
These Supreme Court decisions cite the provision above. We list them so you can read them yourself; the summaries of what each decided are not ours to give.
- Simon R. Paterno vs. Dina Marie Lomongo Paterno, G.R. No. 213687, January 8, 2020 — read the decision on LawPhil →
- Alain M. Diño vs. Ma. Caridad L. Diño, G.R. No. 178044, January 19, 2011 — read the decision on LawPhil →
- Lucila David and the Heirs of Rene F. Aguas, namely: Princess Luren D. Aguas, G.R. No. 241036, January 26, 2021 — read the decision on LawPhil →
- Lani Nayve-Pua vs. Union Bank of the Philippines, G.R. No. 253450, January 22, 2024 — read the decision on LawPhil →