There are two types of weddings in Texas: a formal marriage and a common law marriage.
David Montesino
dmontesino@star-telegram.com
You and your partner may be living together, sharing bills and building a life as a couple. To you, you’re just in a relationship. But under Texas law, you could actually be married.
That’s because Texas recognizes common law marriage, which doesn’t require a couple to have a wedding ceremony or get a traditional marriage license.
And if your relationship meets the requirements, a common law marriage can come with the same legal rights and responsibilities as a traditional marriage.
So, how do you know if you qualify? Here’s what to know.
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How does common-law marriage work in Texas?
To prove a common-law marriage, you and your partner must do three things: agree that you’re married, live together in Texas as a married couple and “hold out” to others as married, meaning you tell or show other people that you’re married, according to the Texas Family Code.
“All three conditions must exist simultaneously to establish a valid common law marriage,” Dallas family law attorney Rebecca Rowan wrote in an article published by the State Bar of Texas. “Additionally, in the state of Texas, you must have the capacity to enter into the marriage. This means both parties must be at least 18, unrelated, and not currently married to someone else.”
But how do you prove you and your partner agreed to be married? Rowan wrote that there must be evidence showing you both intended to be married at that time.
“An agreement to get married in the future is insufficient to establish an agreement of marriage. As such, if two people are engaged, then they cannot be common-law married.”
There’s also no minimum amount of time you have to live together. Living together for three, five or seven years doesn’t automatically create a common-law marriage, according to Rowan.
As for “holding out” as married, what you say and do can both count.
“For example, introducing each other as spouses, wearing rings on ring fingers, or signing credit applications as a married couple could separately qualify as ‘holding out’ to others as married,” Rowan wrote.
Filing joint tax returns, adding someone to the “family” country club membership, and even the address on Christmas card envelopes can come into play.
“Oftentimes, the evidence that supports the ‘holding out’ element also supports an agreement to be married,” she wrote.
Couples can also formally document their common-law marriage by filing a Declaration of Informal Marriage with their county clerk, according to the Texas State Law Library.
Do you need a divorce to end a common-law marriage in Texas?
Yes. You’ll have to file for divorce just like a couple who had a traditional marriage, according to the Texas State Law Library.
“Common-law marriage is not a loophole to avoiding divorce,” Rowan wrote. “A common-law marriage must be terminated with either a standard divorce suit (or annulment) or by the death of one of the parties.”
According to Rowan, simply separating doesn’t end the marriage either.
“However, even when a couple satisfies all the requirements of a common-law marriage, the parties may still not be permitted to file for divorce,” Rowan wrote. “There is a rebuttable presumption that no marriage exists unless a suit is commenced to prove the marriage before the second anniversary of the parties’ separation.”
In other words, if you separate and no court proceeding to prove the marriage is started within two years, the law presumes that you and your partner never agreed to be married.
That doesn’t mean the marriage automatically disappears after two years. The presumption can be challenged, but you may have to prove that the common-law marriage existed.
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Tiffani is a service journalism reporter for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. She is part of a team of local journalists who answer reader questions about life in North Texas. Tiffani mainly writes about Texas laws and health news.