What an Alberta cohabitation agreement is for
Alberta changed the rules for unmarried couples on January 1, 2020. The old Matrimonial Property Act became the Family Property Act and now applies to adult interdependent partners the same way it applies to married spouses. Couples become adult interdependent partners after three years of living together in a relationship of interdependence, sooner if they have a child together, or by signing an agreement. From then on, if they separate, the property acquired during the relationship and the growth in value of what each brought into it is generally divided equally. Many couples who moved in together years ago now have property rights they never chose.
A cohabitation agreement lets partners decide those rules for themselves. This template defines separate property to include its growth, gifts, inheritances and anything traced from them, sets out what is shared, gives three options for the home, deals with debts, household expenses, partner support, children and death, and includes disclosure schedules. Most importantly, it includes the section 38 acknowledgment and lawyer's certificate for each partner, without which its property terms may not be enforceable.
When to sign it
The best time is before moving in, or at least before the three-year mark when partners become adult interdependent partners. It is especially important when one partner owns a home or business, has much higher income or savings, expects an inheritance, or has children from a previous relationship.
It can be signed later too, but each partner then needs disclosure of the other's current finances and a fresh look at what they would be giving up. Each partner must see their own lawyer, separately, to sign the section 38 acknowledgment.
What's inside
The full list of sections and fields in this template, in the order they appear.
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Background and effect
- Partners
- Start of cohabitation
- AIP status
- Children
- Section 37 agreement
- Effect of the Family Property Act
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Separate and shared property
- Listed property
- Gifts and inheritances
- Growth in value
- Income and traced property
- Injury damages
- Contributions by written acknowledgment
- Joint property
- Division choice
-
Home, debts and expenses
- Owner keeps
- Owner keeps with a defined share
- Shared with buyout or sale
- Moving out
- Debts
- Household expenses
- Gifts and contents
-
Support and children
- Release
- Release for a short relationship
- Lump sum
- Under the law
- Children's best interests
-
Death
- Estate release under the Wills and Succession Act
- Provision on death
- Wills
-
Disclosure and section 38
- Financial disclosure
- Independent legal advice
- Written acknowledgment apart from the other partner
-
Separation and general
- Settling affairs
- Reconciliation
- Marriage
- Mediation
- Amendment
- Governing law
- Witnessed signatures
-
Schedules A to E
- Property and debts of each partner
- Section 38 acknowledgments and lawyer certificates
- Acknowledgment of contribution
- Review checklist
Preview pages
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Page 1 -
Page 2 -
Page 3
How to complete the agreement
- Fill in the background. When cohabitation started and whether you are already adult interdependent partners.
- Complete Schedules A and B. Each partner lists property, debts, income and any down payment contribution, with documents.
- Define separate property. Decide whether growth in value is separate, and whether property bought with your own earnings stays separate.
- Choose how shared property is divided.
- Choose the home option and the move-out period.
- Set household expenses and debts.
- Choose the support option.
- Decide estate terms, including any provision for the survivor.
- See your own lawyers. Each partner signs the section 38 acknowledgment apart from the other, and the lawyers sign certificates. Then sign the agreement in front of witnesses and update your wills.
Example: a condo owned before moving in
Fictional couple Jordan Lee and Amara Okoye start living together in Jordan's Calgary condo on June 1, 2026. Jordan bought it in 2022; it is worth $420,000 with a $250,000 mortgage. Amara has $60,000 in savings and expects to inherit a share of her family's farmland.
Separate property: Jordan's condo and its growth; Amara's savings and future inheritance, including growth. Home: owner keeps it, with a defined share. If they separate, Amara receives 25% of the condo's increase in value from June 1, 2026. Support: release if they separate within four years; after that, support under the law. Section 38: each signs the acknowledgment before their own lawyer on May 15, 2026.
If they separate in 2031 and the condo is then worth $500,000, Amara receives 25% of the $80,000 increase, or $20,000. Without the agreement, as adult interdependent partners, Amara could have claimed half the condo's growth, $40,000, plus a share of anything else acquired during the relationship.
Alberta rules to know
- Family Property Act (from January 1, 2020). Applies to adult interdependent partners as well as married spouses.
- Agreements (sections 37 and 38). Property agreements are enforceable if each party gives the written acknowledgment before their own lawyer, apart from the other party.
- Adult interdependent partners. Three years of cohabitation, a relationship of some permanence with a child, or an AIP agreement.
- Exempt property and growth. Pre-relationship property, gifts and inheritances are exempt, but their growth in value is generally shared unless an agreement says otherwise.
- Partner support. Available under Alberta's Family Law Act; releases can be overridden in limited cases.
- Estates. Partners inherit on intestacy and may claim family maintenance under the Wills and Succession Act.
Why Alberta cohabitation agreements fail
The most common reason an Alberta cohabitation agreement fails is the section 38 formality. The partners signed at the kitchen table, or used one lawyer for both, or the lawyer's certificate was never completed, so the property terms are not enforceable under the Act. Other agreements protect the condo or the inheritance but not their growth, which the Act would otherwise share. Some were signed years before the 2020 changes and never updated. The separate property definition, home options and Schedule C in this agreement are drafted with those problems in mind.
Frequently asked questions
Do common-law partners split property in Alberta?
Yes, since January 1, 2020, if they are adult interdependent partners. Alberta's Family Property Act now treats AIPs like married spouses, so property acquired during the relationship and the growth in value of property brought into it are generally divided equally on separation, unless a valid agreement says otherwise.
When do you become adult interdependent partners in Alberta?
After living together in a relationship of interdependence for at least three continuous years, sooner if the relationship is of some permanence and you have a child together, or immediately if you sign an adult interdependent partner agreement.
What makes a cohabitation agreement enforceable in Alberta?
For its property terms to be enforceable under section 38 of the Family Property Act, each partner must acknowledge in writing, apart from the other and before their own lawyer, that they understand the agreement's nature and effect, know their possible property claims, and are signing freely. The lawyer signs a certificate.
Can a cohabitation agreement waive partner support in Alberta?
It can, but a court may override a support release that becomes unconscionable or no longer reflects what the partners intended, especially after a long relationship or the birth of children. Independent legal advice and full disclosure make a release much more likely to be upheld.
Does my partner inherit if I die without a will in Alberta?
An adult interdependent partner shares in the estate under the Wills and Succession Act if there is no will, and can claim family maintenance and support. A cohabitation agreement can release those rights, and each partner should make a will that matches it.
