Home rights, formally known as matrimonial home rights, give the non-owning spouse the right to occupy the property. If the matrimonial home is registered in your spouse’s sole name, you can register a home rights notice at the Land Registry to seek protection from being evicted from the property in the event of separation or divorce.
What Are Matrimonial Home Rights?
Matrimonial home rights aim to protect the spouse, having no legal ownership in the property, against eviction. Upon separation or divorce, the non-owning spouse can seek protection from being made unfairly homeless.
Additionally, it also prevents your spouse from selling, transferring, and remortgaging the matrimonial home without your agreement. Importantly, it only applies to civil partners and spouses, not cohabitants.
To clarify, it does not give you the right to ownership or can be extended to other properties of your civil partner.
Why Should You Register Matrimonial Home Rights?
Registering your home rights is important if it appears that the other spouse, with legal ownership of the house, will take action that leaves you in a vulnerable situation, for instance, selling the property.
By registering, your rights will be on the legal documents visible to potential buyers and the partner can not sell the property without your consent.
Once you and your spouse have reached an agreement, the property can be sold or transferred to either party and, consequently, needs to be removed from the Land Registry for the transaction to proceed.
How to Register Matrimonial Rights?
The procedure of registering matrimonial rights is different for registered and unregistered properties.
Registered Property
A registered property is included in the Land Registry with important information like proof of ownership, description of the property, and other interests.
- In the case of registered property, complete the HR1 form available on the Land Registry website.
- The completed form, then, needs to be filed with the Land Registry.
Unregistered Property
Unregistered property means that the property is not registered in the Land Registry and the details are kept in separate documents, Title deeds.
- For unregistered property, a K2 form (application for registration of a Class F Land Charge) needs to be completed.
- Upon completion, send the application to the Land Charges Department.
When the application is approved, the registration will appear as a notice on the title deeds of the unregistered property or the Land Registry for the registered property.
Removing the Home Rights Notice
The matrimonial home rights registration can only be removed in the following circumstances
- The beneficiary of the Home Rights voluntarily removes it
- By an order of the court
- Upon reaching Decree Absolute
- By the death of either spouse
Cancelling The Home Rights
If both parties have mutually decided to cancel the home rights, they can do so by completing the relevant applications.
- Registered Property – Complete an HR4 form and send it to the Land Registry.
- Unregistered Property – Complete a K13 form and send it to the Land Charges Department.
