How are domestic partnerships regulated in Costa Rica?
What is a civil partnership in Costa Rica?
A civil union, also known as a “common law civil partnership”, is the union of two people without the formalities of marriage. If both people live as a couple, and are single, divorced, or widowed, the law will give the civil partnership a legal status. After a determined period of living together, the law confers rights and obligations to the couple, as if they were married. These domestic partnerships between people are also known as “civil partnerships” and “de facto unions, and are indeed regulated in Costa Rica.
What requirements exist for the recognition of the domestic partnership in Costa Rica?
The Costa Rican Family Code of laws establishes the requirements. It states that the “de facto union”, must be public, notorious, stable, and exclusive. By “public,” the law establishes that the union must be known to others. By stability, the law requires cohabitation as a couple with legal aptitude to marry for a determined period. This means that the couple must be single, divorced, or widowed.
In Costa Rica, the minimum time frame for the civil partnership must be of two years of living together. If any of you are married, there is no legal aptitude for recognizing a civil partnership. In summary, if both of you are single, divorced, or widowed, and have lived together as a couple, under the same roof, for more than two years, the common law union is established and can be recognized.
What are the legal effects of the civil partnership in Costa Rica?
The legal effects of the civil partnership, once recognized, are precisely the same ones as an ordinary marriage. All assets acquired during the union are marital assets. Child support is a given, if anyone has children there is a legal obligation to provide for their needs. Alimony between spouses can also be given to the one who needs it. It´s also important to know that as a recognized common law spouse, you also have a right to be an heir.
How does the domestic partnership get recognized? Is there a statute of limitations?
After two years, of living under the same roof, as a couple with the aptitude to marry, the common law union is established. Under Costa Rican law, a Judge must recognize the union for the corresponding legal effects. The recognition is requested through a lawsuit. However, there is a statute of limitations. You have two years after the separation, or death of the other party, to request the recognition.
Dr. Christopher Pirie Gil.