Marriage in Ireland: Rights and Obligations

Following a wedding in Ireland, the spouses will also receive numerous legal rights and obligations deriving from this action. From a legal point of view, a marriage will have many influences on the personal taxation of each of the spouses, on inheritance matters, as well as on joint property or raising children. An important aspect is that Ireland has recently enacted a regulation through which same-sex marriages are legal recognised here (Marriage Act 2015). Our Irish lawyers can provide legal assistance on the rights and obligations obtained after getting married in Ireland. 

 

 

One of the aspects that will be influenced after two persons got married in Ireland refers to the social welfare. If one of the spouses dies, the living partner will be entitled to receive the Surviving Civil Partner’s Pension. The spouse will lose his or her right to the pension in the situation in which the person will enter a new civil partnership or will re-marry. 

 

 

Persons getting married in Ireland will be taxed on a different taxation scheme than those who are not. Spouses have three options in this sense: 

 

• tax assessment as a single person;

• separate assessment;

• joint assessment. 

 

The third option is usually the most favourable for a married couple and it is given by default by the Irish tax authorities when they are announced on the completion of the legal formalities related to the marriage; however, the spouses can opt for the first two options if they choose to do so. Our team of lawyers in Ireland can offer more details on how to register for taxation as a married couple. 

 

 

In terms of inheritance, a spouse has more rights than those who are not married. A spouse is automatically entitled to inheritance even though the deceased partner did not leave a will or in the case in which the document is invalid. Moreover, the living spouse is entitled to inherit a part of the assets even when there is a valid will and the deceased partner decided not to leave anything to the surviving spouse. 

 

Persons who get married in Ireland can benefit from many other legal rights, as well as obligations that have to be met. For example, both spouses are obliged to respect the basic elements related to a marriage – help each other, be faithful, share responsibility on all aspects of the marriage, take care of the children. At the same time, it is important to know that if such rules are not respected by one of the parties, the other one is entitled to file against the spouse for judicial separation or for divorce. 

 

Persons interested in finding out more details on the rights and obligations of a marriage in Ireland are invited to contact our Irish law firm.