Marriage or civil union agreement?

Eight years ago, Law 20,830 came into force, creating the Civil Union Agreement (AUC), a way to legally protect couples’ unions without the need to marry. However, according to INE data, 85% of unions continue to correspond to marriage and only 15% to civil unions.

For Ángela Masson, chief lawyer of the family sector of Grupo Defensa, the promulgation of equal marriage in 2021 was a first disincentive to conclude civil unions, since previously it was the only way to formalize – legally – relationships homosexuals. However, the lawyer believes that The decision to opt for marriage rather than AUC, beyond the legal differences between the two agreements, is linked to tradition. “Basically, marriage is a ritual and Chileans seek the traditional. And the fact is that civil marriage can be celebrated before a religious institution, which allows people to marry according to their belief and then transmit this certificate to the civil registry, provided that it is a religious institution recognized by the State; something the AUC does not allow. In this case, people can do the ceremony they want, but yes or yes, they must do it at the civil registry,” explains Ángela.

Journalist Natalia Bobadilla (36) is one of the Chilean women who follow tradition and, in January 2020, she opted for marriage after living with her partner for eight years. Although at the beginning of their relationship the two agreed that they did not want to get married, over time Natalia changed her mind, as did her current husband. “I realized that I loved the ritual itself more than marriage because of the legal commitment it involves, because in practice my relationship has not changed until now; We already lived together. We saw our wedding as a celebration of the love, of the affection that we and the people around us had for each other,” Natalia recalls.

The proposal took place during the holidays in front of a waterfall in Chiloé. She says that from the first conversation, they always thought it would be a marriage and not a civil union agreement, for no particular reason. “We never discussed the differences between marriage and civil union, because, beyond guaranteeing security in the event of the death of one of the two, we saw no other advantage in getting married,” explains Natalia.

María José Aguilar (34 years old) chose the other legal route to formalize her relationship with her partner after a year of dating. “We were both in our thirties and we already knew more or less what we wanted, so we thought it was good to join together legally because we had joint purchasing plans and obviously because we maintained a romantic relationship”, recalls the English translator. who signed a civil union in February 2020.

María José chose this option because it seemed less bureaucratic than marriage. and, among the characteristics, it has drawn your attention to the fact that the possible dissolution of the contract can be carried out at the civil registry. “In the event of separation, the process is less cumbersome. It’s not the same as when you experience a breakdown in your marriage and you have to live with all that involves doing paperwork, which is a constant reminder that the relationship didn’t work out,” explains -he.

On the day of the civil union, they went to the civil registry with family members and friends, then had a simple lunch as a celebration. “Marriage was never the first option. Now, we’ve talked about it, but I think it’s to throw a bigger party. But for me, it’s not necessary to be married on paper, so to speak. Ultimately, we do these formalities also for economic security and because we later have children and properties in common,” explains María José, who has a three-year-old son with her partner and a ten-year-old son. years with her. old relationship.

The lawyer Angela Masson explains that the most innovative feature of the Civil Union Agreement, when it was signed in 2015, was that it allowed people of the same sex to join this union and that it recognized civil cohabitees as such. “The latter means that people were left legally protected from the point of view of property and rights which, at that time, were only explicit for marriage, were extended to civil cohabitees. , as financial compensation for having devoted themselves to the care of their children. Also inheritance, where the cohabitant is recognized as part of the compulsory heirs, who cannot be ignored,” explains the expert.

Concerning the differences between the two unions, Masson emphasizes the form of dissolution of each of them: “The AUC can be declared void, just like marriage, but it always provides that an agreement is concluded between the spouses at a notary or before a civil registrar. It can also be a unilateral dissolution in which one of the cohabitants makes a declaration in which he explains that he wishes to end the cohabitation and that he must simply inform the other cohabitant through legal channels.

On the other hand, marriage cannot be ended so easily, even when both parties agree and want to sign the divorce. Angela explains that “the divorce must be subject to the approval of a family judge who must verify that the couple has been separated for at least a year and that the joint affairs and the children, if any, have been settled. The dissolution of the civil union can be regularized by a notary and then registered with the civil registry.

For the lawyer, the possibility of dissolving the AUC in a simpler way can also be a double-edged sword. “In marriage, both parties are required to agree, but the possibility of this being one-sided simply because of the wishes of one party is not established. There is a unilateral divorce, but you must file a complaint before a judge to pronounce the divorce. In this sense, we find ourselves in a more protected situation in marriage. Within the AUC, we can agree on the community of property, which means that they remain in community for both, but that this protection could also disappear with the will of the other”, argues- he.

Another difference is that within the framework of the civil union agreement it is not possible to adopt, which was a limitation for couples who wanted to become parents through this option, especially for same-sex couples before equal marriage.

In this type of civil union, certain obligations provided for in marriage, such as fidelity and respect, are not taken into account. “This means that I can end the marriage for failure to fulfill any of the obligations in court and it is also possible to apply for alimony. The lists of the civil code who are the holders of the maintenance action and the cohabitants have not yet been added. Without prejudice, the civil union agreement establishes the obligation to cover the costs of living together, but alimony is not for living together, but for one’s own needs and this is what the spouses of the spouse intervene in. marriage and not civil partners,” explains the professional.