Husband and wife can agree on which is common property and which is separate property or can divide property according to each party’s contributions.

Legal grounds:

• Law on Marriage and Family 2014.

We receive the following questions:

3 years before marriage, my husband bought an apartment in installments. When we got married, my husband and I contributed money to pay off the house loan, but we have not paid it all yet. I want to ask if I get divorced in the future, do i have any part value of the apartment?

During marriage as well as when resolving a divorce in Vietnam, husband and wife have the right to divide property and agree on which is common property and which is separate property. If no agreement is reached, the division of property shall be settled according to the general principles of law.

Pursuant to Article 33 of the Law on Marriage and Family 2014 as follows:

Article 33. Common property of husband and wife

1. Common property of husband and wife includes property created by a spouse, incomes generated from labor, production and business activities, yields and profits arising from separate property and other lawful incomes in the marriage period; except the case prescribed in Clause 1, Article 40 of this Law; property jointly inherited by or given to both, and other property agreed upon by husband and wife as common property.
   • The land use rights obtained by a spouse after marriage shall be common property of husband and wife, unless they are separately inherited by, or given to a spouse or are obtained through transactions made with separate property.
2. Common property of husband and wife shall be under integrated common ownership and used to meet family needs and perform common obligations of husband and wife.
3. When exists no ground to prove that a property in dispute between husband and wife is his/her separate property, such property shall be regarded as common property.

Pursuant to Article 43 of the Law on Marriage and Family 2014 as follows:

Article 43. Separate property of husband and wife

1. Separate property of a spouse includes property owned by this person before marriage; property inherited by or given separately to him/her during the marriage period; property divided to him/her under Articles 38,39 and 40 of this Law; property to meet his/her essential needs and other property under his/her ownership as prescribed by law.
2. Property created from separate property of a husband or wife is also property of his/ her own. Yields and profits arising from separate property during the marriage period must comply with Clause 1, Article 33, and Clause 1, Article 40, of this Law.

According to the above regulations, due to the husband and wife to jointly contribute money to pay the debt to buy an apartment during the marriage. Therefore, part of the apartment is the common property of husband and wife.

So:

• If during the marriage, the couple made a notarized written agreement to divide the apartment purchased in installments, then upon divorce, the couple has the right to request the court to divide according to this agreement.
• If there is no agreement mentioned above, upon divorce, the court will decide to divide the apartment based on each party’s contribution to creating and maintaining the apartment. Then the value of the apartment that the husband paid before marriage can be considered the husband’s separate property.