Marriage contracts

If you wish to deviate from the legal regulations of the joint property of spouses, you may restrict or extend the extent of your joint property of spouses in an agreement that may only be drawn up by a notary in the form of a notarial deed. Restriction of the joint property of spouses is understood to mean where a partner becomes the exclusive owner of a property originally belonging to both (e.g. jointly purchased real estate will become the exclusive property of one of the partners) or rules may be drawn up to specify which assets will become the exclusive ownership of the spouses in the future. Extension of the joint property of spouses is understood to mean where the exclusive ownership of one of the partners becomes their joint property (e.g. a partner inherits a property and the spouses wish it to become their joint property).

Spouses may conclude a marriage contract before getting married or anytime during the marriage.

The reason for entering into such an agreement is generally to resolve situations that could negatively affect family property relations. Agreements may for instance reduce the impact of one partner’s business risk on the family as well as prevent the complicated settlement of property after a divorce or unwanted succession by a descendant.

In the Czech Republic, notaries perform a notarial activity, provide legal assistance, perform property administration, and perform other activities for which they are entitled compensation the amount of which, as well as the manner in which it is established, is governed by the provisions of the Decree No. 196/2001 Coll., as amended. The amount of notary's remuneration shall be determined in accordance with the compensation rate per act or total of acts concerning the notary's activity determined by a fixed amount or as a percentage of a tariff rate, whereas the value of the subject of the act serves as the tariff value (e.g. the usual price of a thing, the price of transferred property, the amount of a claim, etc.). Due to a complex calculation of the compensation for the notary's activity, the potential applicants / clients are recommended to address their possible inquiries directly to the notary having the sufficient knowledge of the relevant language.