Relationship Breakdown

If you live in rented accommodation

If your name is on the tenancy agreement, either as a joint tenant or as a sole tenant, you have a contractual and legal right to live in the property. 

If your name is not on the tenancy agreement, your rights to live in the property once you and your partner have split up will depend on your relationship status.

If you are married or in a registered civil partnership, you have the same right to occupy the home as your spouse, even if you are not legally a sole or joint tenant. Neither you nor your spouse can be evicted from your home without a court order. 

You may be able to ask the court to grant an occupation order to allow you to remain in the home until divorce, and to transfer the tenancy to you after divorce. You should get legal advice about this early on.

If you and your ex-partner were not married (or in a civil partnership)

Many people assume that if you live together, you have the same rights as a married couple. However, this is not the case;

• If you live together, but your name is not on the tenancy agreement, you won't automatically be able to stay in the home if your partner wants you to leave, even if you have children.
• If you have been or are living together and have children, you may be able to apply to court for a transfer of the tenancy under the Childrens Act.
• Even if you do not have children and are not a tenant, you can apply for an occupation order allowing you to remain in the home in the same way as a married non-tenant. The order may last for up to six months and be renewed for another six months only. 
• If your partner moves out and is no longer using the accommodation as their only or main home, the tenancy conditions may be broken and the landlord can end the tenancy and evict you, unless you have an Occupation Order.

Occupation order

If you would like to stay in the home, you will need to go to court to apply for an Occupation Order. In the meantime, you can continue to pay the rent yourself. 

You may be able to get housing benefit to help with this, even if your name is not on the tenancy agreement. 

Your landlord does not have to accept rent from you if you aren't an official tenant and you don't have an occupation order. 

Speak to your landlord if you're in this position and see if you can get the tenancy transferred into your name.

If you obtain an occupation order from the court you have a right to stay on in the home after your partner has moved out, even if your name is not on the tenancy agreement.

If your landlord wants you to leave, they will have to go through the official eviction procedure for your tenancy type and get a court order to remove you. You will have a right to stay in the home as long as your occupation order lasts. During this time, you can take steps to get the tenancy transferred into your name.

An Occupation Order lasts initially for up to six months, after which time you'll need to apply to the court to get your rights renewed for up to another six months, which is the maximum for cohabitants.

If your name is not on the tenancy agreement and you don't have an occupation order granted, you won't have a right to stay on in the home after you and your partner have split up and they have moved out.

Owner occupiers
If you are married, or in a registered civil partnership, you have matrimonial home rights which prevent your partner from evicting you from the home without a court order, whether you are legally the owner or joint owner of the property.

The property cannot be sold without your consent, although you will need to register an interest in it through a solicitor to prevent this. 

The court has power to grant an occupation order to the partner who does not legally own the home for as long as it sees fit, whether violence has taken place.

• If you are living/cohabiting with your partner, your rights to remain in the home vary according to various factors. 
• If you bought and own the home jointly, then regardless of your gender, or if you have children, you can apply to the court for an occupation order in the same way as a married couple. 
• If your partner is the sole owner of the property you have no automatic right to remain, but may apply to the court for an occupation order giving temporary rights to remain.
• If you have a child from the relationship, the court has power under the Children Act 1989 to transfer ownership or allow one partner occupation of the home if it is in the interests of the child.