Common-Law Relationships in Prince Edward Island: Rights and Property

In Prince Edward Island, common-law partners have no automatic right to divide property when a relationship ends, but many of them can inherit under the province's intestacy law on exactly the same footing as a married spouse, a rule that sets PEI apart from every other Atlantic province.

Information last verified on 2026-08-15. This article has not yet been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

"Spouse" Means Two Different Things Under PEI's Family Law Act

Prince Edward Island's Family Law Act does not use one single definition of "spouse." It uses two different ones, and which definition applies changes everything about what a common-law partner is entitled to.

For property, Part I/II section 1(g) defines "spouse" narrowly: an individual who, in respect of another person, is married to that person, or has entered into a marriage that is voidable or void. Common-law partners are excluded outright, no matter how long they lived together or whether they raised children together.

For support, Part III uses a much broader definition. Under section 29(b), you count as a "spouse" if you are not married to your partner but have cohabited with them in a conjugal relationship continuously for at least three years, or if you are cohabiting with them and together you are the natural or adoptive parents of a child, with no minimum duration required in that branch.

That split, one narrow definition for property and a much broader one for support inside the same Act, is the single most important structural fact to understand about common-law status in PEI.

Property Division: The Part You Don't Get Automatically

Because Part I/II's family property division regime runs off the narrower, married-only definition of "spouse," PEI common-law partners have no statutory right to have property divided when the relationship ends, no matter how long the couple lived together or whether they raised children together. It does not matter whose name is on the assets, or how much each partner earned.

PEI also has no domestic-partnership or civil-union registry. Some provinces, Nova Scotia among them, let a couple register their relationship and unlock property rights that way. PEI has nothing comparable; searches of PEI Vital Statistics turn up only ordinary birth, marriage, and death registration, nothing for unmarried partnerships. In PEI, common-law status is purely a matter of fact (cohabitation duration and whether you share a child), with no way to register early and accelerate rights.

The routes available to an unmarried partner seeking a share of property are the same general-law tools available across common-law Canada: a written cohabitation agreement (covered below), or an equitable claim for unjust enrichment or a constructive trust if the relationship functioned as a genuine economic partnership, along the lines the Supreme Court of Canada set out in Kerr v. Baranow, 2011 SCC 10.

Spousal Support: The Three-Year (or Shared-Child) Test

Support is where PEI extends real rights to common-law couples. Under FLA section 29(b), and the support obligation itself imposed by section 30 on "every spouse or former spouse," you qualify as a "spouse" for support purposes if you meet either branch of the test:

• You have cohabited with your partner in a conjugal relationship continuously for at least three years, or
• You are cohabiting with your partner in a conjugal relationship and together you are the natural or adoptive parents of a child, with no minimum cohabitation period required.

Meeting this test opens the door to a possible support claim. It does not create a property claim; property and support are governed by entirely separate definitions inside the same Act, described above. For how support itself is generally calculated once entitlement is established, see our overview of spousal support in Canada.

Intestacy: Where PEI Actually Breaks From Its Atlantic Neighbours

This is the part of PEI law most likely to surprise people, and it runs the opposite direction from the property gap above. Elsewhere in Atlantic Canada, a common-law partner typically inherits nothing automatically if their partner dies without a will. In PEI, many common-law partners inherit exactly the way a married spouse would.

The reason is a chain across three separate statutes. PEI's Probate Act governs intestacy (dying without a valid will), and its own definitions section, along with the "Distribution of Estates of Intestates" provisions themselves, never define "spouse." The Act simply distributes shares to "the surviving spouse" (sections 87 to 93) without saying what that term means inside the Probate Act.

That silence matters, because PEI's Interpretation Act fills it. The Interpretation Act's general definitions section states that "'spouse' means a spouse as defined in clause 29(b) of the Family Law Act," which is the broad, support-eligibility definition described above: three years of cohabitation, or cohabitation plus a shared child.

Chain those two statutes together and the result is this: a PEI common-law partner who meets the three-year or shared-child test inherits on intestacy on exactly the same footing as a married spouse. Under Probate Act sections 87 to 89, that means one-half of the estate if the deceased left one surviving child, one-third if there is more than one child, and the entire estate if there is no surviving issue.

There is one carve-out, and it applies equally to married and common-law spouses. Under section 99, if the surviving spouse was cohabiting in a new conjugal relationship with someone else at the time the intestate died, that surviving spouse takes no part of the estate. A separated-but-not-divorced spouse, married or common-law, who has moved on loses the intestacy share entirely.

One misconception worth correcting directly. Some secondary commentary describes an up-front "preferential share," a fixed dollar amount paid to a surviving spouse before the rest of the estate is split, as though it applies in PEI the way it does in some other provinces (Nova Scotia's Intestate Succession Act, for comparison, sets a $50,000 preferential share). PEI's Probate Act contains no such mechanism. Its intestacy scheme is a straight fractional split, with no separate preferential-share step for anyone, married or common-law.

We could not confirm whether a PEI court has actually applied this Interpretation Act to Family Law Act chain to award a common-law partner an intestate share in a reported decision. The statutory chain itself is clearly written into the current consolidated text, but that is a separate question from whether it has been tested in litigation.

Cohabitation Agreements: PEI's Statutory Route to Filling the Property Gap

Because the default property rules give common-law partners so little automatically, PEI's Family Law Act gives couples a specific, statute-recognized tool to set their own terms. Section 52(1) allows "two persons who are cohabiting or intend to cohabit and who are not married to each other" to enter into an agreement covering their rights and obligations during cohabitation, on separation, or on death, including ownership or division of property and support obligations. The Act defines this as a "cohabitation agreement," one of three types of "domestic contract" it recognizes, alongside marriage contracts and separation agreements.

One detail worth knowing: under section 52(2), if the couple later marries, their cohabitation agreement is automatically deemed to become a marriage contract. It does not need to be redrafted just because the relationship's legal status changed.

For couples who want the property protection PEI's default law does not give them, a properly drafted cohabitation agreement, in writing, addressing property and support, made with full disclosure from both partners, is the most direct route available. For more on how these agreements work more broadly, see our guide to separation agreements in Canada.

Federal Programs Use Different Rules Entirely

CPP survivor benefits and the CRA's 12-month common-law tax definition are federal rules that apply the same way in every province, including Prince Edward Island. They do not track the Family Law Act's three-year (or shared-child) test described above, and qualifying under one does not automatically qualify a couple under the other.

PEI vs. Married Spouses, Side by Side

PEI in Context

PEI's pattern (no property rights, but real support and intestacy rights for qualifying partners) is not what every Atlantic province does. Nova Scotia lets registered domestic partners access the full Matrimonial Property Act. New Brunswick and Newfoundland and Labrador give common-law partners neither an automatic property right nor an automatic intestate share. PEI's intestacy rule specifically, inheriting on the same footing as a married spouse once the FLA test is met, is the outlier among its neighbours. For how these provinces compare, and for the rules in Ontario, see our overview of common-law relationships across Canada and our guides to common-law relationships in Ontario and dying without a will in Canada.

Given how much rides on the specific facts (cohabitation duration, whether there is a shared child, and whether either partner has moved on to a new relationship), couples who want certainty about where they stand should not rely on assumptions carried over from another province. A cohabitation agreement, and a properly drafted will regardless of the Interpretation Act chain, remain the most reliable ways to control the outcome. See our guides to making a will in Canada and power of attorney in Canada for the related planning documents.

Disclaimer

This article provides general information about Prince Edward Island family law and is not legal advice. It reflects the Family Law Act, Probate Act, and Interpretation Act as consolidated to March 30, 2026. We could not confirm whether any PEI court has applied the Interpretation Act's cross-reference to award a common-law partner an intestate share in a reported decision; the statutory reading is well supported by the current text, but has not been tested against case law in this research. Family law and estate outcomes depend on the specific facts of each relationship. Consult a licensed PEI family law or estates lawyer about your situation.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do common-law partners in PEI split property when they separate?

No. PEI's Family Law Act defines "spouse" for property purposes (Part I/II, section 1(g)) as a married person only, so common-law partners have no automatic right to equal division. A common-law partner seeking a share of property has to rely on a cohabitation agreement or an equitable claim like unjust enrichment.

How long do you have to live together to be common law in PEI?

It depends what you're asking. For spousal support, the threshold is three years of continuous cohabitation, or no minimum at all if you and your partner have a child together. For property, there is no threshold, since automatic property division never applies to unmarried couples in PEI regardless of how long they lived together.

Does a common-law partner inherit if their partner dies without a will in PEI?

Often yes. Because PEI's Probate Act does not define "spouse" on its own, the province's Interpretation Act supplies the definition from the Family Law Act's support test (three years of cohabitation, or cohabitation plus a shared child). A common-law partner who meets that test inherits under the Probate Act's intestacy formula the same as a married spouse would.

Does PEI give a married spouse a preferential share before the rest of an intestate estate is split?

No. Unlike Nova Scotia, PEI's Probate Act has no separate preferential-share mechanism. Its intestacy shares are a straight fraction of the estate, whether the surviving spouse is married or a qualifying common-law partner.

What happens to an inheritance if the surviving partner has already moved on to someone new?

Under section 99 of the Probate Act, a surviving spouse (married or common-law) who is cohabiting in a new conjugal relationship at the time the intestate dies takes no part of the estate.

Does PEI have a common-law registry like Nova Scotia?

No. PEI has no domestic-partnership or civil-union registration scheme. Common-law status in PEI is decided entirely on the facts, how long you cohabited and whether you share a child, with no option to register and accelerate your rights.

What is a cohabitation agreement and does it help in PEI?

Yes. PEI's Family Law Act explicitly defines and recognizes cohabitation agreements as a type of domestic contract (section 52). A written cohabitation agreement can set out how property will be divided and whether support will be paid, filling in the protection the default law does not provide. If the couple later marries, the agreement automatically becomes a marriage contract.