Who owns the money in your bank account? And that on the joint account? These four options are for couples | MyGuide

The simplest is a marriage with generality of property. All funds you have then belong to both of you, regardless of which accounts they are in: both the funds in a joint account and those in the partners’ own names then fall into the community.

In the event of death, half of the sums on all accounts together end up in the estate, on which inheritance tax must be paid.

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In this system, each spouse has their own assets, which are separate from the assets of the other partner. So there are no common assets. You can at most own a few things in a so-called joint ownership. The share in this joint ownership then belongs to the equity of both parties. This means that what you had before marriage remains yours. What you earn during the marriage remains yours. And if you receive an inheritance, that is also the case.

In the event of a separation of goods, the assets in your own account are the property of the holder to the extent that you keep them ‘pure’ and do not mix them with income from your partner, which you could no longer reconstruct afterwards. Those on a joint account – for example to purchase things together – are jointly owned.

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You do not have to choose one of the two systems: you can also make a division according to your own wishes. You must then draw up a marriage contract in which this division is agreed. To rule out all problems, you can, for example, state that funds in separate accounts may or may not belong to a partner. This way there is no discussion afterwards about a possible mixing.

If you do not enter into a marriage contract and do not opt ​​for a system of community of property or separation of property, you will automatically receive the arrangement provided for by law. This means that there are three assets: two separate assets for each partner and one common asset.

The equity of those involved includes the property they already had before the marriage and the inheritance they received during the marriage. All acquisitions made during the marriage will then be included in the community property. This means, among other things, that all professional income is communal, regardless of who earned it, just like the income from one’s own property. For example, if you owned your own home before you got married or you inherited it and you rent it out, then that home belongs to your own assets, but the rental income from it ends up in the community assets. It does not matter to which account the income is deposited. If a salary is paid into your own account, it is still part of the common property.

The money in a joint account is legally presumed to belong to the joint assets. But this presumption is rebuttable. This is important, for example, if you have your own funds – for example from an inheritance – and you deposit them into a joint account. They can then be mixed with communal funds and thus become part of the communal assets. The Court of Cassation followed that reasoning in 2011, but stated that it only applies to the extent that the contrary is not proven and the funds can still be individualized. It may therefore be advisable to have the co-holder sign a statement if you park your own funds in a joint account.

If you want to keep everything pure, it is best to keep the funds from before the marriage in a separate account in which you no longer carry out any transactions afterwards, except for reinvestments that remain completely separate. The interest he or she would receive and which is joint income is then best transferred to a joint account. In this way, everything remains individualizable and there is no mixing of assets.

Whichever of these four options you take, it is important to make as much of your parked money as possible: this comparator helps you look for the highest savings return.

Only the holder has full control over a personal account. If he or she wants his or her partner to also be able to handle these funds, he or she must give power of attorney to do so.

If your partner deposits his or her wages into your account, you manage the money, even if it is owned by both of them (in the case of common property or in the statutory system) or by him or her (in the case of a separation of property system). .

Spouses who are married under the statutory system both automatically have power of attorney on a joint account. This means that they can perform all transactions with it, without the partner’s permission.

Read more on Spaargids.be:

Be wary of the tax authorities: you can save that much in an account before you pay withholding tax

Five steps to the savings account that suits you best

What happens to your pension savings if you die prematurely?

This article was brought to you by our partner Spaargids.be.
Spaargids.be is an independent comparator of banking products and looks for competitive prices and better interest rates.

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