Cape Town - With December just around the corner, you maybe planning a December break - which inevitably will include a variety of summer family celebrations, from initiations to weddings.
Maybe you are even busy planning your own wedding and spending every waking hour finalising all your arrangements to make sure that your special day is perfect.
But have you given any thought to your marriage admin?
“While weddings are a great time of joy and new beginnings symbolizing the joining of families and the creation of a new family, the other side of this union is that your status changes, which has other implications,” says Metropolitan’s Cebisa Mfenyana in a press release.
“You gain a spouse as well as an extended family, all of which impacts on your life decisions, from your insurance policies to your finances. And if you choose to go the traditional marriage route, there are certain legal matters that you need to be aware of for your protection.”
Mfenyana outlines some of marriage admin to think about, and how best to navigate through it with your future spouse.
Are you covered?
“Ensuring that you and your spouse have the right cover in place could help prevent a lot of stress in the future when life’s unexpected circumstances arise,” says Mfenyana.
“If you’re buying a home with your new spouse you will need life cover because of the bond you will take out. Life cover also ensures that your financial responsibilities will be taken care of and your spouse looked after if you are no longer able to work due to illness or if you pass away,” explains Mfenyana.
Cover for critical illnesses is also something to be considered, Mfenyana notes. “It is important to have honest and open discussions with your partner about your health and ensure that you get covered for critical illness, especially if you have a family medical history of diabetes, hypertension, heart problems or strokes.”
Lastly, when it comes to cover, ensuring that you have funeral cover for yourself and your spouse as well as your extended family is important. “As you know, many of us don’t only marry our spouse, but the whole family – which means that you share in your responsibilities and you need to prepare accordingly.”
Plan to save – together
Part of starting a new life with someone includes planning. “You need to plan together, lay your goals and dreams on the table, agree on them and then start planning for them,” encourages Mfenyana.
“Planning includes saving for those big dreams and goals like a car, a home, a holiday, children, and even further education. Getting into the habit of saving at the onset of your marriage is a wise thing to do. Have short term and long term goals that you save for and find the best saving or investment vehicle to help you realise your goals. That’s how many successful married couples have done it and have been able to achieve success.”
Customary marriage
“Should you choose to have a customary marriage only or choose to do that first and plan for a ‘white wedding’ at a later stage, your marriage should be registered within three months of it taking place,” says Mfenyana. You can do this at any office of the Department of Home Affairs or - in cases where there are no Home Affairs offices - through a designated traditional leader.
“While a customary marriage is still recognised as valid under South African law, for practical reasons registering your marriage is required by the Recognition of Customary Marriages Act (RCMA). Registering your marriage will mean you will get issued with a marriage certificate, which will make it much easier for you to prove that you are or were married.”
Mfenyana points out that registering your customary marriage and obtaining a marriage certificate protects you in the following ways, among others:
I If you need to claim death benefits from your spouse’s workplace after death, the marriage certificate serves as proof that you were married.
* If you are a woman, having a marriage certificate will make it easier to enforce your property rights if your husband takes a second, third or fourth wife.
* Having a marriage certificate makes it easier to obtain maintenance for children and to help the court protect the interests of dependent children in the case of a divorce.
It is also important to know that the RCMA automatically sees all people in customary marriages as married in community of property - this means that everything, both assets and liabilities, are shared equally between husband and wife, says Mfenyana. “If you and your partner do not want to be married in community of property, you will have to enter into an ante-nuptial contract before you get married. If you are already married and do not want to be married in community of property, you will have to apply to the High Court to change your status.”
When it comes to understanding your rights in a customary marriage, doing your homework could save you a lot of trouble in the future. For more information, visit: http://bit.ly/1QKSHEO
A last word
“One last word on marriage admin: if you have existing policies, remember to inform your insurer of your new marital status and include your new spouse as a beneficiary or dependent,” Mfenyana advises. When in doubt on any of these issues - or if you need advice on life cover and your savings plan as a couple - speak to your financial adviser.
IOL, adapted from a press release