Florida is not a common law marriage state for any couple who got together after January 1, 1968. Since that date, the only way to become legally married in Florida is to get a license from a county clerk and have the marriage solemnized by an authorized officiant. Living together, sharing a last name, filing joint bills, or introducing each other as spouses does not create a marriage under Florida law, no matter how many years pass. Two narrow exceptions exist: pre-1968 common law marriages formed in Florida remain valid, and Florida recognizes common law marriages properly formed in states that still allow them.
The 1968 Cutoff
Florida Statute 741.211 states that no common law marriage entered into after January 1, 1968, is valid in the state.1Florida Senate. Florida Code 741.211 – Common-Law Marriages Void The statute is not retroactive. A couple who established a valid common law marriage in Florida before that date is still legally married today.
Proving a pre-1968 Florida common law marriage requires three elements: both partners intended to be married, they lived together as spouses, and they presented themselves to the community as a married couple. Because any surviving marriage of that kind is now more than five decades old, these claims usually come up in probate or inheritance disputes rather than in ongoing family court matters.
Common Law Marriages from Other States
Florida will not let you form a common law marriage inside its borders, but it will honor one you validly formed somewhere else. The U.S. Constitution’s Full Faith and Credit Clause requires each state to respect the public acts and judicial proceedings of every other state.2Library of Congress. Specifically Applicable Federal Law on Full Faith and Credit Clause If a couple legally establishes a common law marriage in a state that still permits it and then moves to Florida, the marriage travels with them.
Only a handful of states still allow new common law marriages, including Colorado, Kansas, Montana, and Texas, along with a few others that recognize them through case law.3National Conference of State Legislatures. Common Law Marriage by State Requirements vary by state, but the shared elements are mutual agreement to be married, cohabitation, and holding out as a married couple.
The burden of proof sits entirely on the couple claiming the marriage. When the question surfaces in a Florida court during divorce, probate, or a benefits dispute, you have to show your union met the specific requirements of the state where it formed. Useful evidence includes joint tax returns filed as married, shared property deeds, insurance policies naming each other as spouses, affidavits from friends and family, and any records that show both partners treated themselves as married. A valid common law marriage recognized under state law is also treated as a marriage by the Social Security Administration for spousal and survivor benefits, though the SSA has its own evidence rules and requires signed statements from the spouses and, ordinarily, from blood relatives.4Social Security Administration. Section 404.726 Evidence of Common-Law Marriage
What Unmarried Couples Lose in Florida
Because no amount of time together will create a marriage in Florida on its own, unmarried partners are legal strangers in several situations where the difference matters most.
Inheritance
If your partner dies without a will, Florida’s intestate succession statute distributes the estate to the surviving spouse, descendants, parents, and siblings, in that order.5Official Internet Site of the Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 732.102 – Spouse’s Share of Intestate Estate An unmarried partner is not on that list. You could share a home with someone for thirty years and receive nothing from the estate.
Healthcare Decisions
When someone becomes incapacitated without designating a healthcare surrogate, Florida law hands decision-making authority to a court-appointed guardian first, then the spouse, adult children, parents, adult siblings, an adult relative who has shown special care, and finally a close friend.6Official Internet Site of the Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 765.401 – The Proxy An unmarried partner qualifies only as a close friend, sixth in line behind the partner’s parents and siblings.
Taxes and Gifts
Unmarried couples cannot file federal tax returns jointly. Each partner files as single, or as head of household if they have a qualifying dependent and pay more than half the household expenses.7Internal Revenue Service. Filing Status Joint filing typically produces a lower combined tax bill for couples with unequal incomes, so unmarried partners often pay more than married couples earning the same amount.
Gifts between partners work differently too. Spouses can transfer unlimited amounts to each other tax-free. Unmarried partners are limited to the annual gift tax exclusion, which is $19,000 per recipient for 2026.8Internal Revenue Service. Estate and Gift Tax Anything above that counts against the giver’s lifetime exemption.
Property Division at Breakup
Florida courts have no framework for splitting assets between unmarried partners the way they do in a divorce. There is no equitable distribution, no alimony, and no presumption of shared ownership. Whoever holds title generally keeps the asset, and reimbursement claims are difficult without written proof.
Documents That Fill the Gap
Florida gives unmarried couples the tools to create most of the protections that come automatically with marriage, but every one of them requires paperwork done in advance.
Healthcare Surrogate Designation
Any competent adult in Florida can designate another person as their healthcare surrogate under Florida Statute 765.202. For an unmarried couple this is the single most important document. It overrides the default priority list and puts your partner in charge of medical decisions if you cannot make them yourself. The designation only works one way, so both partners should complete their own.
Wills and Beneficiary Designations
A will is essential because unmarried partners have no automatic inheritance rights. Without one, everything passes under the intestate rules that leave your partner out entirely.5Official Internet Site of the Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 732.102 – Spouse’s Share of Intestate Estate Updating beneficiaries on retirement accounts, life insurance, and payable-on-death bank accounts matters just as much, since those assets pass directly to the named beneficiary outside probate.
Cohabitation Agreements
A cohabitation agreement is a written contract covering how a couple will handle property, debts, and household finances during the relationship and if it ends. It is the closest substitute for the property rules that apply in a divorce, and without one you are left to sort out shared purchases and contributions after the fact.
Partition Actions for Shared Real Estate
When unmarried partners co-own real estate and cannot agree on what to do with it after a breakup, either co-owner can file a partition action under Florida Statute Chapter 64.9The Florida Statutes. Florida Statutes 64 – Partition of Property The court can order the property physically divided or, more commonly, sold with the proceeds split between the owners.
Hospital Visitation
Federal CMS regulations require hospitals that receive Medicare or Medicaid funding to let patients choose their own visitors, including unmarried partners.10HHS.gov. FAQs on Patient Visitation at Certain Federally Funded Entities and Facilities Facilities may not restrict visitation based on the visitor’s relationship to the patient. The right covers visitation only, not medical decision-making, which still requires a healthcare surrogate designation.
Getting Legally Married in Florida
If you want the full set of spousal rights, the only path in Florida is a licensed and solemnized marriage. Both partners apply for a marriage license at a county clerk of the circuit court, present valid photo ID and Social Security numbers, and must be at least 18 (a 17-year-old can marry with parental consent if the other partner is no more than two years older).11Official Internet Site of the Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 741.04 – Issuance of Marriage License The standard license fee is $86, reduced to $61 for couples who complete a registered premarital preparation course within the year before applying.12Official Internet Site of the Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 741.01
Florida residents face a three-day waiting period between issuance and effect, waived if both complete the premarital course or if a judge finds good cause. Non-residents are exempt. The license is good for 60 days. The ceremony must be performed by an authorized officiant: ordained clergy, judicial officers including retired judges, clerks of the circuit court, and Florida notaries public.13Florida Senate. Florida Statutes 741.07 – Persons Authorized to Solemnize Matrimony Quaker and Friends ceremonies are recognized under the same statute.