Family Law Act 1996

30 Rights concerning [F1 home where one spouse or civil partner] has no estate, etc. E+W

(1) This section applies if—

(a) one spouse [F2 or civil partner (“A”)] is entitled to occupy a dwelling-house by virtue of—

(i) a beneficial estate or interest or contract; or

(ii) any enactment giving [F3 A] the right to remain in occupation; and

(b) the other spouse [F4 or civil partner (“B”)] is not so entitled.

(2) Subject to the provisions of this Part, [F5 B] has the following rights ([F6 home rights”])—

(a) if in occupation, a right not to be evicted or excluded from the dwelling-house or any part of it by [F7 A] except with the leave of the court given by an order under section 33;

(b) if not in occupation, a right with the leave of the court so given to enter into and occupy the dwelling-house.

(3) If [F8 B] is entitled under this section to occupy a dwelling-house or any part of a dwelling-house, any payment or tender made or other thing done by [F8 B] in or towards satisfaction of any liability of [F9 A] in respect of rent, mortgage payments or other outgoings affecting the dwelling-house is, whether or not it is made or done in pursuance of an order under section 40, as good as if made or done by [F9 A].

(4) [F10 B's] occupation by virtue of this section—

(a) is to be treated, for the purposes of the M1 Rent (Agriculture) Act 1976 and the M2 Rent Act 1977 (other than Part V and sections 103 to 106 of that Act), as occupation [F11 by A as A's] residence, and

(b) if [F12 B occupies the dwelling-house as B's] only or principal home, is to be treated, for the purposes of the M3 Housing Act 1985 [F13 , Part I of the Housing Act 1988 and Chapter I of Part V of the Housing Act 1996], as occupation [F14 by A as A's] only or principal home.

(5) If [F15 B])—

(a) is entitled under this section to occupy a dwelling-house or any part of a dwelling-house, and

(b) makes any payment in or towards satisfaction of any liability of [F16 A] in respect of mortgage payments affecting the dwelling-house,

the person to whom the payment is made may treat it as having been made by [F17 A], but the fact that that person has treated any such payment as having been so made does not affect any claim of [F18 B against A] to an interest in the dwelling-house by virtue of the payment.

(6) If [F19 B] is entitled under this section to occupy a dwelling-house or part of a dwelling-house by reason of an interest of [F20 A] under a trust, all the provisions of subsections (3) to (5) apply in relation to the trustees as they apply in relation to [F20 A].

(7) This section does not apply to a dwelling-house [F21 which—

(a) in the case of spouses, has at no time been, and was at no time intended by them to be, a matrimonial home of theirs; and

(b) in the case of civil partners, has at no time been, and was at no time intended by them to be, a civil partnership home of theirs.]

(8) [F22 B’s home rights] continue—

(a) only so long as the marriage [F23 or civil partnership] subsists, except to the extent that an order under section 33(5) otherwise provides; and

(b) only so long as [F24 A] is entitled as mentioned in subsection (1) to occupy the dwelling-house, except where provision is made by section 31 for those rights to be a charge on an estate or interest in the dwelling-house.

(9) It is hereby declared that [F25 a person]—

(a) who has an equitable interest in a dwelling-house or in its proceeds of sale, but

(b) is not [F25 a person] in whom there is vested (whether solely or as joint tenant) a legal estate in fee simple or a legal term of years absolute in the dwelling-house,

is to be treated, only for the purpose of determining whether he has [F26 home rights], as not being entitled to occupy the dwelling-house by virtue of that interest.

Textual Amendments

F1 Words in s. 30 heading substituted (5.12.2005) by Civil Partnership Act 2004 (c. 33), ss. 82, 263, Sch. 9 para. 1(1)(11); S.I. 2005/3175, art. 2(1), Sch. 1

F2 Words in s. 30(1)(a) inserted (5.12.2005) by Civil Partnership Act 2004 (c. 33), ss. 82, 263, Sch. 9 para. 1(1)(2)(a)(i); S.I. 2005/3175, art. 2(1), Sch. 1

F3 Words in s. 30(1)(a) substituted (5.12.2005) by Civil Partnership Act 2004 (c. 33), ss. 82, 263, Sch. 9 para. 1(1)(2)(a)(ii); S.I. 2005/3175, art. 2(1), Sch. 1

F4 Words in s. 30(1)(b) inserted (5.12.2005) by Civil Partnership Act 2004 (c. 33), ss. 82, 263, Sch. 9 para. 1(1)(2)(b); S.I. 2005/3175, art. 2(1), Sch. 1

F5 Words in s. 30(2) substituted (5.12.2005) by Civil Partnership Act 2004 (c. 33), ss. 82, 263, Sch. 9 para. 1(1)(3)(a); S.I. 2005/3175, art. 2(1), Sch. 1

F6 Words in s. 30(2) substituted (5.12.2005) by Civil Partnership Act 2004 (c. 33), ss. 82, 263, Sch. 9 para. 1(1)(3)(b); S.I. 2005/3175, art. 2(1), Sch. 1

F7 Words in s. 30(2)(a) substituted (5.12.2005) by Civil Partnership Act 2004 (c. 33), ss. 82, 263, Sch. 9 para. 1(1)(3)(c); S.I. 2005/3175, art. 2(1), Sch. 1

F8 Words in s. 30(3) substituted (5.12.2005) by Civil Partnership Act 2004 (c. 33), ss. 82, 263, Sch. 9 para. 1(1)(4)(a); S.I. 2005/3175, art. 2(1), Sch. 1

F9 Words in s. 30(3) substituted (5.12.2005) by Civil Partnership Act 2004 (c. 33), ss. 82, 263, Sch. 9 para. 1(1)(4)(b); S.I. 2005/3175, art. 2(1), Sch. 1

F10 Words in s. 30(4) substituted (5.12.2005) by Civil Partnership Act 2004 (c. 33), ss. 82, 263, Sch. 9 para. 1(1)(5)(a); S.I. 2005/3175, art. 2(1), Sch. 1

F11 Words in s. 30(4)(a) substituted (5.12.2005) by Civil Partnership Act 2004 (c. 33), ss. 82, 263, Sch. 9 para. 1(1)(5)(b); S.I. 2005/3175, art. 2(1), Sch. 1

F12 Words in s. 30(4)(b) substituted (5.12.2005) by Civil Partnership Act 2004 (c. 33), ss. 82, 263, Sch. 9 para. 1(1)(5)(c)(i); S.I. 2005/3175, art. 2(1), Sch. 1

F13 Words in s. 30(4)(b) substituted (12.2.1997) by S.I. 1997/74, art. 2, Sch. para. 10(a)

F14 Words in s. 30(4)(b) substituted (5.12.2005) by Civil Partnership Act 2004 (c. 33), ss. 82, 263, Sch. 9 para. 1(1)(5)(c)(ii); S.I. 2005/3175, art. 2(1), Sch. 1

F15 Words in s. 30(5) substituted (5.12.2005) by Civil Partnership Act 2004 (c. 33), ss. 82, 263, Sch. 9 para. 1(1)(6)(a); S.I. 2005/3175, art. 2(1), Sch. 1

F16 Words in s. 30(5)(b) substituted (5.12.2005) by Civil Partnership Act 2004 (c. 33), ss. 82, 263, Sch. 9 para. 1(1)(6)(b); S.I. 2005/3175, art. 2(1), Sch. 1

F17 Word in s. 30(5) substituted (5.12.2005) by Civil Partnership Act 2004 (c. 33), ss. 82, 263, Sch. 9 para. 1(1)(6)(c); S.I. 2005/3175, art. 2(1), Sch. 1

F18 Words in s. 30(5) substituted (5.12.2005) by Civil Partnership Act 2004 (c. 33), ss. 82, 263, Sch. 9 para. 1(1)(6)(d); S.I. 2005/3175, art. 2(1), Sch. 1

F19 Word in s. 30(6) substituted (5.12.2005) by Civil Partnership Act 2004 (c. 33), ss. 82, 263, Sch. 9 para. 1(1)(7)(a); S.I. 2005/3175, art. 2(1), Sch. 1

F20 Word in s. 30(6) substituted (5.12.2005) by Civil Partnership Act 2004 (c. 33), ss. 82, 263, Sch. 9 para. 1(1)(7)(b); S.I. 2005/3175, art. 2(1), Sch. 1

F21 Words in s. 30(7) substituted (5.12.2005) by Civil Partnership Act 2004 (c. 33), ss. 82, 263, Sch. 9 para. 1(1)(8); S.I. 2005/3175, art. 2(1), Sch. 1

F22 Words in s. 30(8) substituted (5.12.2005) by Civil Partnership Act 2004 (c. 33), ss. 82, 263, Sch. 9 para. 1(1)(9)(a); S.I. 2005/3175, art. 2(1), Sch. 1

F23 Words in s. 30(8)(a) inserted (5.12.2005) by Civil Partnership Act 2004 (c. 33), ss. 82, 263, Sch. 9 para. 1(1)(9)(b); S.I. 2005/3175, art. 2(1), Sch. 1

F24 Word in s. 30(8)(b) substituted (5.12.2005) by Civil Partnership Act 2004 (c. 33), ss. 82, 263, Sch. 9 para. 1(1)(9)(c); S.I. 2005/3175, art. 2(1), Sch. 1

F25 Words in s. 30(9) substituted (5.12.2005) by Civil Partnership Act 2004 (c. 33), ss. 82, 263, Sch. 9 para. 1(1)(10)(a); S.I. 2005/3175, art. 2(1), Sch. 1

F26 Words in s. 30(9) substituted (5.12.2005) by Civil Partnership Act 2004 (c. 33), ss. 82, 263, Sch. 9 para. 1(1)(10)(b); S.I. 2005/3175, art. 2(1), Sch. 1

Marginal Citations

M1 1976 c. 80.

M2 1977 c. 42.

M3 1985 c. 68.