Married In or Out of Community of Property? How to Check
Whether a couple is married in or out of community of property turns on whether an antenuptial contract was registered. Here is how to check the deeds record.
In South Africa, a marriage is in community of property by default — unless the couple signed and registered an antenuptial contract (ANC) before the wedding, which makes it out of community of property (with or without accrual). The registered ANC is the documentary evidence of that choice.
Why it matters
The marital property regime affects who owns what, how property can be sold or bonded, and what happens on death or divorce. When that question turns on documents — rather than memory — the registered ANC in the deeds record is what settles it.
How to check
Because the ANC is registered against the people, you check it with a person search:
- Choose the deeds office.
- Enter the surname, initials or first names, and the person's ID number (required for POPIA).
- Run the free lookup, then open a report. A registered ANC shows in the person's documents; its absence is itself informative.
Reading the result
- A registered antenuptial contract appears → the marriage was set up out of community of property.
- No ANC on record → consistent with marriage in community of property (the default), though always confirm against the marriage certificate too.
You can order an official copy of the registered contract directly from the report.
Related
See how to find a registered antenuptial contract for more on ANCs specifically.
Check now
Run a free person lookup with the name and ID number to see whether a registered contract is on record.
Related Resources
Looking for someone's property records?
Search the SA Deeds Registry by name — free — and see every property and deeds document registered to a person.
Search by Name