Why You Should Have a Prenup
When you’re getting married in Indonesia, it is very important for you to have a prenup. It stands for a prenuptial agreement. I will tell you the importance and significance of having one for married couples. So please keep reading!
Prenuptial agreement in Indonesia is your own self-made law. Yes! The law for you in protecting and defining your rights and obligations as a husband and wife. You need to make sure your prenup ensures a fair and equitable outcome. It happens if you get a divorce. Marriage dissolution such as divorce, or annulment can be daunting. That’s why this legal document provides property division according to your wish when love is in the air. Assets and debts are the most important things that’s included in your prenup customization.
Your prenuptial agreement is a means to safeguard the rights and obligations of married spouses in Indonesia. Legal protection for women is one of the primary reasons why you should have a prenup. Promoting gender equality, among others, is another reason why couples entering into marriage need to have a prenuptial agreement in Indonesia.
Prenuptial agreement can also be used for protecting the married spouses financial interests. It can be very specific in describing assets and liabilities of each spouse. The prenup is giving them the power to every individual in holy matrimony to exercise their rights confidently.
Child custody and spousal support are the issues that can be discussed in your prenuptial agreement. Things like visitation, child support and other parenting plan checklists are the matters that can be included into your own prenuptial agreement. Nevertheless, you cannot include inheritance because assets distribution in the event one pass-away must be held by a last will. Prenuptial agreement can only govern your assets when you’re alive.
Intercultural marriages in Indonesia definitely require a prenuptial agreement. It serves as tools to navigate different legal systems in your mixed marriage. A marriage with different nationalities. Your prenuptial agreement can also come handy in bridging cultural practices in your mixed marriage life in Indonesia. It serves to clearly understand the legal status of your assets. Your prenup can also help you to comply with Indonesian law, as well as the cultural norms of your spouses.
Lastly, executing a prenuptial agreement shows your commitment in your relationship. Things like information sharing, transparency and having long-term stability can sustain your financial security in your marriage life.
Is a Prenup Legal in Indonesia? It’s a Yes!
Prenuptial agreements in Indonesia are definitely legal! The legal ground around the prenup is governed by the Marriage Law number 1 of 1974. This is the legal ground in creating and enforcing prenuptial agreements in Indonesia.
The Marriage Law is the legal framework that sustains the legality of prenuptial agreements in Indonesia. It creates the legal recognition for your prenup. The Marriage Law encourages prenuptial agreements by creating property division regime before the couples enter into a marriage.
The 1974 Marriage Law also tells you what should be included into your prenup. Clauses which potentially violate public policy or morals are prohibited. There are also other limits imposed by the Marriage Law in terms of the creation of the prenup. It is very important to make sure that you prenup comply with Marriage Law and other relevant laws and regulations in Indonesia.
Lawyers in Indonesia with expertise in family law like Wijaya & Co are very competent in guiding you throughout the process of incorporating the prenuptial agreement. Wijaya & Co’s lawyers can help you with your prenup and make sure it is compliant with the legal framework of Indonesia. Lawyers at Wijaya & Co are able to act carefully about your situation and your intentions.
What Should be Included into Your Prenup?
You should employ the clauses that encourage equality and fairness. You should put to work clauses that safeguard both parties’ rights and interests in the future matrimony. You should take advantage of the following various clauses:
- Separation of Property. This clause describes the situation of how both parties acquired assets during the course of marriage, and how they divide them in the event of divorce.
- Spousal Support. This clause is applicable in the event of divorce.This is financial support from a husband to his wife in order to support her during divorce takes place.
- Dispute Resolution. This is an exit clause in the event both parties faces disputes and outlining how disputes can be resolved along with the methods such as mediation or arbitration.
These clauses must be available in your prenuptial agreement. If you did not see any of them in your document, you should insist on having them on board. Those clauses encourage fair outcomes, and support fairness, and mutual appreciation between both of you.
If You Get a Divorce…
I suggest you and your spouse perform fair and equal property division in the event of a divorce. The following is a few suggestion that you can consider with your spouse:
- Financial Disclosure. Information about assets, and debts as well as financial resources in their possessions.
- Customized Settlement. You can settle the property division during a divorce according to your original contribution instead of equal distribution.
- Inheritances. In Indonesia, inheritances are separate property. It is free from claims from your spouse. Somewhere else may not be free from claim, but not here in Indonesia. Keep your hands off!
- Future Earnings. When you divorce, you divorce. Future earnings are not part of the property division. There is a limitation to the assets distribution during divorce in Indonesia.
Those suggestions must be considered when you incorporate a prenuptial agreement in Indonesia. A fair and equitable division of property revolving their marital situation.
Advice from the Legal Expert
Legal experts like lawyers in Wijaya & Co are very important during drafting and incorporating a prenuptial agreement. Prenup is a legal document. It is a binding document legally, and it describes assets and liabilities distribution during hard times like divorce. Therefore, it is very important to have highly experienced lawyers like the legal experts at Wijaya & Co to walk you through the process.
You need to make sure that complicated legal implications of a prenup are navigated with the help of lawyers from Wijaya & Co. Potential issues must be addressed at the early phase. Unfair provisions must be identified. Both parties must communicate honestly and openly. Lawyers from Wijaya & Co can assist in facilitating and liaising both parties.
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Our thanks to Asep Wijaya, Managing Director of Wijaya & Co for sharing this information with us!