This article includes promotional content from Engelsman Magabane Incorporated, supplied in partnership with Legal Notice Publishing.
Married out of community of property without accrual? Your ANC without accrual determines how your estate is distributed when you die. Many people don’t understand what this marital regime means until they’re planning their wills. Then they discover ANC without accrual gives them complete control, but also complete responsibility, for their estate.
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ANC without accrual means your assets are completely separate from your spouse’s. Everything you own before marriage, everything you accumulate during marriage, everything you inherit, all of it remains yours alone. Your spouse has zero automatic claim on any of it unless your will specifies otherwise.
This is radically different from community of property, where spouses automatically own half of everything, or ANC with accrual, where spouses share growth accumulated during marriage. ANC without accrual is the ultimate in separation of property.
According to Tasneem Mahomed, director at Engelsman Magabane Incorporated, “ANC without accrual gives testators extraordinary freedom. But with that freedom comes the obligation to plan carefully. Your spouse won’t inherit a cent unless your will says so.”
What ANC without accrual means for your will
If you’re married under ANC without accrual, your will must address your spouse explicitly. You can’t assume your spouse will inherit half. You must decide: does your spouse inherit anything? If yes, how much? Do your children inherit more or less than your spouse?
It also affects how you treat inherited assets. Money you inherit from your parents remains your separate property under this regime. Your spouse has no claim. Your will should specify whether that inherited money passes to your spouse, your children, or both.
Second marriages
ANC without accrual is popular in second marriages precisely because it maintains separation. If you have children from your first marriage and remarry, this regime allows you to protect those children’s inheritance. Your new spouse cannot claim your assets unless your will permits it.
But this also creates risk. If you die without a will while married under this regime, South African intestacy law applies. Intestacy law gives your spouse a share regardless of your marital agreement. Your will is what actually implements your wishes.
Debt protection
An important benefit of ANC without accrual: you’re protected from your spouse’s debts. If your spouse accumulates significant debt, creditors cannot reach your separate assets.
This protection is mutual. Your spouse is equally protected from your debts. If you die with substantial debt, their separate property is safe under the agreement.
Updating your will
Many people drafted wills years ago when their circumstances were different. If your marital status remains ANC without accrual but your wishes have changed, whether you want to provide more for your spouse or less, your will should be updated.
The marital regime itself doesn’t require updating. It is permanent unless you apply to court to change it. But your will should reflect your current wishes about how those assets are distributed.
For legal advice, contact Engelsman Magabane Incorporated:
Phone: 053 832 8134 or 053 832 8135
Email: [email protected]
