--- title: "Unmarried parents: both need a will" description: "Your partner inherits nothing automatically. Children inherit at 18. Mirror wills are the simple protection." url: "https://swiftwill.co.uk/scenarios/we-have-children-but-are-not-married/" author: "Marcus Kaiser" date_modified: "2026-08-12" --- # Unmarried parents: both need a will If you have children together but aren't married or civil partners, you're doubly exposed: your partner would inherit nothing from you automatically, and guardianship doesn't always work the way people assume. You each need your own will — for most couples, a pair of mirror wills. > SwiftWill provides legal information and software for England & Wales under Section 9 of the Wills Act 1837. Figures are taken from gov.uk, legislation.gov.uk and HMCTS, checked 12 August 2026. We have not given you legal advice — this is general information. ## What happens to unmarried parents without wills? You share children, a home, a life — but the law treats you as strangers in two separate ways, and each one needs its own fix: - **Your partner inherits nothing from you.** However long you have been together, unmarried partners have no rights under the intestacy rules. None. - **Guardianship is not automatic either.** Only someone with parental responsibility can appoint a testamentary guardian in a will. Mothers have it from birth; unmarried fathers have it if named on the birth certificate (for births registered after December 2003) or by agreement or court order. ## What happens if an unmarried parent dies without a will? - **The survivor gets nothing.** Your entire estate passes to your children — which leaves your partner, the person actually raising them, with no legal claim on money they may desperately need. Partners in this position sometimes end up in court claiming against their own children's inheritance. - **The children inherit outright at 18.** Whatever is left for them is handed over in full on their eighteenth birthday. - **If you both die, a court picks the guardians.** No will means no named guardians — the family court decides who raises your children, and it may not be who you would have chosen. - **An unmarried father without parental responsibility cannot appoint guardians at all** — a gap worth closing now, not later. ## What do mirror wills fix for unmarried parents? - **Everything to each other first** — so the surviving partner can keep the household running and raise the children without financial freefall. - **The children as backstop** — if you both die, everything passes to the children, held by trustees you choose until an age you set (18, 21 or 25). - **Named guardians and substitutes** in both wills — the same people, in the same order, so there is no tug-of-war. - **Executors you trust** — usually each other, with a substitute in reserve. This is exactly what [mirror wills](/mirror-wills/) are built for, and our guides to [wills for unmarried couples](/will-for-unmarried-couples/) and [writing a will with children](/writing-a-will-with-children/) go deeper on each half of the problem. ## When do unmarried parents need a solicitor? We are will writers, not a law firm — and we will tell you straight when an online will is the wrong tool. Take advice from a solicitor if: - your combined estate is large enough that **inheritance tax** is in play — unmarried partners get no spouse exemption, so the £325,000 nil-rate band can be exceeded faster than you think; - you want anything beyond simple provisions — **life interest or discretionary trusts**, for example to protect a vulnerable child; - there are **children from previous relationships** on either side, or likely disputes over guardianship. [Do I need a solicitor for a will?](/do-i-need-a-solicitor-for-a-will/) explains where the line sits. ## How do unmarried parents make both wills? Most unmarried parents can finish this in an evening: each of you answers a plain-English interview, names the same guardians, and downloads instantly. It costs **£35 each — or £55 for a pair of mirror wills — one-time, with free updates for life and no upsells**, so you can update guardians and beneficiaries as your family changes. [Start your wills here](/start/), then print and sign each one in wet ink before two witnesses together (the s.9 Wills Act 1837 formalities) — an unsigned will is no will at all. ## Frequently asked questions ### Doesn't everything just go to our children anyway? If you are not married, yes — under intestacy your estate passes to your children, not your partner. That sounds child-friendly but creates a real problem: the surviving partner, who is actually raising the children, gets nothing and may struggle to access money tied up in the children's inheritance. ### I'm a dad and I'm not on the birth certificate — where do I stand? You do not have parental responsibility automatically (you would have it if named on the certificate of a birth registered after December 2003, or by a parental responsibility agreement or court order). Without it, you cannot appoint a guardian in your will. Sorting PR is as important as sorting the will itself. ### Who raises our children if we both die? The guardians you name in your wills — if you have made them. Without wills, the family court decides, and relatives you would never have chosen can end up applying. Both parents should name the same guardians, in the same order, in their respective wills. ### Should we make mirror wills? For most unmarried parents, yes. Mirror wills are a matching pair — typically everything to each other, then to the children, with the same guardians named. They cost £55 at SwiftWill, and either of you can change your own will later if life changes. ### Will there be inheritance tax if one of us dies? Possibly. Unmarried partners do not get the spouse exemption, so gifts between you above the £325,000 nil-rate band are taxed at 40%. The £175,000 residence nil-rate band can still apply where a home passes to your children. Most modest estates pay nothing, but it is worth checking the numbers. Canonical HTML: https://swiftwill.co.uk/scenarios/we-have-children-but-are-not-married/ Markdown: https://swiftwill.co.uk/scenarios/we-have-children-but-are-not-married.md Last modified: 2026-08-12 Author: Marcus Kaiser (https://swiftwill.co.uk/author/marcus-kaiser/)