Can Ningbo request the return of bride price if they live together without a marriage certificate?
Xiao Wang and Xiao Li held a wedding ceremony in accordance with rural customs and lived together for two years, but they did not register their marriage. Subsequently, due to incompatibility, the two parted ways, and Mr. Wang requested that Ms. Li return the entire betrothal gift. This is a typical dispute over the return of betrothal gifts following cohabitation without marriage—a scenario that is not uncommon in the urban–rural fringe areas of Ningbo and in districts densely populated by migrant workers. Conclusion first: if both parties have not gone through the marriage registration formalities but have lived together, the court will not support the full return of the bride price if the party that pays the bride price requests the return of the bride price. instead, the court will comprehensively consider the factors such as the time of living together, whether to have children, the actual use of the bride price and dowry, and the fault of both parties, and determine the amount of return as appropriate in combination with local customs, full refund is generally not supported.
1. Legal Basis and Element Breakdown
The legal situation of returning the bride price can be seen in Article 5 of the Interpretation (I) of the Supreme People's Court on the Application of the Marriage and Family Code of the Civil Code of the People's the People's Republic of China of China: If the parties request to return the bride price paid according to the custom, the people's court should support them if they find out the following situations: First, both parties have not gone through the marriage registration procedures; Second, both parties have gone through the marriage registration procedures but have not lived together; Third, premarital benefits and make life difficult for the payer. Where the second or third circumstances apply, it shall be conditional upon the divorce of both parties. Dismantling the article: breaking up without registration belongs to the first case, in principle, there is the right to return the request-but the article does not solve the problem of "how much to return", the determination of the proportion of return must be combined with the common life situation, which is the content of the judicial interpretation of the bride price sixth supplement.
Provisions of the Supreme People's Court on Several Issues Concerning the Application of Law in the Trial of Cases Involving Disputes over Bifu Gift (Law Interpretation [2024] No. 1, implemented on February 1, 2024) Article 6: If both parties have not registered their marriage but have lived together, and one party requests to return the bride price paid according to the custom, the people's court shall, according to the actual use of the bride price and the dowry, taking into account the facts of living together and gestation, the fault of both parties, and taking into account local customs, determine whether to return and the specific proportion of return. Article 3 also delineates the scope of the bride price: gifts of little value paid by one party at special commemorative points such as festivals and birthdays, daily consumption expenses to express or enhance feelings and other property of little value are not included in the bride price. Article 5, on the other hand, provides for no return in principle in the case of "registered marriage and living together", but discretionary returns for those who have lived together for a short period of time and whose bride price is too high-this article, together with article 6, constitutes a complete system of rules for "stratified discretion according to the state of living together.
2. Subdivision of circumstances: the core variable for discretionary restitution
The return proportion of unregistered living together is mainly determined by four groups of variables: first, the time of living together-the longer you live together, the lower the return proportion; living together for one or two years and several months, the results may differ by several times. Second, the pregnancy situation-if the woman is pregnant, miscarried or has given birth to a child, the proportion of return is significantly reduced, or even not returned. Third, the actual use of the bride price and the dowry-the bride price has been used for the corresponding deduction of the common living expenses (decoration, shopping, living expenses) of both parties. Fourth, the fault of both parties and the cause of the breakup-if the breakup is caused by the fault of the payer, the proportion of return shall be reduced; If one party claims property by marriage, it shall be returned in accordance with Article 2 of the bride price provisions. In addition, if the payment leads to difficulties in the life of the payer (in the third case of Article 5, the background of divorce or breakup), the return may be supported, but "difficulties in life" means that the local basic living standard cannot be maintained by relying on personal property and the property obtained from divorce, and the threshold of proof is high.
It also needs to be subdivided according to the subject of payment: if the parents actually contribute to the payment, the parents can claim as the co-plaintiffs (article 4 of the provisions on bride price); if the subject of paying and receiving the bride price is the parents, the subject of litigation should be adjusted accordingly-such procedural issues directly affect the direction of the case. For details, see the article "Parties to the Marriage Property Dispute in Ningbo. Breakdown by type of property: large cash, gold ornaments, engagement money and other payments for the purpose of entering into marriage are bride price gifts; Holiday red envelopes, daily transfers, small gifts for meetings, etc. do not belong to bride price and cannot be included in the scope of return.
3. Case Perspective: Discretionary Logic from 260000 Yuan to 120000 Yuan
According to the public case of Yinzhou Court (reported by Zhejiang Legal News on February 16, 2022): One party paid 260000 yuan as bride price, did not go through marriage registration, lived together for more than one year and the woman had pregnancy and miscarriage, the court ruled to return 120000 yuan, accounting for 46% of the total bride price-not full return. The discretionary logic of the case is: living together for more than a year, the woman's pregnancy and abortion (pregnancy and payment), part of the bride price for living together, and the superposition of the three factors to reduce the return ratio to less than 50%. The People's Court of Zhejiang High Court's "Answers to Several Questions Concerning the Trial of Marriage and Family Cases" (Gao Fa Min -1 [2016] No. 2) also made it clear that for those who have not registered their marriage but have lived together, the return of the bride price should be determined as appropriate in the light of the time of living together, the birth situation, the reasons for not registering, the use of the bride price and other circumstances-the discretion of the Zhejiang Court's discretion is in the same line with Article 6 of the 20
24bride price.
Mr. Zhao paid a betrothal gift of RMB 180,000 and lived with Ms. Qian for eight months; during this time, Ms. Qian had a miscarriage, and the two subsequently separated due to incompatibility. Mr. Zhao requests a full refund. The court decided that the time of living together was short, but the woman had to pay for the pregnancy. The bride price was partly used for living together, and the comprehensive fault was equivalent. The court decided to return 100000 yuan (about 56%). If the parties have cohabited for three years and have children together, the court is highly likely to rule that no return of property be ordered, or that only a nominal return be made—the duration and nature of the cohabitation serve as the primary factor in determining the extent of any return.
4. Common misconceptions and correct answers
Misconception 1: If you haven’t obtained a marriage certificate, the entire betrothal gift can be fully returned. positive solution: those who have not registered but have lived together should be returned according to article 6 of the bride price regulations. those who have lived together for a long time and have pregnancy conditions are generally not returned in full, or even may not be returned.
Misunderstanding 2: If the bride price is given voluntarily, you cannot get it back. Positive explanation: the payer can claim the return only if it meets the legal conditions (unregistered, unregistered living together, payment causing difficulties in life); the bride price regulation in 2024 further puts "unregistered living together" into the discretionary return track.
Myth 3: Holding a wedding means you’re officially married. Positive explanation: wedding ceremony is a folk ceremony, which does not produce legal relationship of marriage; those who do not go through marriage registration do not constitute legal marriage, and they will be treated as cohabitation relationship after breaking up, and the dispute over bride price will be subject to the return rules of bride price.
Myth 4: All transfers during love are considered bride price. Positive explanation: small gifts for festivals, birthdays and daily consumption expenses do not belong to bride price (article 3 of bride price regulations). It is advocated that the return should be differentiated in nature one by one. Mixing daily transfers into bride price will damage the credibility of the overall proposition.
5. List of Evidence Materials and Operating Steps
Evidence of the payer: ① the payment voucher of the bride price-bank transfer record, wechat transfer record (keeping the original carrier), withdrawal record, purchase of gold ornaments, matchmaker's testimony; ② the evidence of the purpose of payment-the statement of the amount and use of the bride price in the family communication records, engagement photos and chat records of both parties; ③ the evidence of the time of living together-residence certificate, testimony of relatives and friends, and common living expenses; ④ Evidence of hardship caused by the payment (if the case is asserted)-family income, liabilities, and loan certificates. Evidence of the receiver: ① evidence of common life and pregnancy-birth inspection records, abortion or delivery records, birth certificates, and common consumption records; ② evidence of the use of bride price-proof of the use of bride price for common life, decoration and dowry purchase; ③ list of dowry and value certificates. Operating steps: if negotiation fails, apply to the local people's mediation organization for mediation first → if mediation fails, file a lawsuit over marriage and property disputes with the basic court of the defendant's domicile → the trial focuses on "common living time, gestation, use and fault" to provide evidence → determine the amount of return according to the judgment → adjust the expectation in time for demands beyond the reasonable range.
6. The Connection Between Cohabitation Property Division and the Return of Betrothal Gifts
After living together without a license and breaking up, the two sides are often faced with not only "whether to pay back the bride price", but also how to divide the property accumulated during the period of living together-the two problems often appear in the same dispute, but the rules are different and must be dealt with separately. The division of property during cohabitation is based on Article 4 of the (II) for the Interpretation of Marriage and Family of the Civil Code: in a dispute over the property of a cohabitation relationship in which both parties have no spouse, the property acquired during cohabitation shall be dealt with as agreed; property acquired jointly or the proceeds of joint production and operation and indistinguishable property shall be divided on the basis of the proportion of their respective contributions, taking into account the common living conditions, the presence or absence of common children, the size of the contribution to the property and other factors. It can be seen that cohabitation takes the route of "agreed priority + contribution ratio + contribution synthesis", and the "discretionary return" of betrothal return is two sets of logic, litigation should be used as two claims, separate evidence.
There are four key points of convergence: firstly, for those who jointly contribute large amount of property such as house purchase and car purchase during cohabitation, keep the capital contribution certificate (transfer record, joint loan repayment flow), claim the share according to the capital contribution ratio when breaking up, and don't confuse the capital contribution of common property with the bride price claim return; secondly, if the bride price has been converted into the capital contribution of common property (for the down payment of common house purchase), this part should not be returned repeatedly according to the "bride price", but should be treated as contribution in the analysis of property-the account should be counted twice to avoid duplication or omission; Third, the treatment of dowry: dowry is given to the woman by her relatives and friends, in principle, it belongs to the woman's personal property and is taken away with her. If the dowry is used for common living consumption or has been converted into the discretion of bride price return, the court will be considered together. Fourth, procedures for dissolution of cohabitation: if the cohabitation relationship is simply requested to be dissolved (both parties have no spouse), the court will not accept it (except for those who have given birth to children or property disputes), and the property and children issues can be prosecuted separately-therefore, the prosecution should focus on specific requests such as "property analysis + bride price return + child support" instead of "requesting dissolution of cohabitation relationship". Only by keeping the accounts for the betrothal gifts separate from those for cohabitation property can disputes be resolved once and for all, thereby avoiding the situation where one wins the betrothal-gift lawsuit but loses on the burden of proof in the property division.
Finally, it suggests the allocation of the burden of proof: the party who advocates returning the bride price bears the burden of proof for the fact and amount of the bride price paid, and the party who advocates deduction bears the burden of proof for the use of the bride price and the value of the dowry -- both parties should take the initiative to give evidence around their own claims, and waiting passively for the other party to give evidence will only make the discretion according to the existing evidence, and the result is often unfavorable; before the lawsuit, the bride price account, the common life account and the dowry account were listed separately. The clearer the rules in the trial, the greater the confidence in obtaining support.
Class Case Reference: Cixi Municipal People's Court (2021) Zhejiang 0282 Minchu No. 964 Case, both parties held a wedding ceremony according to rural customs and lived together for about four years without registering the marriage. The court held that it was unreasonable to return the full amount without registration. Combined with the woman's more payment, it only decided to return 3000 yuan at its discretion, and there was no legal basis for the claim of youth loss. It can be seen that if you have not obtained a license but have lived together for a long time, the amount of return will be greatly reduced. Trial Court: People’s Court of Cixi City Case No.: (2021) Zhe 02
82Min Chu 964
7. Frequently Asked Questions
After living together for half a year and then breaking up, how much can I get back for the bride price?
There is no uniform standard; the court determines the amount based on a comprehensive consideration of factors such as the duration of cohabitation, the circumstances of childbearing, the use of the betrothal gifts, and any contributory fault. If the time of living together is short, there is no pregnancy, and most of the bride price is unused, the return rate may be higher (more than 50% or even more); If there is pregnancy or bride price has been used for living together, the proportion will be reduced accordingly.
Can the woman take back the dowry with the bride price?
Can. Article 6 of the bride price provisions clearly stipulates that the proportion of return shall be determined in the light of the actual use of the bride price and the situation of dowry, and the value of the dowry can be deducted in the discretion.
We had a wedding but haven’t registered our marriage yet—should we return the gift money from relatives and friends?
The accompanying gift is a gift from relatives and friends to the new couple, which generally does not fall within the scope of the bride price and does not return with the dissolution of the marriage contract; the dispute in this case focuses on the bride price paid for the purpose of concluding a marriage, which is different in nature and should not be confused.
During the period of cohabitation, the betrothal gifts were used to pay off the mortgage—can they still be reclaimed?
The use of the bride price for joint repayment belongs to the actual use of the bride price, and the court will deduct it accordingly when returning it according to Article 6 of the bride price regulations. This part of the contribution can also be used as a contribution claim in the joint property analysis, but be careful not to repeat the claim on the same sum-the bride price account and the cohabitation analysis account can be calculated separately, so as not to suffer losses or contradict each other.
Who does the woman's dowry belong to? Can it be taken away after the breakup?
The dowry is usually a gift from the woman's relatives and friends to the woman, which belongs to the woman's personal property and is taken away with the woman in principle after the break-up; if the dowry has been used for the consumption of the common life or is converted with the bride price, the court will consider it together in the discretion of the property analysis and the return of the bride price. The receiving party shall retain the purchase receipts and inventory lists for the dowry as evidence, and when the giving party claims the return of the betrothal gifts, the value of the dowry should also be taken into account as a relevant factor.
8. Practical Insights from a Lawyer
If you have lived together without a license, the answer is almost no whether the bride price should be refunded in full. When dealing with such disputes, the court will not simply retire without registration, but will comprehensively look at how long it has lived together, whether it has had children, where the bride price has actually been spent, whether the woman has brought dowry, who is at fault on both sides, and then decide on a return ratio in combination with local customs, which is often part rather than all.So whether you are the party who wants to claim the return or the party who is asked to return it, don't set expectations with full or no return.
Forensics revolves around several variables. The time and extent of living together can be proved by rental contract, water and electricity payment, express delivery and chat records of the same address. How much and when the bride price was given depends on the transfer voucher, the list of gifts received, the explanation of the matchmaker or relatives and friends. The purpose of the bride price is more important-if the money has been used for two people to live together and purchase common property, there will be more room for deduction; the dowry and dowry brought by the woman should also be listed. Attention should also be paid to the distinction between bride price and general gifts. Small gifts and daily consumption expenses given at such times as festivals and birthdays are usually not included in the scope of return.
When negotiating, it is most taboo to focus on the number of bride price, leaving aside all other accounts during the period of living together. A more practical way to talk about it is to put the common expenses, common purchases, dowries, and debts during the cohabitation period on the table together to calculate the general ledger, and then talk about how much to return, so that both parties can easily accept it and avoid a protracted battle. The lawsuit. If the negotiation fails, the base number and reasons should be clearly stated. If the other party has already spent or transferred the money, preservation should also be considered. It is your most solid confidence in this negotiation to settle the accounts that can be settled first.
the answer of "can you get back the bride price without getting the certificate" is never "can" or "can't", but "how much can you give back at your discretion". The payer should recognize the reality: the common living time, the pregnancy situation and the use of bride price are the three major sub-items. It is unrealistic to expect the full return. Reasonable calculation should be made before litigation. The receiver should prepare evidence of common life, pregnancy and bride price use and strive for deduction. No matter which party, we should remember the boundary of the bride price range-small holiday gifts and daily consumption do not belong to the bride price; Parents who contribute are listed as common parties in time. Only when the accounts are clearly calculated and the evidence is complete can disputes be entered and left quickly.