Postnuptial (marriage agreement
and interests. Having a marital agreement
after marriage)
It’s necessary for mixed marriage couple
(foreigner and Indonesian) in Indonesia to
protect their assets. An Indonesia spouse is
excluded to own a property when they are
married to a foreigner. It means their right
to own property in Indonesia may be in
danger.
With postnuptial, mixed married couples in
Indonesia can assign property division in
the event of separation or death and will be
effective from the signing date.
Without the postnuptial, there are some
cases when mixed marriage couple
purchase fake identity cards, or make use of
their family member or relative’s name to
buy a property.
It is written in the Article 119 Civil Code
Book that from the moment of execution of
the marriage the assets of the parties will be
joint assets. It can cause a problem when the
Indonesian Citizen wants to have a
property, because according to the Agrarian
Law, foreigners cannot obtain the right of
ownership overland and due to the marriage
status, they are considered as one party
which can prevent the Indonesian Citizen
from owning a property with right of
ownership.
Indonesian Law provides a solution as
written in Marriage Law that if the parties
provide a marital agreement which states
the separation of assets and there will be no
joint assets or joint marital between the
parties. Marital agreement is helpful for
mixed marriage couples to ensure the safety
of their assets.
By having postnuptial agreement, the
Indonesian party in the mixed marriage can
still buy the assets with the right ownership.
Furthermore, since the assets between
husband and wife will be separated, thus,
they can establish a limited liability
company and make cooperation between
couple because the spouses are not
considered as one party and no joint assets
can make status of the assets clearly and for
the Indonesian Citizen can protecting their
property in Indonesia.
Postnuptial agreements have similar
requirements to other contracts. In order for
a postnuptial agreement to be valid in the
eyes of the law, it must:
 Be presented in writing and signed
by both parties
 Be entered into voluntarily by both
parties
 Include a complete and honest
disclosure of each party’s income,
assets, debts, and respective values
 Include terms that are not one-sided
or unjust
 Allow both parties ample time to
review the terms of the agreement
Some specific examples of assets that must
be disclosed in a postnuptial agreement
include:
 Any property owned separately or
together
 Information about bank accounts
owned individually or mutually
 Any investments that either party
has made
 Any information regarding
businesses owned individually or
mutually
 Information about debts such as
loans, mortgages, etc.
There is a common misconception that
postnuptial agreements are only beneficial
for the wealthy. This is untrue; anyone who
wants to protect their assets in the event of
a divorce will benefit from a postnuptial
agreement. Some people who may benefit
greatly include:
 People who own their own
businesses
  People marrying someone who has
a large amount of debt
 Anyone who has assets, such as land
or vehicles, that they want to
separate legally from their marital
property
 People who want to ensure their
children will receive their assets in
the event of their death
Ultimately, postnuptial agreements are used
for three main purposes:
 Creating a template for a divorce
agreement.
Postnuptial agreements are often
created to make decisions regarding
the division of assets when each
party is in a level state of mind. In
the event of a divorce, the
agreement will already exist and can
be incorporated into the couple’s
divorce decree, speeding up the
divorce process and preventing
legal back-and-forth.

 Dividing assets and ensuring

spousal support.
Postnuptial agreements can include
provisions regarding alimony and
spousal support, as well as the
division of assets owned prior to,
and acquired during, the marriage.
 As a legally binding means to
waive spousal rights in the event
of death.
Some couples decide to create a
postnuptial agreement to ensure that
their assets will be divided and
passed on when either of them dies.
The agreement can allow each
spouse to waive their rights to the
other spouse’s assets in the event of
their death, so their assets can be
given to their children.
If the Indonesian spouse dies, the
foreign spouse must transfer the
property Hak Milik or Hak Guna
Bangunan within 12 months to other
Indonesian's name. In many cases,
this may be the child/children of the
couple. You also can ask national
land agency to reduce the right of
property to be Hak Pakai. At this
stage, the stipulation imposed by the
1960 Basic Property Law is still
applicable for foreigners. The
postnuptial protects your financial
interest in the event one of you
passes away.