<P> Today sixty percent of all marriages are preceded by a period of cohabitation . Researchers suggest that couples live together as a way of trying out marriage to test compatibility with their partners , while still having the option of ending the relationship without legal implications . `` More than three - quarters of all cohabitors report plans to marry their partners , which implies that most of them view cohabitation as a prelude to marriage . Cohabitation shares many qualities with marriage , often couples who are cohabiting share a residence , personal resources , exclude intimate relations with others and , in more than 10 % of cohabiting couples , have children . `` Many young adults believe cohabitation is a good way to test their relationships prior to marriage . Couples who have plans to marry before moving in together or who are engaged before cohabiting typically marry within two years of living together . The state of cohabitation of a couple often ends either in marriage or in break - up ; according to a 1996 study about 10 % of cohabiting unions remained in this state more than five years . According to a survey done by The National Center for Health Statistics , `` over half of marriages from 1990 - 1994 among women began as cohabitation . </P>
<P> Today sixty percent of all marriages are preceded by a period of cohabitation . Researchers suggest that couples live together as a way of trying out marriage to test compatibility with their partners , while still having the option of ending the relationship without legal implications . `` More than three - quarters of all cohabitors report plans to marry their partners , which implies that most of them view cohabitation as a prelude to marriage . Cohabitation shares many qualities with marriage , often couples who are cohabiting share a residence , personal resources , exclude intimate relations with others and , in more than 10 % of cohabiting couples , have children . `` Many young adults believe cohabitation is a good way to test their relationships prior to marriage . Couples who have plans to marry before moving in together or who are engaged before cohabiting typically marry within two years of living together . The state of cohabitation of a couple often ends either in marriage or in break - up ; according to a 1996 study about 10 % of cohabiting unions remained in this state more than five years . According to a survey done by The National Center for Health Statistics , `` over half of marriages from 1990 - 1994 among women began as cohabitation . </P>
how long do you live with someone to be common law married uk
how long do you live with someone to be common law married uk
two years
two years