The Married Persons Property Regime (MPPR) In Botswana is a legal framework that governs the property rights of married couples. The MPPR was enacted in 2014 under the Married Persons Property Act. It came in as a replacement of the previous common law regime that governed property rights in marriage.

The MPPR provides for two types of property regimes: Community of property & Separate property regime

Under the community of property regime all property acquired by either spouse before or during the marriage, as well as any income generated from that property, is deemed to be joint property. This means that both spouses have an equal share in the property and must share equally in any profits or losses.

On the other hand, under the separate property regime, each spouse retains ownership of the property they owned prior to the marriage and any property that they acquire during the marriage. This includes any income generated from their separate property. This means that each spouse is solely responsible for the management and control of their own property and is entitled to any profits or losses generated from that property.

It is important to note that the MPPR only applies to couples who are legally married. Couples who are cohabiting or in a de facto relationship are not covered by the MPPR, and their property rights are governed by other laws.

One of the key features of the MPPR is that it allows couples to choose the type of property regime that they want to adopt. Couples can either choose the community of property regime or the separate property regime. However, they must do so before they get married, and they must sign a prenuptial agreement to formalize their choice.

The MPPR also provides for the dissolution of the marriage and the distribution of property in the event of divorce. In the case of the community of property regime, all joint property is divided equally between the spouses. However, in the case of the separate property regime, each spouse retains ownership of their own property, and any joint property is divided based on the contributions made by each spouse towards its acquisition.

Overall, the MPPR is a significant development in Botswana’s legal framework for property rights in marriage. It provides couples with greater control over their property . This is benevolent as it allow couples to choose the property regime that best suits their needs. The regime is a very important upgrade of the Botswana legal system as a majority of people in marriages have different streams of income as compared to their spouses. Therefore, allowing for property protection while still maintaining a joint financial partnership in a marriage.