The rules are in the Código Civil (Civil Code; Gaceta Oficial No. 2.990 Extraordinario, July 26, 1982). For a specific case you will need a lawyer.
Is the house joint or separate property?
If there are no capitulaciones matrimoniales (prenuptial agreement), the earnings or profits obtained during the marriage are joint, in equal halves (art. 148). The comunidad de gananciales (community property) begins on the wedding day and any agreement to the contrary is void (art. 149).
| Situation of the home | What the Código Civil says |
|---|---|
| Bought during the marriage with joint money | It belongs to the community property, even if it is in one name only (art. 156, num. 1) |
| Bought before marrying, or inherited by or donated to one spouse during the marriage | It is the separate property of whoever owned or received it (art. 151) |
| Acquired during the marriage, but with a cause of acquisition prior to the wedding | It is separate property (art. 152, num. 4) |
| Bought with the money from the sale of another separate asset, or with separate money while recording its origin and that it is bought for oneself | It is separate property (art. 152, nums. 6 and 7) |
In addition:
The owner of a separate house can sell it without the other's signature, but cannot donate it without their consent (art. 154).
If you signed capitulaciones matrimoniales
The property regime is governed by the spouses' agreements and by the law (art. 141). The capitulaciones, and any changes to them, must be recorded in the Registro (registry) before the wedding, on pain of nullity (arts. 143 and 144). If they exist, that document defines the property regime, except for agreements contrary to the law, which are void (art. 142). If you never married, see the guide on unión estable de hecho (stable de facto union) and the home.
Can the house be sold during the divorce?
While the community property exists, selling or mortgaging a joint property requires the consent of both, even if it is in one name only (art. 168). The judge can authorize one spouse to do it alone if the other cannot express their will, or if their refusal is unjustified and the interests of the marriage and the family require it, after first hearing the other spouse (art. 168).
If one spouse sells without the other's consent (art. 170):
Once the divorce petition is admitted, the judge can order an inventory of the joint assets and measures to prevent their squandering, disposal or fraudulent concealment (art. 191, num. 3).
Separated, but not divorced
Living apart does not end the community property. It ends when the marriage is dissolved or annulled, by declared absence, by the bankruptcy of one of the spouses or by court-ordered separation of property (art. 173). Until then, what is bought with joint money is still joint. After more than five years of de facto separation, either spouse can ask for a divorce (art. 185-A).
Who stays in the house while the case lasts?
Once a petition for divorce or separación de cuerpos (legal separation) is admitted, the judge can decide which spouse will keep living in the marital home while the case lasts, according to their needs or circumstances and without prejudice to the rights of third parties. If circumstances are equal, the spouse entrusted with custody of the children has preference (art. 191, num. 1).
It is a provisional measure: it does not change who owns the house. Neither art. 191 nor the Código Civil's rules on partición (division of property) award ownership to the spouse who stays with the children.
If there are children or adolescents in common, or under the responsabilidad de crianza (child-rearing responsibility) or patria potestad (parental authority) of either spouse, the divorce and the liquidation and division of the community property fall to the Tribunales de Protección de Niños, Niñas y Adolescentes (child protection courts) (art. 177, first paragraph, letters j and l, of the Ley Orgánica para la Protección de Niños, Niñas y Adolescentes (LOPNNA), the Organic Law for the Protection of Children and Adolescents, Gaceta Oficial No. 6.185 Extraordinario, June 8, 2015). The Sala Plena (full court) of the TSJ (the Supreme Court) applied it this way (file AA10-L-2017-000110, signed on February 13, 2019).
When the community property ends and how the house is divided
Once the divorce judgment is final (ejecutoriada), the community property ends and is liquidated (art. 186). Before that, any voluntary dissolution and liquidation is void, except the separation of property in art. 190 (art. 173). Since its binding ruling No. 693 of June 2, 2015, the Sala Constitucional (Constitutional Chamber) has held that the grounds in art. 185 are not an exhaustive list and include mutual consent.
The division is governed by the rules on partición (art. 183), and no one is obliged to remain in co-ownership (art. 768).
| Amicable division | Judicial division | |
|---|---|---|
| How it is done | The two agree on the split (art. 788 of the Código de Procedimiento Civil, the Code of Civil Procedure or CPC; art. 1.069 of the Código Civil) | One of them sues through the ordinary procedure, stating the title of the co-ownership and the proportion (art. 777 of the CPC) |
| Who divides | The parties | A partidor (the person appointed to divide) named by an absolute majority of persons and of shares or, failing that, under art. 778 of the CPC |
| The house | They can award it to one and compensate the other with other assets, or sell it and split the money | If it cannot be conveniently divided, it is sold at public auction; if all are adults and consent, whoever they designate can sell it (art. 1.071 of the Código Civil) |
| Judge | Must approve it if there are minors, interdicted persons or persons with limited legal capacity among those involved (art. 788 of the CPC); with minor children, approving (homologar) the agreement falls to the Tribunal de Protección (art. 177, second paragraph, letter h, LOPNNA) | If no one objects to it within ten days, it is concluded (art. 785 of the CPC) |
Between the final judgment and the division, the house still belongs to both. The Código refers to the rules on partición and on co-ownership (arts. 183 and 1.082), and in co-ownership each co-owner can sell their share, but the effect is limited to what they receive in the division (art. 765). To sell the whole house, both must sign. Consult a lawyer before selling a share.
Registering the division
The Ley de Registros y Notarías (Registries and Notaries Law; Gaceta Oficial No. 6.668 Extraordinario, December 16, 2021) requires every division or award that declares or transfers ownership to be recorded in the Registro Público (Public Registry) (art. 46, num. 2). The fees in art. 83 are in petros (PTR):
| Procedure | Maximum fee |
|---|---|
| Sales, divisions of inheritances, of partnerships or of companies, and other acts in num. 7 | 0.50% up to 500 PTR; 1% from 501 to 1,000 PTR; 2% above that (art. 83, num. 7) |
| Judgment of divorce, separación de cuerpos or annulment of marriage | From 2 PTR (one page) to 8 PTR (more than six pages) (art. 83, num. 17) |
| Capitulaciones matrimoniales | Up to 50 PTR (art. 83, num. 19) |
Numeral 7 names particiones "de herencias, de sociedades o de compañías" (of inheritances, of partnerships or of companies), but not the division of the marital community property, and we did not find a rule that sets its fee: ask at the Registro which one applies. Fees are paid in bolívares at the value of the petro in force on the date of the application; as of October 27, 2026 we did not find a published unit that replaces it. Confirm the amount before you go.
If you sell the house to a third party, see how to register a sale. To value the house or negotiate the division, consult a lawyer.