In short
When one spouse disposes of a common good without the other, the Civil Code of 2020 answers not with one sanction but two, and the difference between them decides what can be recovered. Article 495 first says that when the law requires one to act with the other’s consent for an act of administration or disposition over common goods, that act may be annulled at the instance of the spouse whose consent was omitted, or of their heirs. May be annulled — that is, it is annullable: someone must ask for it. But the second paragraph hardens the treatment when no price was involved: acts disposing gratuitously of common goods are void if the other spouse’s consent is missing, save the customary modest gifts. Giving away is not the same as selling. Article 496 protects the dwelling separately. When the régime is the sociedad de bienes gananciales, neither spouse may dispose of the rights over the principal family dwelling nor of the furniture of ordinary use of the family group, without the other’s express consent or, failing that, judicial authority. That act is annullable at the instance of the other spouse or of their minor children, if they live in the dwelling — the children may ask too — but annulment does not proceed when the acquirer acts in good faith and for value. And Article 497 closes with a rule of proof: a spouse’s declaration about the title of a good is sufficient proof, though by itself it does not prejudice the declarant’s forced heirs or the creditors if the attribution is not recorded in the Registro de Capitulaciones Matrimoniales or, per the nature of the good, in the corresponding registry.
What is it?
They are Articles 495, 496 and 497 of the Civil Code of 2020: the sanctions when dual consent is missing, the special protection of the principal family dwelling during the marriage, and the value of a declaration about a good’s title.
Who can do it?
Married people, their minor children living in the family dwelling, and the heirs of the spouse whose consent was omitted.
Requirements
- When the law requires the other spouse’s consent to administer or dispose of common goods, the act done without it may be annulled.Verified against the official source
- That annulment may be sought by the spouse whose consent was omitted or by their heirs.Verified against the official source
- Acts disposing gratuitously of common goods are void if the other spouse’s consent is missing.Verified against the official source
- The customary modest gifts are excepted from that nullity.Verified against the official source
- Under sociedad de bienes gananciales, neither spouse may dispose of rights over the principal family dwelling nor of the family group’s ordinary-use furniture without the other’s express consent or judicial authority.Verified against the official source
- That act is annullable at the instance of the other spouse or of their minor children, if they live in the dwelling.Verified against the official source
- Annulment does not proceed when the acquirer acts in good faith and for value.Verified against the official source
- A spouse’s declaration about a good’s title is sufficient proof, but by itself does not prejudice forced heirs or creditors if it is not recorded.Verified against the official source
Documents you need
Cost
Step by step
Step 1: Check whether there was a price
Article 495 treats the onerous act, which is annullable, differently from the gratuitous one, which is void.
Step 2: Annulment must be asked for
It is sought by the spouse whose consent was omitted, or by their heirs.
Step 3: Modest gifts stay outside
The same article saves the customary modest gifts from the nullity of gratuitous acts.
Step 4: The principal dwelling has its own rule
Article 496: under gananciales the other’s express consent or judicial authority is needed.
Step 5: Minor children may challenge it too
The act is annullable at the instance of the other spouse or of their minor children, if they live there.
Step 6: But not against a good-faith onerous acquirer
Article 496 says that in that case annulment does not proceed.
Step 7: If you declare whose a good is, record it
Article 497: without recording, that declaration alone does not prejudice forced heirs or creditors.
Where to do it
These three articles do not define what a customary modest gift is and fix no amount, so the line between the saved gift and the void act is not written in the text. Nor do they define the family group’s ordinary-use furniture. They set no term to bring the annulment, do not say before which court it is sought, and do not describe how the judicial authority substituting the missing consent is obtained. They do not explain how it is established that the acquirer acted in good faith and for value, which is precisely what blocks annulment in the dwelling case. And they publish no tariff or term. The regime of the family dwelling after the marriage is dissolved is a different one and lives in Articles 476 to 487; this site covers it separately. None of those gaps is filled here.
How long it takes
What to do if something goes wrong
The first thing to look at when a spouse disposed of a common good alone is not who signed but whether there was a price, because the whole hand turns on it. If the act was onerous and the law required the other’s consent, Article 495 makes it annullable: it may be annulled at the instance of the spouse whose consent was omitted, or of their heirs. Annullable means it must be asked for, that someone must bring it. If the act was gratuitous, the same article changes tone: acts disposing gratuitously of common goods are void if the other spouse’s consent is missing, save the customary modest gifts. Giving away the common good without the other is in a worse position than selling it. And what the Code does not do is say where the modest-gift line lies, so that exception carries no figure. The second point is the dwelling, which under sociedad de bienes gananciales has its own lock: neither spouse may dispose of the rights over the principal family dwelling nor of the family group’s ordinary-use furniture without the other’s express consent or, failing that, judicial authority. Two details here are overlooked. One is that the challenge is not the spouse’s alone: the minor children may also bring it, if they live in the dwelling. The other is the limit that protects the market and usually decides the real case: annulment does not proceed when the acquirer acts in good faith and for value. That is, against a good-faith buyer who paid, annulment does not prosper. Finally, Article 497 warns about something signed lightly: a spouse’s declaration about a good’s title is sufficient proof, but by itself it does not prejudice the declarant’s forced heirs or the creditors of the conjugal society or of either spouse if that attribution is not recorded as a modification of the original régime. MiPRFácil gives no legal advice.
Common mistakes
- Treating the sale and the donation of a common good alike: the first is annullable, the second void.
- Believing the annullable act falls on its own: annulment must be brought.
- Forgetting that the omitted spouse’s heirs may also seek that annulment.
- Looking in the Code for the amount separating a customary modest gift from a void act: it fixes none.
- Thinking the principal family dwelling may be sold because title is in one name only.
- Ignoring that minor children living in the dwelling may bring the annulment.
- Counting on annulling the sale against a good-faith acquirer for value: Article 496 does not allow it.
- Signing a declaration about a good’s title and not recording it as a modification of the régime.
Frequently asked questions
My spouse sold a common good without me. Is it void?
Article 495 says that act may be annulled at the instance of the spouse whose consent was omitted, or of their heirs. It is annullable, not void outright.
And if they gave it away instead of selling it?
Then the treatment is harsher: acts disposing gratuitously of common goods without the other’s consent are void, save the customary modest gifts.
The house is in my spouse’s name. May they sell it alone?
Under sociedad de bienes gananciales, Article 496 requires the other’s express consent or, failing that, judicial authority.
Can that sale of the dwelling always be annulled?
No. Article 496 says annulment does not proceed when the acquirer acts in good faith and for value.
Official sources
These are the government pages this guide is based on.
- Poder Judicial de Puerto Rico
Poder Judicial
bvirtualogp.pr.gov
Last verified
September 13, 2026
MiPRFácil is an independent informational website and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or operated by the Government of Puerto Rico or any government agency.
MiPRFácil does not submit applications on your behalf.
Was this guide helpful?
Did you find out-of-date information?
Even under separation of property, both spouses’ goods answer for the family charges
Article 492 of the Civil Code of 2020 subjects both spouses’ goods to the lifting of the marriage and family charges, independently of the régime.
Prenuptial agreements and the marital property regime
Under the 2020 Code you may agree to separation of property before marrying or during the marriage. It must be by public deed and registered.
Who stays in the house after the divorce
Preferential attribution divides ownership; the right to remain lets you live there. Two different things, and both can be asked for.
Performing the contract after the cause ends costs you the right to void it
Article 350 of the Civil Code of 2020 turns full or partial performance into tacit confirmation, and 351 extinguishes the action with it.
How to gift property during your lifetime (and when it can be revoked)
Gifting real property requires a public deed under penalty of radical nullity, the recipient must accept while both are alive, and only six causes allow revocation.
Property Registry: how to request a registry certification
The two kinds of certification the Registry issues, the 60-day deadline the law sets, and what to do if the registrar does not issue it.