Download New Hampshire Prenuptial Agreement Form [PDF]

The New Hampshire prenuptial agreement is a legal document that enables parties that are about to get married to define their financial relationship during the marriage and make an agreement on the property division in case of a divorce.

As mentioned above, the parties don’t only use the prenuptial agreement after marriage. This document is also commonly used among the parties involved to define each partner’s rights and responsibilities towards the property they accumulate during the marriage.

Another common misconception is that the prenuptial or prenup agreement is only used among wealthy partners. The truth is that this agreement can be used between any partners who have accumulated certain assets or certain debts before entering the marriage, regardless of their value.

Laws and Legal Requirements for a Prenuptial Agreement in New Hampshire

New Hampshire hasn’t adopted the Uniform Premarital Agreement Act. Therefore, the matter of a prenuptial agreement is regulated by the precedents set by the court and state law.

Section 460:2-a refers to the prenuptial agreement as the antenuptial agreement. It provides that the antenuptial agreement signed in some other jurisdiction will also be effective in New Hampshire. However, it also provides that the prenuptial agreement cannot include provisions that abolish the rights of minor children.

Section 460:3 provides that the marriage shall not render the husband liable for the debts contracted by his wife prior to their marriage.

Signing Requirements for a Prenuptial Agreement in New Hampshire

The state law doesn’t provide any statutory signing requirements. However, for the document to be considered valid and enforceable, both parties must sign it.

Moreover, it is also recommended that the parties sign their agreement before the notary public. The notary public will confirm the identities of both parties and acknowledge that they’ve both signed the agreement. This will additionally confirm the document’s authenticity and prevent potential disputes and fraudulent activities.

Prenuptial Agreement Enforcement in New Hampshire

Although the parties have signed the prenuptial agreement, the court might declare it unenforceable if one of the parties proves that:

Moreover, the enforcement of the agreement can cause one of the parties to become eligible for the public assistance program after divorce. If that happens, the court can make that provision unenforceable and order the other party to financially support their spouse after divorce.

What Can a Prenuptial Agreement in New Hampshire Cover?

Below, you can see a list of the most commonly used provisions in the New Hampshire prenuptial agreement template:

The parties are free to include any provision in their agreement as long as it doesn’t violate state law or public policy.

Prenuptial Agreement in New Hampshire: Validity Criteria

The prenuptial agreement must fulfill all the formality criteria to be considered valid. The document must only have the signatures of the parties involved since New Hampshire state law doesn't officially specify any formality requirements.

Besides the formality criteria, the validity of the prenuptial agreement is also connected to the existence of marriage. This means that the prenuptial agreement will be considered invalid if the parties don’t get married after signing it.