Cap. 571 Art. 2Interpretation.     Cap. 16.  Cap. 55.

(1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires:

"basic rights and duties" means those rights and duties listed under article 30;

"cohabitant" means a person who is continually and habitually living with another person in an ordinary, primary, common home, with whom he has an intimate relationship, and together consider themselves a couple, and is not already legally bound to another person:

Provided that for the purposes of de facto cohabitation, a person who, although being in a marriage or civil union is separated de jure shall also be considered as a cohabitant;

"Cohabitations Register" in relation to cohabitations that are registered in the island of Malta means that section within the Office of the Public Registrar in the same island of Malta responsible for affairs relating to cohabitations, and in relation to contracts of cohabitation done in the island of Gozo means that section within the Office of Public Registrar in the same island of Gozo entrusted to do that as previously stated;

*Repealed by Act XXVII of 2020. †See Legal Notice 130 of 2017. persons which cohabitation is not registered nor is it unilaterally declared under this Act and also includes persons who, although being in a marriage or civil union, are separated de jure; "dependent child" in relation to a cohabitant or a cohabiting couple, means any child of the cohabitants or any one of the cohabitants, or any child upon whom they are acting as loco parentis in accordance with the Civil Code and still have the right to receive maintenance from them in accordance to the same Code;

"Minister" means, unless otherwise indicated, the Minister responsible for justice; "notary" means a public official vested with all the powers conferred to him by the Notarial Profession and the Notarial Archives Act;

"ordinary, primary, common home" means that home within which the cohabitants live together, belonging to either one of the cohabitants or to both of them in whichever portion, or possessed by title of lease or any other title, either together or by one of the cohabitants;

"registered" means enrolled in the Public Registry;

"registrar" means that public official identified by the Minister to fulfil the functions of the Registrar for Cohabitations for the Register of Cohabitations, and includes, for all purposes of this Act, any person authorised by the Registrar for this.

(2) All the provisions of this Act shall apply only for those cohabitations which are set up in accordance with the provisions of this Act and for no other form of cohabitation for which a declaration or contract has been registered and is not in accordance with the provisions of this Act.

Part II De facto Cohabitation