When completing your basics information, you'll need to identify the dates of your relationship. Life is nuanced, and the dates when you started living together and when you separated might not be precise. There's often considerable grey area during these transition periods.

The cohabitation start date can be determined by several milestones, such as:

The date of separation marks the official end of the relationship or marriage. It represents the point when you began living separate and apart with the intention of ending your relationship. Importantly, the date of separation is not necessarily dependent on physical separation. The key factor is the intention to end the relationship and live separate lives.

Even if you continued to live under the same roof, you may be considered separated if you decided to no longer have a relationship as spouses or partners.

The intention to separate can be demonstrated through various factors, such as:

Determining the Date of Separation is crucial because it has significant legal implications for various aspects of family law, particularly around pension division, Canada Pension Plan benefits, the duration of spousal support, and it’s used to calculate the one-year waiting period before you can apply for a divorce.

If there's uncertainty or disagreement regarding the date of separation, you may want to get legal advice to ensure that you're making the right determination.

It's common for couples to simply agree on a date. Most people remember events slightly differently and may be off by a few months. Either of the remembered dates will likely work, or you can agree on a date somewhere between the two recollections. As long as both parties agree on a date, no one else will or could verify it. This becomes the agreed-upon date for purposes of the Separation Agreement, and it doesn't need to be exact.