Photo is unrelated to the article. [Getty Images Bank]
Photo is unrelated to the article. [Getty Images Bank]

A man in his 30s is considering annulling his marriage after discovering that his wife had concealed nearly 100 million won ($74,700) in debt — including credit card loans and loans from unlicensed lenders — despite telling him before their wedding that she had none.

The 34-year-old office worker's story, six months into his marriage, was featured Thursday on YTN Radio's legal advice program "Cho In-seop's Counseling Center."

The man, identified only as A, married his wife after about a year of dating following an introduction through a mutual friend. He said he was smitten from the moment they met, drawn to her warm and easygoing personality, and considered himself lucky to have found her.

While preparing for the wedding, the couple discussed their finances. His wife said she had not saved much but had no debt. A took her at her word and went ahead with the marriage.

He covered the jeonse deposit for their newlywed home using his own savings and a loan taken out in his name. The couple also agreed to draw living expenses from a joint account fed by his monthly salary.

Cracks began to appear about three months into the marriage. Letters from credit card companies, savings banks and lenders he had never heard of started arriving at their home addressed to his wife.

Each time A asked about the mail, his wife brushed it off as junk mail and threw it away. Then one day, a call came from an unknown number — a debt collector working for a company that had lent his wife money.

Shaken, A demanded the truth that same day. After a long hesitation, his wife admitted she had been in debt before the marriage. The total — combining credit card loans, savings bank loans and money borrowed from unlicensed lenders — came to 100 million won.

What shocked him further was that his mother-in-law had known about the debt all along. A had assumed the money leaving the joint account each month was going into a savings plan his wife had set up. In practice, it was being used to pay down her pre-marital debt.

The origin of the debt added to his dismay. His wife said roughly half of it had been spent on overseas travel before the marriage, with the rest going toward outings with friends and handbag purchases. She said she was not sure how the debt had grown so large.

"If I had known from the outset that she had nearly 100 million won in debt, I would not have married her," A said, adding that he wanted to know whether the marriage could be annulled and how annulment differed from divorce. He also asked whether he was obligated to repay his wife's debt and whether he could recover the money already paid from his salary.

Attorney Kwak Dong-ju said that if a spouse concealed and lied about a large debt before marriage, the circumstances could constitute grounds for annulment depending on the severity and nature of the deception, and that a claim for annulment on the basis of fraud must be filed within three months of learning the facts. He added that a husband has no legal obligation to repay debts his wife incurred personally before the marriage, and that money paid from the joint account toward her pre-marital debt could be claimed for reimbursement during asset division proceedings.


choigo@heraldcorp.com