90 Day Fiancé: Why Cast Members Should Ask For A Prenup
A number of 90 Day Fiancé cast members have asked their international fiancés to sign a prenuptial agreement to secure their assets, and there are many reasons why others should follow suit. Depending on the specifics, it could guarantee that if the couple divorces, the foreign partner would not be entitled to financial remuneration or the American spouse’s assets. This is a hotly debated topic for Americans who are bringing their fiancés to the U.S. on a K-1 visa.
Past seasons of 90 Day Fiancé have seen American cast members broach the subject of signing a prenup. Mark Shoemaker, 58, and his Philippine then-fiancé Nikki Shoemaker, 19, drew sneers from viewers over their significant age difference on season 3. The 90 Day Fiancé star asked Nikki for a prenup. On 90 Day Fiancé season 7, the subject of a prenup commanded a great deal of screen time between Michael Jessen, 44, and his Brazilian then-fiancé Juliana Custodio, 23. The day before their wedding, Memphis Smith, on 90 Day Fiancé: Before the 90 Days season 5 asked her Tunisian lover Hamza Miknii if he would sign a postnup since it was too late to arrange a prenup in time for the wedding day. Fans can expect to witness the prenup issue again on 90 Day Fiancé season 9 between 37-year-old Shaeeda of Trinidad and 42-year-old Bilal, from Kansas City, Missouri.
90 Day Fiancé cast members should ask for a prenup for a number of reasons, but mainly to protect what they accumulated before their nuptials, whether that’s their savings, a home, a business, or even their children. However, most fans have mixed feelings about whether or not the American cast member should try to enforce a prenup on their betrothed. Many were in favor of Michael having Juliana sign a prenup. The Reddit user abunchofthoughts said, “I don’t see anything wrong with him saying he doesn’t want to share his accounts with her.” But many fans seem to be taking Hamza’s side, not Memphis’. Reddit user RelativeSpring889 said, “It’s 100 percent a trap. Plan to marry him 2 weeks after meeting AND make him sign a prenup, so he has nothing w/out her in America.”
While fewer than half of U.S. citizens sign a prenup, a case can be made that for 90 Day Fiancé cast members, the number should be much higher. In Michael and Juliana’s case, his ex-wife Sarah was worried about his ability to continue child support for their two children if he and Juliana were to divorce. Another reason to put a prenup in place is that many couples on 90 Day Fiancé have vast age differences. Often, the American spouse has substantial assets in place for retirement that they stand to lose if the younger spouse leaves them. Such was likely the motivation for Mark in 90 Day Fiancé season 3.
Many cast members who come to the U.S. on a K-1 visa do not have the skills or the language fluency to secure lucrative employment, which means the American spouse is often the main breadwinner. Putting a prenup in place can reassure them that if they divorce, they will not lose their hard-earned money to their newly betrothed. 90 Day Fiancé cast members don’t enter marriage thinking they will divorce, but they do face struggles that other couples don’t, including cultural differences, separation from family, and a language barrier. While asking for a prenup is uncomfortable, cast members of 90 Day Fiancé have a good reason to do so.
Sources: abunchofthoughts/Reddit, RelativeSpring889/Reddit