Informations
Information about births
The birth is recorded in a registry office located in the city in which the child was born. Please note that if you give birth in a hospital or birthing center, the certificate can only be issued if the written birth notice has already been received by the responsible registry office.
In the case of home births, the notification must be made personally to the registry office within one week by one of the child’s parents, presenting the birth certificate issued by the midwife.
Attention: The regulations can vary from registry office to registry office.
Required Documents
married parents
- valid identity cards or passports of the parents
- Certified copy of the family register* or marriage register, alternatively marriage certificate and both birth certificates
unmarried parents
- Valid identity card or passport of the mother and, if applicable, the father
single mothers
- Certified copy of the birth register entry or birth certificate
divorced mothers
- Marriage certificate with a note of the legally binding divorce, if necessary additional divorce decree or certified printout of the marriage register with a note of the divorce
widowed mothers
- Marriage certificate with a note about the death of the husband
- If necessary, additional death certificate or certified printout of the marriage register with a note of the husband’s death
- If necessary, proof of already submitted acknowledgment of paternity and declaration of custody, if necessary a certified copy of the birth register entry or birth certificate of the father
Additional Information
The recognition of paternity is a voluntary declaration of intent. The acknowledgment of paternity requires the consent of the child’s mother.
The father’s declaration of recognition and the mother’s declaration of consent must be publicly certified either at the responsible youth welfare office or at a registry office.
Custody in Germany
The child’s parents are mother and father.
Mother is whoever gave birth to the child. In the case of egg donation – which is already prohibited in Germany – it is not the donor who is the mother, but the woman who carries and gives birth to the child.
The father is the man who is married to the child’s mother at the time of birth, otherwise who has acknowledged paternity, otherwise the man whose paternity has been established by the court.
Naming (first name)
The right to give a first name is not regulated by law in Germany. It is purely customary and judicial law.
After a child is born, their first name is determined by the parents (or the sole legal guardian). In Germany there are certain guidelines for naming:
The first name
- must be recognizable as such.
- does not have to be clearly male or female.
- must not harm the child’s well-being by ridiculing the child or creating a connection „to evil“, such as by naming him Judas or Cain.
- must not offend the religious feelings of fellow human beings, for example Christ and formerly Jesus (admitted as a first name by OLG Frankfurt 20 W 149/98).
must not be a place or brand name. - cannot be a family name. Exceptions have been made in particular for East Frisian middle names (e.g. “ten Doornkaat”) and for very rare, unusual surnames (e.g. Wannek, Birkenfeld), as well as of course for family names that are mainly known as first names (Gerhart, etc.).
- must not denote a title such as lord or princess.
must be determined within one month of birth. - cannot be legally protected (to preserve it as unique in this way).
A person can have multiple first names, but must have at least one first name. According to a decision by the Federal Constitutional Court, the district court is allowed to limit the number of first names a child has for the child’s benefit (in this case, the mother was only allowed to give her child five first names instead of twelve).
German nationality
A child born in Germany after January 1, 2000, whose parents are both foreigners, is German if one parent has had their habitual legal residence in Germany for eight years at the time of birth and has a permanent right of residence.
Further information can be obtained from the relevant registry office.