Recognizing a child is an essential step in establishing parentage. However, the administrative procedures are different if you are married or not.
What's the difference between recognizing and declaring a child?
Recognizing a child establishes a parent-child relationship. For a woman, filiation is a matter of course. When she gives birth, she automatically designates herself as the baby's mother, and her name appears on the birth certificate. For the father, it's not so simple, depending on the case.
From an administrative point of view, the DECLARATION OF BIRTH must be made within 3 days of the birth, on presentation of the CERTIFICATE OF BIRTH drawn up by the doctor or midwife. The birth declaration then gives rise to a BIRTH CERTIFICATE.
There are two possibilities at this point:
- if the acknowledgement was made in advance, i.e. before the birth: this acknowledgement is attached to the birth declaration,
- if the acknowledgement has not been made: you can acknowledge the child at the time of the declaration, so that it can be entered on the birth certificate.
What procedure applies in the event of marriage?
When a child's parents are married, filiation is automatically established between the child's father and mother. So there's nothing special to do. Nor is there any need for recognition.
Parentage with regard to the mother is established by the presence of her name on the birth certificate. She also retains the option of giving birth under X, if she is married.
As for the father, he is presumed to be the child's father. His name will therefore appear on the birth certificate. But this is only a presumption...
Who must recognize a child born out of wedlock?
The establishment of filiation for the mother is automatic. Her name will appear on the birth certificate. For the father, the situation is different. He must acknowledge the child for filiation to be established. He even has the option of doing so in advance; in fact, this is the most common practice. This early recognition makes it possible to establish filiation between the father and the child, right from the time of pregnancy. Thus, in the event of the father's death during pregnancy, the child will not be born to an "unknown father" as far as civil status is concerned.
The mother can also make an early acknowledgement, but not to establish filiation, but rather to pass on her family name to her child. This is done at the town hall's registry office, simply by showing proof of identity.
Stéphanie Swiklinski