Checklists & tips

If your child was stillborn and it is a miscarriage, you can report the birth to the registry office in whose jurisdiction the miscarriage occurred. The registry office will issue a certificate on request.

If you gave birth to your child at home or were present at a home birth, you must report the birth to the registry office.

You can obtain the birth certificate for your child from the registry office in the place of birth.

You want to register your child at a KiTa? There is a legal entitlement to so-called early childhood support when the child is 1 year old. Places for early childhood development are crèches, kindergartens, after-school care centers and day care centers.

You have received the commitment for a childcare place for your child? Then you will certainly also want to know how high the parental contributions for the childcare place are. Find out early on from your local youth welfare office whether it charges parental contributions, how much they are, if any, and what the assessment basis is for the amount of the contribution. This information is specified in the local parent contribution statutes.

You want to register your child at a KiTa? There is a legal entitlement to so-called early childhood support when the child is 1 year old. Places for early childhood development are crèches, kindergartens, after-school care centers and day care centers.

If you have a child, you can apply for child benefit.

If you as parents earn enough income for yourself, but the income is not enough or only just enough for the whole family, you can apply for the child supplement.

Do you need a civil partnership certificate? You can only obtain your civil partnership certificate from the registry office in whose area the civil partnership was established. The registry office will issue it from the civil partnership register.

During the maternity protection periods, (expectant) mothers are under special legal protection. Before and after the birth, they are not allowed to work for a certain period of time. The Maternity Protection Act ensures that mothers do not suffer any financial disadvantage during this time. Employees receive up to 100 percent of their previous net income, consisting of maternity pay and an employer allowance.

If you as parents are not married to each other at the time of your child's birth, you can obtain joint custody by both making declarations of custody.

Care, education, job, household: single parents bear most of the responsibility alone. Financial worries are added when no or not regular maintenance is paid for the child by the other parent. In this situation, single parents can apply for advance maintenance payments.

If the parents are not married to each other, the natural father of a child is not automatically also the legally recognized father. Recognition with all rights and obligations only takes place through the public certification of a declaration by the father. The mother must agree to the declaration.