Checklists & tips

The birth of a child must be reported to the registry office responsible for the place of birth.

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

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.

(Expectant) mothers who have statutory health insurance are entitled to the support of a midwife before, during and after the birth. The costs are covered by health insurance.

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.

When the birth of triplets or more multiples is announced, parents soon face special challenges. In addition: Especially at the beginning, the expenses increase by leaps and bounds, because the purchases for the baby equipment multiply. This is where the payment of multiple birth benefits aims to provide special support for large families.

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.