Applying for a certificate of miscarriage

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.

The competent registry office will issue a certificate of notification of miscarriage on request.

A miscarriage is defined as a fetus that showed no signs of life (heartbeat, pulsating umbilical cord, lung breathing) when it was separated from the womb, weighed less than 500 grams and did not reach the 24th week of pregnancy.

The registry office is responsible.

• A certificate of miscarriage issued by a doctor, midwife or obstetrician, or a maternity passport if it shows the miscarriage
• An identity card, passport or other recognized passport replacement document of the parents
• Details of the child's intended surname and first name

The certificate must always be applied for in accordance with the legal basis.

The miscarriage was reported to the relevant registry office with the necessary documents.

The notification is only possible if you would have been entitled to custody of the child if it had been born alive, i.e. if you were married to each other at the time of the birth or if you were unmarried parents and made a joint declaration of custody before the birth of the child. If neither is the case, the mother alone has the right to file an application.

• § Section 21 (2) of the Civil Status Act (PStG)
• § Section 31 (2) sentence 3, sentence 4 of the Civil Status Ordinance

You can apply to the local court responsible for the registry office for a court decision.

The notification can be made verbally or in writing.

You do not have to observe any deadlines.

They are usually issued immediately.

There is no charge for issuing a certificate of miscarriage.