Adoption - declaration of renunciation of parental custody by the father who is not married to the mother

In order for a child to be given up for adoption, both parents must give their consent. The father, who is not married to the mother and does not have custody of the child, can make this declaration before the child is born. Seek advice on this from the youth welfare office.

If you are not married to the child's mother, you can only obtain parental custody of the child by submitting a joint declaration of custody to a notary or the youth welfare office. This is a separate declaration which can be made in addition to acknowledging paternity.

If you wish to give your child up for adoption and are not married to the mother, you can actively refrain from filing an application for the transfer of parental custody. You can make this declaration of renunciation before the birth. The declaration must be publicly notarized by a notary or (free of charge) by the youth welfare office. The declaration of relinquishment becomes effective upon receipt by the family court and is irrevocable.

If you do not agree to the adoption, you can apply for parental custody to be transferred to you).

For the adoption of your child, your consent to the adoption is generally required - irrespective of a declaration of renunciation of custody. As a non-custodial father, you can give this consent before the birth of your child. This consent can only be notarized. Consent to adoption cannot be given at a youth welfare office.

After submitting a declaration of renunciation of custody, your consent to the adoption can be replaced by the family court under simplified conditions. As a rule, it is then no longer a question of any misconduct on your part.

Both when notarizing the consent to an adoption and when notarizing the declaration of relinquishment, you will be informed and advised about the legal consequences and effects of the notarization prior to the notarization.

The youth welfare office or a notary can notarize the declaration of renunciation regarding the transfer of parental custody.

Consent to adoption can only be notarized by a notary.

The child's mother is not married to you or a third party and you are the biological father of the child. You have either acknowledged paternity, it has been established by a court or you declare that you had sexual intercourse with the child's mother during the time of conception and that there is no doubt about paternity.

You agree to your child being given up for adoption.

The waiver becomes effective upon receipt by the family court and is irrevocable. An (informal) revocation of the declaration must therefore be received by the family court before or at the same time as the declaration of waiver.

Seek advice from a youth welfare office of your choice on how to exercise your rights regarding the possible adoption of your child. You are not tied to a specific youth welfare office. Within the youth welfare office, the adoption agencies are responsible for this advice. Once you have received instruction and advice, the declaration of relinquishment can be notarized by a notary of the youth welfare office. The notarized declaration is then forwarded to the family court. The declaration becomes effective upon receipt by the family court.

The custody waiver is not subject to any time limits.

If the declaration of renunciation is notarized at the youth welfare office, no costs are incurred.

If it is notarized by a notary, the statutory fees are charged in accordance with the applicable Court and Notary Fees Act. These can be obtained from the notary.