I have a daughter in Germany and my ex partner is refusing

Hello! My name is***** am specialized in international legal advice and today I am going to help you with your inquiry.

Dear client, are you married or were you married to your daughter's mother at the time of her birth?

Please note that in Germany, it is very important whether a child is born in or out of wedlock. Therefore, the father of a child according to the German Civil Code is the man who is married to the child's mother at the time of birth. The father of a child born out of wedlock can also acknowledge his paternity of the child only with the mother's consent. However, a father is also considered to be a father if he has voluntarily acknowledged the child, or if paternity has been established for the child through legal proceedings.

The paternity of a child born out of wedlock can be applied for at the child welfare office closest to the child's place of residence in Germany. The father must bring his identity card and birth certificate. The mother has to agree to the acknowledgement, only then will the acknowledgement of paternity of the child be valid. Both of them can go together to the child welfare office to complete the formalities, or they can do it separately.

If the mother flatly refuses to approve you as the father of your daughter, you must opt for a voluntary acknowledgement of paternity, which you must claim through the courts, and in this case the appropriate biological tests will be carried out and a judge will determine the procedure to be followed. If you are recognised as the biological father, you will have the rights and duties inherent to parental authority over your daughter.

Dear client, ideally, your daughter's mother should agree to present the child to you so that you will appear as the father on her birth certificate.

If this is not possible, then you will have to go to the registry office (Standesamt), the office for the protection of minors, to voluntarily claim paternity of your daughter, explaining that the mother of your daughter does not want to accept you as the father when you are in fact the father. There they will explain to you the next steps to take and whether you will have to get an order from a judge to admit a biological paternity test to prove your paternal link to the child.

Even though you are already financially responsible for your daughter, this does not prove your paternal relationship unless it is legally approved by the registry office or a judge.