Recognizing a child and choosing a surname

Are you not automatically the legal parent of a child? Then you can acknowledge the child. You can also choose which surname the child will have. To do this, you need to visit the municipality.

Make an appointment

Arrange online

Approach

To acknowledge a child and choose a surname, you must visit the municipality in person. Are you acknowledging the child when registering the birth? Then you must visit the municipality where the child was born. Are you acknowledging the child before the birth or after registering the birth? You can do this at any municipality in the Netherlands.

To register the first child born to a couple, both parents must visit the municipal office. In that case, you cannot use the consent form.
For a second and subsequent child, the mother does not need to come along and can give her consent for the recognition in the online form.
If you choose not to exercise parental authority jointly with the person granting recognition ( ) , then you cannot use this form. In that case, please make an appointment and both of you should come to the municipal office.

How to acknowledge a child:

You come to the municipality.
Would you like to choose a surname when registering your first child? If so, the mother must also be present.
Please bring the following to the municipality:
- a valid form of identification for yourself
- a valid ID of the mother
- Written consent from the mother for the acknowledgment, if she is not present. Arrange consent for acknowledgment of child online.
- written consent of the child for the acknowledgment, if the child is over 12 years of age
- If the child was not born in Heerlen, please bring a copy of the birth certificate.

Are you expecting a second or subsequent child in your relationship, and does the father or co-mother want to acknowledge the child? If so, the mother must give her consent. You can do this online using your DigiD.

Does the child’s mother or the person acknowledging paternity live abroad? You must present proof of civil status. If you do not have Dutch citizenship, different rules may apply. In some cases, you may not be able to acknowledge paternity. Would you like more information and advice about your situation? If so, please make an appointment.

Costs

Recognition and name selection are free of charge. You will be charged €17.80 for a copy or extract from the civil registry. This amount is payable upon application.

(Rate 2026)

Description

If you are not married and do not have a registered partnership, the birth mother is automatically the sole legal parent of a child born from this relationship.

Does the father or co-mother also want to become the legal parent? Then he or she must acknowledge the child.

The legal parents are responsible for the child's upbringing. Read more about the consequences of recognition.

You can acknowledge a child even before it is born.

Child's last name

Are you not married and do you not have a registered partnership? Then the child will automatically receive the surname of the birth mother when the birth is registered.

Are you recognizing the child as its father or co-mother? Then you and the birth mother can choose together what surname the child will have. You can choose the surname of the birth mother, of the partner, or a combination of both.

The surname you choose for your first child will also be the surname of any subsequent children from the same relationship.

Requirements

The main Requirements recognizing a child are:

You are 16 years of age or older.
You are not related to the mother.
There are not already two parents. Because a child has a maximum of two legal parents.

You can also acknowledge a child if you are not the biological parent.

The main conditions for choosing a surname upon recognition are:

It is the first child from the relationship.

Objections and appeals

Do you disagree with the municipality's decision? Then you can file an objection. By doing so, you can explain why you disagree. You must object within 6 weeks. The municipality will then make a new decision.

Do you disagree with the new decision? Then you can ask the court whether the municipality has made the right decision. This is called 'appealing'. You must do this within six weeks. You can only appeal if you have lodged an objection.