Becoming a parent: registering a child in Germany

Hi folks,
Wanted to hear some advice on what to do in the above situation. I'm going to be a new father in the next few weeks and have been told that we must register the kiddy within 6 days of it being born, anyone got any advice on where to go or what to bring? Thanks, T.

Sorry, I can't be of any help, but I'll still say congratulations!!!

No you don't have to register the little tyke like that. You are Irish and your wife is what?
If she is German, and you want the kid to be a dual citizen, you will need to start a family tree book. This gets complicated. You will need the birth certificates of all grandparents plus your own. This will take longer than six days.
As for the Irish thing, you will need to register the kid at your consulate as a live birth abroad type thing. This to does not need to be done in such a hurry. Relax and keep building the kiddie bed and changing table and such and simply contact your embassy for the particulars. As for Germany, the hospital does the initial stuff and most likely the kid and the wife will be in the hospital for the first week anyway.
Congratulations new DAD! Welcome to the club

whwn my son was born, the authorities came to me in my hospital bed and gave me the forms to fill out and then picked them up a few days later.
They might ask you if you want the birth mentioned in the local paper. I said yes and because of this got lots of freebies sent to me (as well as a few unwanted callers trying to sell stuff).

contact jeremy. he is british, wife german and he experienced all the stuff just recently too.
congrats!

OK, put your head between your knees and grab your ankles cause you are certainly about to be in for a ride! the first year is a little hard, but after they start walking it's really fun. Be sure if you smell a diaper/nappy, change it. If you know when he/she is supposed to be fed, do it. If your wife asks you to do these 2 things do not argue with her because she will be pissed off if you don't. It does not matter if you are tired cause you will be. I mean just try to keep things as equal as possible with your significant other on diaper duty. Good Luck!! If you have any other questions please feel free to ask.

@MommyinDE

Hi, thanks for the eye opening advice. I suggest the next time you post answers to my questions; read the question carefully, see what others have posted to give yourself a clue as to what I'm talking about, that way you won't look so dumb to other TT'ers!

Wow TallGuy, that's pretty harsh! I'm sure MommyinDE meant only the best.

If you're not married, GET MARRIED!

Seriously. There's an expression in German: "The only right an unmarried father has is the right to pay." Men have almost no rights when it comes to kids.

Hell, if you've been raising the kid for more than a few years as its father and a DNA test later proves you're not the father (and you subsequently split with the mother), you will still be required to pay full support as if you were the kid's dad. Incredible. A DNA test after birth (blood is normally taken anyway) would not be amiss.

I don't want to rain on your parade (congratulations, really), but you need to be aware of the dark side, and who better to tell you than yours truly? I (and some friends) have been shafted by the German legal system enough already.

Good luck.

woof.

Tallguy, to be fair to Mommie, your question is shown above. Yeah, your first post suggested something more defined, but Mommie is a mommy and may not have had time to read everything else (as you will soon learn first hand). As for the "harsh" post, Mommie will probably find time to "read" it and sort you a bit.

I suggest you put your head between your knees and pray for it not to be too bad.

@ baddoggie

Married two years.

@ mommyinDE

Was not intended to offend. I'm sorry if I have offended you.

you will need to get the wee one registered, no matter what the nationality. the hospital will tell you all about that, and you can't do much about it untill the birth. in fact you can't do anything untill the "major life changer" has breathed his first breath. get your tax brackets changed asap, and make sure you've got your work sorted. they will not allow to use mobiles in the hospital, so dont rely on it as a form of communication with the office. make sure you've eaten before you go into the hospital. sounds stupid but you may end up working like an idiot to ge your desk cleared everyday and you'll forget to eat! maybe organise for somebody from work to drive you to the hospital, personal expierence is that you'll be so excited that you can't concentrate. take a book or a magazine, you maybe waiting while your wife is sleeping, and the hospital shop may be closed when you get there. and remember the golden rule about births, the baby comes first! the pecking order is baby mommy and you dont feature on the scale. consider yourself a neutral cheerleader, let your wife and the hospital staff do their jobs, they do not like husbands telling them what to do. and enjoy it, the birth of my two sons are the only times in my life when i've cried with joy!