Wedding between non German: Surname change mandatory ?

[Frantic 58]

Hi,

 

I googled but i failed to find something matching my case. Me and my partner are both non german citizen (i am EU, she is not).

In our origin countries after marriage the members of the couple keep their own original surname. No need to change for one of them, no need to add hyphen seprated surnamet, and all this German stuff.

 

I was googling and I found a post in another forum where it was mentioned that if we are both non German citizen we are free to keep (or choose) our own surname according to the law of our countries, even if we celebrate the marriage in Germany, in a german stadamt. Is this correct ?

Could you please point me to some official link or suggest me some (german) keywords that can be helpful in my search on google ? (my german is not that good, unfortunately).

 

Thanks.

 

 

[fraufruit 40,246]

We married here and kept our surnames. He is German I am American. No problems.

 

I did change to his several years later. We just didn't want the extra paperwork at the time.

[snowingagain 4,563]

In Germany there is no obligation for name change when marrying.   And many of my friends here chose this option.

[Frantic 58]

15 minutes ago, snowingagain said:

In Germany there is no obligation for name change when marrying.   And many of my friends here chose this option.

 

Oh really ?

Then I was always having wrong information in my mind. I thought that one member of the couple was forced to choose:

 

1) to change the surname in the one of the partner

2) as 1) but adding his/her original surname, separated by an hyphen

 

 

[the.frollein 6,714]

22 minutes ago, snowingagain said:

In Germany there is no obligation for name change when marrying.   And many of my friends here chose this option.

 

When you go to submit your documents at the Standesamt, they will offer you a variety of choices and you will have to tell the Beamte what you choose. I was also under the misapprehension that the rules were very rigid and was pleasantly surprised at just how flexible German bureacracy has become in some (very few though...) regards.

[ooch 133]

50 minutes ago, Frantic said:

and all this German stuff.

 

13 minutes ago, Frantic said:

1) to change the surname in the one of the partner

2) as 1) but adding his/her original surname, separated by an hyphen

 

No & no.
But you have to marry at full moon, under an oak, slaughter a horse and bath in it's blood. Some even drink it but this is a bit old fashioned and no longer required.

[LeonG 14,592]

Also note that Standesamt may have more choices in location than getting married in their office. Friends who got married in 2008 had choices of 4 locations and chose to marry in an old tower.

[yourkeau 7,672]

Standesamt is irrelevant for non-German citizens, and so is the name change. 

 

 Relevant German authorities recognize marriage based on the marriage certificate abroad. I guess it needs to be officially translated into German and notarized. 

 

 

[Frantic 58]

13 minutes ago, yourkeau said:

 

 Relevant German authorities recognize marriage based on the marriage certificate abroad. I guess it needs to be officially translated into German and notarized. 

 

 

 

our case is that we want to marry in Germany, according to German Law.

 

Just for reference for future readers, the Standamt will require both to produce all the needed documents in order to make the marriage valid also for the law of the country of origin of each member of the couple.

[Chelski 1,298]

Interesting topic and over to the experts through experience:

 

1. If the wife chooses to take her husband's name in the hyphen format; what are the kids named? 

 

2. If the wife and husband decide to keep their separate surnames; what are the kids named?

 

Or are there multiple choices when registering the birth(s)?

 

Genuinely interested.

 

 

[LeonG 14,592]

31 minutes ago, Chelski said:

Interesting topic and over to the experts through experience:

 

1. If the wife chooses to take her husband's name in the hyphen format; what are the kids named? 

 

2. If the wife and husband decide to keep their separate surnames; what are the kids named?

 

Or are there multiple choices when registering the birth(s)?

 

Genuinely interested.

 

 

According to https://www.eltern.de/familie-urlaub/familienleben/welchen-familiennamen-tr%C3%A4gt-ihr-kind if the parents don't have the same surname, they have one month to decide which surname their firstborn will have and this can later not be changed and will stay the same for future kids.  Actually, I think they can even pick a surname which neither of them share such as a friend of mine who decided that his kids should get his "inofficial" surname which was not a part of his legal name or in his passport at the time.  Later he thought better that he share a surname with his kids but the kids name could not be changed again so he changed his to match.

 

[Chelski 1,298]

15 minutes ago, LeonG said:

 

According to https://www.eltern.de/familie-urlaub/familienleben/welchen-familiennamen-tr%C3%A4gt-ihr-kind if the parents don't have the same surname, they have one month to decide which surname their firstborn will have and this can later not be changed and will stay the same for future kids.  Actually, I think they can even pick a surname which neither of them share such as a friend of mine who decided that his kids should get his "inofficial" surname which was not a part of his legal name or in his passport at the time.  Later he thought better that he share a surname with his kids but the kids name could not be changed again so he changed his to match.

 

 

Cheers Leon. Much appreciated.

[LukeSkywalker 7,276]

22 minutes ago, LeonG said:

..,such as a friend of mine who decided that his kids should get his "inofficial" surname which was not a part of his legal name or in his passport at the time.

Was it Skywalker by any chance?

[LeonG 14,592]

Just now, LukeSkywalker said:

Was it Skywalker by any chance?

 

Nope, I wonder if that would be allowed though

 

[DoubleDTown 384]

6 hours ago, Frantic said:

Me and my partner are both non german citizen (i am EU, she is not).

 

I was googling and I found a post in another forum where it was mentioned that if we are both non German citizen we are free to keep (or choose) our own surname according to the law of our countries, even if we celebrate the marriage in Germany, in a german stadamt. Is this correct ?

Could you please point me to some official link or suggest me some (german) keywords that can be helpful in my search on google ? (my german is not that good, unfortunately).

 

the name after marriage can be done in accordance to the law of the country of which you are a citizen.  You could do a search about the "Ehename". And also see the

Einführungsgesetz zum Bürgerlichen Gesetzbuche  (EGBG)

Art 10.   Name

(1) Der Name einer Person unterliegt dem Recht des Staates, dem die Person angehört.

 

https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/bgbeg/BJNR006049896.html

[El Jeffo 41,886]

10 hours ago, LeonG said:

 

Nope, I wonder if that would be allowed though

 

 

One of my son's classmates was born while his German parents were taking a sabbatical in South Africa, where they don't have Germany's strict naming laws.

 

His first name is Ben. Middle name is Kenobi. Last name is a typically German name ending with "mann"

 

I shit you not.

[katheliz 17,876]

Maybe things have tightened up since 1973, but about the time Vierling was born, the Rosenheim Volksblatt list of births included little Bruce Lee Gschwendtner (or something equally bayerisch)

[LeonG 14,592]

That's a name to live up to.  My brother who lives in Iceland told me he has clients whose young son is named Elvis Aron.

[LukeSkywalker 7,276]

Does he look like this?

 

 

[LeonG 14,592]

1 minute ago, LukeSkywalker said:

Does he look like this?

 

 

 

He may have but he's school age now.