Acknowledge the baby before the birth (erkenning)
If you are not married and not in a registered partnership, the mother's partner is not automatically the baby's legal parent. Acknowledgement (erkenning) fixes that, and you can do it before the birth at any Dutch municipality, not only your own. Checked against rijksoverheid.nl on 22 September 2026.
- Who it applies to
- People who are not married or in a registered partnership and have a partner going through it with them
- On your timeline
- Paperbump schedules this usually between week 20 and week 34 of the pregnancy
- Official source
- rijksoverheid.nl
- Last checked
- 22 September 2026
What else to know
Make an appointment and bring valid ID; the mother has to come too, or give written consent. It is free. Doing it before the birth means the baby has two legal parents from the moment they are born. Since 1 January 2023 acknowledgement also gives you joint parental custody (gezag) automatically — if you do not want that, you can say so at the appointment.
Before you contact them
Who you need Any Dutch municipality (gemeente), not only your own
What to ask
- What is the first appointment you have for erkenning?
- Which documents do we each need to bring?
- Do our documents need a translation or a legalisation?
- Can we record the baby's surname at the same appointment?
What happens next You can do this before the birth, and the mother has to be there too.
Work out your own dates — free, nothing is sent to us