Birth Certificate

How to obtain the birth certificate in Germany / Stuttgart.

General Information

Hospitals will ask for the name of the newborn baby soon after the birth. If you are not sure you have a month to give the official name to the baby.

You have to register your baby in the city/town, where your baby is born. Normally the place where you give birth (e.g. hospital) organises the registration of the birth certificate, provided that you have all the documents available.

The official address in Stuttgart, where the registration is done (Standesamt (registry office)) is done is , Marktplatz 1 , 70173 Stuttgart Telefon 0711/216-0 Fax 0711/216-91237. 

HELP WITH APPLICATION

Our partner Elodie from Baby in Berlin is specialised on all topics bureaucracy around pregnancy & babies and can help you not only with birth certificates but also Kindergeld (children's benefit) and Elterngeld (parental allowance).
You can contact her here.

Birth Certificate

You must register your baby’s birth within one week of birth. This must be done at the Standesamt (registry office) in the town where you delivered your baby, but a lot of hospitals also provide this service.

You can do this yourself, otherwise it can also be done by your midwife, the baby’s father, your doctor, a relative or friend. 

Your child’s birth certificate will also be used for arranging identity cards, a passport and registration and for the health insurance as well as parental allowance and child benefit if eligible.

US citizens who are born in the US Army Hospital Bad Cannstatt (5th General Hospital) can have a birth certificate issued by the Registry Office in Stuttgart-Bad Cannstatt. 

Indian citizens without a birth certificate can get it at the Indian Consulate in Munich - this should usually work. As for the name  - you can chose any name that is official Indian :-)

In general,  birth certificates and the marriage certificate need to be translated into German by a certified translator.

Required documents for the registration:

Note: If you have  an International Marriage License (EU), you do not need a translation.

• Record of the birth document from the hospital (completed and signed)
• Identity card or passport of the parents (or a recognized passport set) - TIPP - please ask the personnel in the hospital to make a copy of the Visa page of both parents passports. This can help to prevent addition bureaucracy due to questions from the  Standesamt.
• proof of residence permit  
• Parents birth certifications translated into German by an official & registered translator
• if the parents are married: copy from the marriage register / marriage certificate of the parents plus an official translation into German
• if the mother is single: birth certification of the mother
• if the parents are not married to and the paternity is already recognized: certified copy of the father's declaration of recognition and certified copy of the consent of the mother
• if  you are divorced: take your divorce decree with you         

You will receive 3 birth certificates - for applying for the parental allowance, the child benefit and the maternity allowance.
Should you wish for your child to have an international birth certificate, this can be requested at the Standesamt for a fee and is often produced in French, German and English.

The Birth certificate is normally for free, additional copies €12. The costs of an International birth certificate are around €12.

 Here the link to the official Stuttgart Website on how to register a newborn (albeit in German).

copies of the birth certificate

When picking up your birth certificates, you will automatically receive 3 that are free of charge. These 3 or 4 birth certificates have allocated purposes which are for:

• Elterngeld / parental allowance
• Kindergeld / child benefit
• Health Insurance
• for religious purposes (eg. baptism) if appropriate

Each certificate will have a title on them telling you which certificate needs to go to where.
If you are unsure, make sure to ask whilst at the Standesamt. And as mentioned above you can purchase more copies.

More Information on Kindergeld / Child benefit & Elterngeld / Parental Allowance.

Tips & Summary:

• you will get 3-4 birth certificates, each is for a specific purpose. 
• We would recommend filling in both the Elterngeld and Kindergeld applications before the birth of your baby when you still have time, leaving only the baby’s birth date (and adding the birth certificates) to fill in once he or she is there. 
• In case you have been working in Germany - don’t forget to inform your employer of your child’s actual birth date as they will need this to know when your Mutterschutz ends. 
• The baby is initially automatically medically covered by proxy through the mother’s health insurance (if you have a German insurance). You will need to give your Krankenkasse (Health Insurance Company) a copy of the birth certificate, which is used for your baby to receive their own card and fill in an application form Antrag auf Familienversicherung.
• The Registry Office or Town Hall is also where you would apply for a Kinderreisepass, if you child is eligible for German citizenship (children’s passport) You need this, if you are planning on travelling and your child has German citizenship the  child’s passport is valid for travel to most countries however America is NOT one of these countries. If you wish to travel to America you will need to apply for a proper passport which takes a bit longer and costs more). 

Certified Translations:

Send them your documents and they will come back to you with an offer.

Biselli Erika Übersetzungsbüro /  0711 6 77 05 05

Link to a general certified translator search

Kira Neumann
This blog post has been prepared with the greatest possible care and does not claim to be correct, complete or up-to-date.“

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