Confirming the acknowledgement of paternity and annulling husband's paternity

The purpose of establishing paternity is to obtain the information required for determining the child’s father. Establishing paternity is the responsibility of the municipal child welfare officer.

Paternity is established by the municipal child welfare officer and confirmed by the Digital and Population Data Services Agency. If the child was born during a marriage, the child’s father is automatically the spouse. If you are not married, your paternity must be established and confirmed.

Paternity in connection with fertility treatment

If the child was born with the help of fertility treatment, your paternity will be confirmed by the Digital and Population Data Services Agency if you and the mother have jointly consented to the treatment. If the treatment has only been given to the mother, your paternity will be confirmed by the Digital and Population Data Services Agency if you have agreed that paternity can be confirmed when donating sperm or if, in agreement with the mother, you have agreed that paternity can be confirmed after the treatment. The child welfare officer will establish your paternity after which it will be confirmed by the Digital and Population Data Services Agency.

Annulling and acknowledging paternity of a child born during a marriage

Paternity of a child born during a marriage can be annulled by the Digital and Population Data Services Agency in two cases after the child welfare officer has established paternity.

• A second man can acknowledge a child born during a marriage as a child of his own after the mother and the husband have accepted the acknowledgement. Paternity of the husband is annulled when the Digital and Population Data Services Agency confirms the paternity of the man who acknowledged paternity.
• The husband and wife may jointly ask the child welfare officer to establish paternity, and the request must be made before the child is six months old. If the DNA test shows that the husband cannot be the child’s father, the husband and wife may jointly apply for the annulment of the husband’s paternity. The application must be submitted to the Digital and Population Data Services Agency before the child is one years old.
  
  Complete the application

The form is in Finnish.

However, the Digital and Population Data Services Agency cannot annul paternity if the mother has received fertility treatment.

Do the following

• You can acknowledge paternity before the child’s birth by stating to the municipal child welfare officer or to a nurse at a municipal maternity clinic that you are the child’s father. You must give the statement in person in the presence of the future mother.
• If you have not acknowledged your paternity before the child’s birth, you can acknowledge paternity after the child’s birth by personally stating to the child welfare officer that you are the child’s father.

Annulling husband’s paternity

• Before paternity can be annulled, the matter must be investigated by the child welfare officer.

Frequently asked questions