Putting a Non-Biological Father on a Birth Certificate

PLEASE NOTE: At this time FastBirthCertificates.com is unable to process requests for anyone who has undergone a legal name change.

​There are an endless number of scenarios where a family or father might want a man listed on a birth certificate even if he isn’t biologically related to the child. Maybe you adopted or maybe you are raising a child from a teen relative—or maybe you remarried and you want to adopt a child (young or grown) after the fact. Either way, there are options available for putting a non-biological father on a birth certificate. Here’s how to get a new birth certificate with the right name on the document.

​Every State Has Different Rules
If you are looking to replace a birth certificate, the first critical factor here is to know that states make their own rules on the subject, as well as their own protocols. Just because a method works in one state doesn’t mean it will work—or is even recognizable—in another. For example, some states allow mothers to change the father’s name based on paternity, even if the father disagrees, as long as there is DNA evidence. Others require an agreement between both parties.
 
When There Is No Father Listed
Sometimes, the father of a child either isn’t known or isn’t listed at the time of birth. This may be the case if the father has died or if a woman is escaping abuse. When no father is listed at all, it is much easier to list a non-biological father; usually, you simply have to submit the information to your state vital statistics organization.
 
This becomes even easier if the parents in question are married. For example, if Sally has a son, Ron, for whom a father is not listed, and Sally later marries Billy, then Sally can easily apply to list the married partner without much effort at all.
 
When a Father Is Listed
If a father is listed but is, for some reason, no longer relevant to the child’s life (e.g., death, long-term imprisonment, estrangement, or refusal to acknowledge the child), you still have options. The process to adjudicating parentage isn’t easy, and it can sometimes take months or years, but it often starts with a court hearing through the state judiciary. In the hearing, the mother must be able to identify why the change is justified.

Judges will often ask a series of questions to rule out parental alienation, such as why the change is desired, whether both paternal figures agree, and whether the parents have DNA evidence to prove the current father is incorrect. The new father must also be present or, at least, provide a notarized agreement to the adjustment.
 
If the hearing or court session goes in your favor, the documents are then forwarded to state official departments for adjustment. Assuming they also approve the change, the name is adjusted in computers, and they issue you the new documents.
 
Unfortunately, this process can also be extremely lengthy, demanding weeks or months of time, which can hold up birth certificate replacement or passport approval. If you need a birth certificate faster, it may be better to use Fast Birth Certificates to seek a copy with the incorrect name intact, and then work to change the name going forward.  ​