What Rights Do Fathers Have If Not On a Birth Certificate?

A birth certificate is a legal document recording the birth of a child. The information included on birth certificates includes the child’s date of birth, place of birth, and their legal parents. To have your name listed on the birth certificate, you must be the child’s biological father or have legally adopted the child.

In Texas, you may still have legal rights to your child if you are not on the birth certificate, like child custody and visitation. However, you must establish paternity before you have any legal responsibility. If you do not establish paternity and your name is not on the birth certificate, you have no legal rights to the child.

If your name is not listed on the birth certificate of your child and you want to establish legal paternity, contact a family attorney for legal guidance. At Skillern Firm, we want to help ensure that you have legal rights to your child and that you can play an active role in your child’s life. Our experienced family law attorneys can help you determine paternity and apply for an amended birth certificate to establish you as a legal father.

With decades of combined experience in family law, we have the skills you need to guide you through the family legal system. Three of our attorneys are Board Certified in Family Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, which is a certification given to just 1% of family attorneys in Texas.

Call us today to get help with your legal case by calling 936-213-8479.

Father’s Rights in Texas

If you are a child’s legal father, you have certain rights and responsibilities. Your responsibilities include providing financial support to your child and taking care of your child if you have custody rights. Included in these responsibilities are the rights you are afforded as a father, such as the right to spend time with your child and decision-making rights.

The child’s father and the child’s mother have equal rights under Texas law. Any decisions made on behalf of the child must be in their best interests. Once a father has established paternity and established themselves as the legal father, they have the following legal rights:

Child Custody Rights

Child custody laws provide that a legal father may seek custody of their children, including both legal custody and physical custody. In Texas, child custody is known as “conservatorship” which refers to the decision-making rights each parent has in a child’s life. Possession refers to the rights each parent has to spend time with the child.

Both the mother and father have custody rights to their children once they are legally established as their parents. If you are not on the birth certificate but have established your parental responsibility rights by proving paternity, you can apply for custody rights to your child.

Visitation Rights

If the mother has primary custody of the child and is the custodial parent, the father can apply for visitation rights. Usually, Judges believe it is in the best interest of the children to have access to both parents, provided there is no history of family violence. If you do not have custody and visitation rights to your child, you can apply for them with the help of an attorney.

A Standard Possession Order (SPO) in Texas gives primary custody to one parent and visitation rights to the other. The type of visitation schedule depends on your circumstances. However, a standard visitation court order could include visitation on the first, third, and fifth weekends of the month.

Inheritance Rights

Children may receive property and assets upon a father’s death, even when there is no Last Will and Testament. By acknowledging paternity, you give these rights to your children to receive your assets upon your death.

Decision-Making Rights

If you legally establish yourself as a father and a managing conservator, you have the right to make decisions about your child’s upbringing, including where they go to school, their religion, and the healthcare they receive.

What Rights Do Fathers Have if Not on Birth Certificate?

If you are not on the birth certificate, you do not have any legal rights unless you establish paternity for your child. For unmarried parents, the father must first establish paternity before they have any legal relationship or rights to their child. This applies regardless of whether they are the biological father.

The most important step for unmarried parents with children is the father determining paternity and establishing his rights as the legal father. Usually, this is done in the hospital when the child is born by signing an Acknowledgement of Paternity (AOP) form.

However, if this was not done in the hospital for whatever reason, you can get help with this process from an experienced family law attorney.

Establishing Paternity in Texas

If you are not on the birth certificate of your child, you must establish legal paternity before you have any rights. The easiest way to establish paternity is by being married to the mother at the time of the birth. However, if you were not married when the child was born and your name is not on the birth certificate, you can establish paternity in the following ways:

Acknowledgement of Paternity

An Acknowledgment of Paternity (AOP) is a legal document allowing an unmarried biological father to establish their rights to a child. Both the mother and the father must agree to sign this document and submit it to the Texas Vital Statistics Unit. Once this document is signed as submitted, your rights as a legal father are established.

Paternity Tests

If the child’s mother chooses to not sign the Acknowledgement of Paternity (AOP) form, you may need to file a paternity suit to establish paternity. This is known as a Petition to Adjudicate Parentage in Texas. By filing this petition, you can request a court order to establish your rights as a legal parent. The court may order a DNA test to determine if you are the biological father.

Presumed Father

A presumed father has the same rights as the legal father. A presumption of paternity is made when:

• A father is married to the mother at the time of the child’s birth.
• The child is born before the 301st day after the marriage ended.
• The father lived with the child for the first two years of their life and presented the child as his own.
• Or the father married the mother to comply with Texas laws, the child was born during the marriage or before the 301st day after the marriage ended, and the marriage is invalid or could be declared invalid.

Amending a Child’s Birth Certificate

In some situations, you may amend your child’s birth certificate to include the father’s name. First, you must go through the process of establishing paternity and become recognized as the legal father. If you are not the legal father, your name cannot be added to the child’s birth certificate.

To amend a child’s birth certificate, you must send an Application for New Birth Certificate Based on Parentage with the following documents to the Texas Vital Statistics office:

• Completed Application for New Birth Certificate Based on Parentage signed by both parents or just one parent if there is a court decree establishing paternity.
• Application fee.
• Either an Acknowledgement of Paternity (AOP) form, a court order establishing parental rights, or a certified copy of a marriage license after the birth of the child.

To get help with this process, we recommend enlisting the services of qualified legal counsel. Establishing parental rights and getting an amended birth certificate can be quite complicated, and it is important that you do it correctly. An attorney with significant experience in this field will ensure that all documents are correctly submitted.

Father’s Rights FAQ

Can I have my name on the birth certificate if I am not the biological father?

In Texas, a father’s name can only be added to a birth certificate if they are the biological father or if they have gone through the legal process of adoption. If you have adopted a child and want to get a new birth certificate, seek help from an experienced attorney. They can help you file a Certificate of Adoption and get an amended birth certificate.

If you have not adopted the child and are not the child’s biological father, your name cannot be included on the birth certificate.

My name is on the birth certificate, but the child’s mother and I are not married. Do I have parental rights?

If your name is on the birth certificate but you have not made steps to establish yourself as the father, you do not have parental rights. As an unmarried father, you must sign an Acknowledgment of Paternity (AOP) form or get a court order establishing your rights as a father.

Is there a statute of limitations for confirming paternity?

In Texas, there is no time limit for establishing paternity. You can file a paternity suit to establish yourself as the father at any stage in the child’s life. We recommend getting advice from an attorney if you want to establish yourself as the child’s father.

My name is not on the birth certificate, but I am the presumed father. Do I have custody rights?

If you are the presumed father of a child, either through marriage at the time of the birth, living with the child for two years and presenting them as your own, signing an Acknowledgement of Paternity (AOP), or if the child was born before the 301st day after the marriage ended, you have legal responsibilities and rights to the child.

Contact the Father’s Rights Attorneys at Skillern Firm Today!

Unmarried fathers who are not on the child’s original birth certificate must take measures to establish their rights as fathers. If you are the biological father, you must get either an Acknowledgement of Paternity (AOP) or a court order to get legal rights to your child, such as child custody and visitation rights.

As a father, it is important that you have access and rights to your child, and that these rights are protected under the law. The best way to ensure that your rights are protected and that you can have custody and visitation with your child is to seek help from an experienced family law attorney.

At Skillern Firm, we have a team of highly experienced family attorneys that can help you establish your rights as a legal father in Texas. Our lawyers want to protect your child’s best interests and help ensure that they have access to both parents.

We know that paternity cases are extremely sensitive and that one simple mistake can cost you dearly. Therefore, we take a personalized approach to each case we deal with, ensuring that you get the best outcome possible. Our lawyers will fight on your behalf to get your name on the birth certificate and help establish your rights as a parent.

Call our law firm today at 936-213-8479.