Confirmation of parenthood

In certain situations, a person’s parenthood must be officially confirmed to verify that the person truly is the child’s parent. A person’s parenthood is confirmed by the Digital and Population Data Services Agency. In order for the Digital and Population Data Services Agency to confirm a person’s parenthood, the person must first acknowledge their paternity or maternity.

When does a person's parenthood need to be confirmed and when not?

The person who gives birth is the child’s mother. Their parenthood does not need to be confirmed.

If the mother has a husband when the child is born, the husband is the child’s father and their parenthood does not need to be confirmed.

In other cases, the parenthood of the other parent must be acknowledged and confirmed.

Read the guidelines for different situations on the Digital and Population Data Services Agency’s website.Opens in a new window.

You can acknowledge your parenthood

• at a maternity and child health clinic or child welfare supervisor’s office before the child is born
• at the child welfare supervisor’s office after the child is born

If the acknowledgement is carried out before the child is born, both parents must be simultaneously present at the maternity and child health clinic or child welfare supervisor’s office. If the acknowledgement is done after the child’s birth, the parents can visit the child welfare supervisor’s office at different times.

Both parents must provide proof of identity, such as an electronic ID card, driving licence, or passport.

The parent who gave birth to the child does not need to confirm their parenthood, as they will always be designated as the child’s mother.

Whether the parenthood of the other parent needs to be confirmed in the event that the child is born with the help of fertility treatments depends on various factors, such as the marital status and legal gender of the parents.

• If the child’s mother is married to a man when the child is born, the husband is automatically the parent of the child and will not be required to acknowledge his paternity.
• If the child's mother is married to a woman, the parenthood of the other parent must be confirmed.
• If the couple that received fertility treatments is not married, the parenthood of the other parent must be confirmed.
• If the child’s mother sought fertility treatments as a single parent by choice, the gamete donor can be confirmed as the father, provided that the donor has consented to this. If the donor has not consented to the confirmation of paternity, the child will only have one parent, the mother who gave birth to them.

Read more about how a person’s parenthood is confirmed on the Digital and Population Data Services Agency's website.Opens in a new window.

A child may have up to two official parents. This is also the case in situations where there are several adults in a family, for example if they have decided to co-parent the child. Sateenkaariperheet – Rainbow Families Finland has a collection of resources and experiences on its website on strengthening parenthood from the perspective of rainbow families (in Finnish)Opens in a new window..

If a man will not acknowledge their paternity, the child’s guardian or the child welfare supervisor can take legal action to confirm the man’s paternity. The child welfare supervisor prepares a report on the person’s paternity, on the basis of which the court makes its decision.

A man who believes he is the father of a child can launch an investigation by acknowledging his paternity, even if the child's mother objects to it. The child’s mother does not have the right to object to the investigation of the paternity of the child’s father.

The acknowledgement of parenthood may be cancelled or denied before the child’s birth if the acknowledgement was made before the birth of the child. You can submit your cancellation or denial by notifying the Digital and Population Data Services Agency of the fact in writing.

For more information on cancelling or denying an acknowledgement of parenthood, see the Digital and Population Data Services Agency's website.Opens in a new window.