Changing a Child’s Name After Separation or Divorce in Germany

Until the reform took effect on May 1, 2025, a child’s birth name was largely fixed once it had been determined. Divorced spouses could drop their married name with relative ease, but their children generally could not follow suit. In most cases, the only option was a name change under the Name Change Act (Namensänderungsgesetz, NamÄndG), which requires good cause (wichtiger Grund) under Section 3 NamÄndG. The authorities assessed these applications strictly, and the wish to align a child’s name with a new family situation was not enough on its own. The new Sections 1617c to 1617e of the German Civil Code (Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch, BGB) now allow families to make many of these changes by declaration to the registry office, without going through the stricter NamÄndG procedure. A name change under the NamÄndG remains possible where none of the BGB options fit, although it is only available to German nationals and certain other groups living in Germany.

A child’s birth name (Geburtsname) is initially determined in one of two ways. It is the parents’ married name (Ehename) under Section 1616 BGB. If the parents do not share a married name, it is set by a determination under Section 1617 or Section 1617a BGB. Despite the term, a birth name is simply the child’s legal surname, and it can change later in life. Separation alone does not change it. Only further steps open up the options described below, such as a divorce followed by a parent’s change of name, or a new marriage.

Two situations that arise before any separation often affect the options available later:

• Parents marry after the child’s birth. If the parents marry and choose a married name, that name automatically becomes the child’s birth name, provided the child is under five. If the child has already turned five, the change only takes effect if the child joins in it by making their own declaration (Section 1617c BGB). From age 14, the child makes this declaration personally, with the consent of their legal representative, usually the parents.
• Parents establish joint parental responsibility (gemeinsames Sorgerecht) after the child already has a name. In this case, the parents can redetermine the child’s name within three months under Section 1617b BGB. The deadline is strict, and once it has passed, this option is no longer available. If one parent is habitually resident outside Germany when joint parental responsibility is established, the period ends no earlier than one month after that parent returns to Germany. If the child has already turned five, the new name only takes effect if the child joins in the decision.

For children born before May 1, 2025, whose parents do not share a married name, the reform also allows the birth name to be redetermined as a double-barreled name formed from both parents’ names. From age five, the child must consent.

After a divorce, a parent who took the other spouse’s surname as the married name can drop it and resume a former name under Section 1355(5) BGB, such as their birth name. Under certain conditions, that parent can then extend the resumed name to the child under Section 1617d BGB.

The requirements are as follows:

• The parent’s own name did not become the married name. In other words, this option is only available to the parent who took the other spouse’s name on marriage.
• After the divorce, the parent has sole or joint parental responsibility for the child, or sole parental responsibility following the other parent’s death, and the child lives in the parent’s household.
• The parent can give the child either the resumed name or a double-barreled name formed from the resumed name and the child’s current birth name. The two names are joined with a hyphen unless the parent chooses otherwise.
• From age five, the child must consent. From age 14, the child gives this consent personally but also needs the consent of their legal representative.
• If the child has the other parent’s surname, or if both parents share parental responsibility, the other parent must also consent. The family court can replace this consent if the name change serves the child’s best interests.

Example: When she married, Ms. Meyer took her husband’s surname, Brandt, as the married name. Their daughter, Lea, also has the surname Brandt. After the divorce, Ms. Meyer resumes her birth name, Meyer. If she has parental responsibility and Lea lives with her, she can give Lea the surname Meyer or the double-barreled name Brandt-Meyer or Meyer-Brandt, with or without a hyphen. She needs Mr. Brandt’s consent, or a family court order replacing it. If Lea is five or older, she needs Lea’s consent as well.

A similar option exists for adult children. If a parent has resumed a former name after a divorce or after the other parent’s death, the adult child can redetermine their own birth name by declaration to the registry office. They can either adopt the parent’s resumed name or form a double-barreled name from their current birth name and the parent’s resumed name. Both options require that parent’s consent.

In our experience, clients often underestimate the consent requirements, particularly where the other parent cannot be reached at first or refuses the request. An early legal assessment of whether an application to replace consent is likely to succeed can often save a lengthy back-and-forth outside court.

If a parent remarries after separating and the child lives in the same household as the parent and the new spouse, the couple can give the child their married name under Section 1617e BGB. This is known as Einbenennung (taking a stepparent’s name). Because the child receives the couple’s married name, this option requires the parent and stepparent to have chosen a married name.

• The parent with sole or joint parental responsibility and the stepparent make the declaration together.
• If the child has the other biological parent’s surname, or if that parent shares parental responsibility, the other parent must also consent. The family court can replace this consent if the name change serves the child’s best interests.
• From age five, the child must consent. From age 14, the child gives this consent personally but also needs the consent of their legal representative.
• Adult stepchildren can take the name themselves with the consent of the parent and the stepparent. They do not need to live in the same household.

The child can either take the couple’s married name in full or combine it with their current birth name to form a double-barreled name made up of no more than two names.

In these cases, our name law lawyers check whether all the required consents are in place or whether it makes sense to apply to the family court to replace a missing consent. We recommend having your situation assessed before you make any declaration to the registry office.

Einbenennung changes only the child’s surname. The other biological parent remains the child’s legal parent, and the child’s legal relationships with that parent and their family stay as they were. A stepchild adoption goes much further. Under Section 1741(2) BGB, a spouse can adopt their spouse’s child alone. The child then becomes the couple’s joint child, and the couple has joint parental responsibility (Section 1754 BGB). At the same time, the legal relationship between the child and the other biological parent and their relatives ends (Section 1755(2) BGB). The child’s new surname follows from the adoption itself (Section 1757 BGB), and the adoption is decided by the family court rather than made by declaration to the registry office.

The consent rules also differ considerably. An adoption generally requires the other parent’s consent (Section 1747 BGB), and in most cases, the family court can replace that consent only in narrow circumstances. One example is where the parent has persistently and grossly neglected their duties toward the child, or has shown through their conduct that they are indifferent to the child, and not going ahead with the adoption would put the child at a disproportionate disadvantage (Section 1748 BGB). For Einbenennung, by contrast, it is enough that the name change serves the child’s best interests. Einbenennung also requires the parent and stepparent to be married. A stepchild adoption is also open to unmarried couples who live together in a stable relationship, as a rule if they have lived together for at least four years or live with a child they have in common (Section 1766a BGB).

If a child has taken a stepparent’s name, Section 1617e(4) BGB allows the change to be reversed later. This is known as Rückbenennung (reverting to the original name). It is available if the marriage between the parent and the stepparent ends, or if the child no longer lives in their shared household. A breakdown in the relationship with the stepparent is not enough on its own.

The declaration can be made by any parent with sole or joint parental responsibility, or by the child once they are an adult. Where a parent makes the declaration, the same consent rules apply as for the original name change. The other parent may need to consent, the family court can replace that consent, and a child aged five or over must also consent.

This option was introduced by the 2025 reform. Under the transitional provisions in Article 229 Section 67 EGBGB, it also applies to children who took a stepparent’s name before May 1, 2025. As a result, a child’s name can change more than once if the family situation changes again.

The three main routes differ in when they apply, who makes the declaration, and which names are available:

Since the 2025 reform, a child’s name is generally governed by the law of the country where the child habitually lives. The options described on this page therefore usually apply to children living in Germany, whatever their nationality. Where a parent or the child holds a foreign nationality, Article 10(3) of the Introductory Act to the Civil Code (Einführungsgesetz zum Bürgerlichen Gesetzbuche, EGBGB) gives those with parental responsibility additional choice-of-law options. By declaration to the registry office, they can determine the child’s name under:

• the law of a country of which a parent or the child is a national,
• German law, if a parent is habitually resident in Germany, or
• the law of a country of which a person giving the child the name is a national.

This can also become relevant after a separation or divorce, for example, where the family wants a name form that is common in another country but cannot be achieved under the BGB rules described above. At Schlun & Elseven Rechtsanwälte, our international practice shows that a choice of law under Article 10(3) EGBGB is often the better route where the family wants to keep a name form customary in a parent’s home country that German law alone cannot accommodate. Name changes completed before May 1, 2025, remain subject to the previous conflict-of-law rules.

A name determined in Germany will not necessarily be recognized in the child’s country of nationality. It is worth checking this before making a declaration, to avoid the child having different names in German records and in a foreign passport. For children who are foreign nationals living in Germany, the new name should also be reflected in the passport issued by their country of nationality and, where applicable, in their German residence permit.

All of the name changes described on this page are made by declaration to the registry office. Under Section 45 of the Civil Status Act (Personenstandsgesetz, PStG), the competent office is the one that keeps the child’s birth record. If the child’s birth is not recorded in a German birth register, for example, because the child was born abroad, the competent office is the one for the place where the child or a parent lives, last lived, or is habitually resident. If none of these applies, the declaration is made to Standesamt I in Berlin (Berlin Registry Office I).

The declarations must be publicly certified (öffentlich beglaubigt). A notary can do this, and for most of the declarations described on this page, so can the registry office itself, including any consent required from the other parent or the child. Under Section 10 of the Consular Act (Konsulargesetz), parents living outside Germany can have their signatures certified at a German embassy or consulate, with the same legal effect as certification by a notary in Germany. The parent must attend in person to sign. If a parent’s required consent is missing, the family court can replace it on application, provided the name change serves the child’s best interests.

In our experience, it is advisable to prepare the required consents in writing before the appointment at the registry office, together with any choice of law where relevant. If a consent is missing, the procedure is usually delayed for the length of the family court proceedings to replace it. Registry offices often require foreign documents, such as birth or marriage certificates, to be submitted with a German translation by a sworn translator. Depending on the issuing country, an apostille or legalization may also be needed. We clarify early on which documents your case requires.

Questions about a child’s name after a separation or divorce often touch on a delicate family balance. Parents may want a fresh start but also worry that the child will lose the connection to the other parent. At Schlun & Elseven Rechtsanwälte, we support parents in Aachen, Cologne, Düsseldorf, and throughout Germany at every stage of these proceedings. We assess which of the rules in Sections 1617c to 1617e BGB applies in your case, handle communication with the other parent, and represent you before the family court if a required consent is refused. Because these decisions usually involve several people with different interests, a careful legal assessment from the outset is essential.

The cost of our support depends on the scope of the case and the extent of any dispute, and we explain it transparently in the initial consultation. We regularly advise international families in English, and parents living outside Germany can instruct us remotely. Contact our team early so that we can assess your situation in an initial consultation and work with you to develop the right approach.