Can an unmarried mother have the name of the child's father entered in the child's birth certificate?

Full question:

I am an unmarried mother. Can I have the name of my child’s father entered in his birth certificate under New York law?

• Category: Paternity
• Subcategory: Birth Certificate
• Date: 04/07/2025
• State: New York

Answer:

In New York, the putative father’s name cannot be entered without his consent in a birth certificate of a child born out of wedlock. This is provided under N.Y. Pub. Health Law § 4135, which reads:

1. (a) There shall be no specific statement on the birth certificate as to whether the child is born in wedlock or out of wedlock or as to the marital name or status of the mother.
(b) The phrase “child born out of wedlock” when used in this article, refers to a child whose father is not its mother's husband.
 
2. The name of the putative father of a child born out of wedlock shall not be entered on the certificate of birth prior to filing without (i) an acknowledgment of paternity pursuant to section one hundred eleven-k of the social services law or section four thousand one hundred thirty-five-b of this article executed by both the mother and putative father, and filed with the record of birth; or (ii) notification having been received by, or proper proof having been filed with, the record of birth by the clerk of a court of competent jurisdiction or the parents, or their attorneys of a judgment, order or decree relating to parentage.
 
3. Orders relating to parentage shall be held confidential by the commissioner and shall not be released or otherwise divulged except by order of a court of competent jurisdiction.
 
In the instant case, the mother of a child born out of wedlock requires consent of the putative father of the child to enter his name as the father of the child. . Unless consent of the putative father is obtained his name cannot be entered as the surname of the child born out of wedlock in the child’s birth certificate.