"Leipzig Parent Express"
The “Leipzig Parent Express” ("Leipziger Elternexpress") citizen service makes it easier for parents to complete the necessary formalities surrounding the birth of their child. Applications for the most important family benefits can be submitted in one step and without having to go to the authorities.
Expectant parents receive the applications bundled in a document bag before the birth. You can fill it out at your leisure at home and gather the necessary documents. After the birth, you can hand everything in together at the maternity clinic. The Leipzig Division for Civil Registry (Standesamt) is responsible for transmitting the documents to the responsible authorities.
What you can do with the "Leipzig Parent Express"
You can take care of the following concerns with the "Leipzig Parent Express":
- Birth certificate with naming via the Division for Civil Registry
- Applying for child benefit (Kindergeld) from the Federal Employment Agency's Family Benefits Office (Familienkasse)
- Issuing of the Saxony Family Pass
- Continued payment of maternity benefit (Mutterschaftsgeld) by the health insurance company
- Applying for parental benefits (Elterngeld) at the Leipzig Office for Children and Family Services, Unit for Parental Leave Allowance (for families residing in Leipzig)
The child is also registered at the Residents’ Registration Office (Einwohnermeldeamt) and receives a tax ID.
Use of the service is voluntary. You can also apply for the benefits individually from the relevant authorities using the forms provided.
The "Leipzig Parent Express" explained step by step
Receiving the document bag
Compile the documents, fill out the applications
Delivery of the document bag
Delivery of documents to the Division for Civil Registry
Issuance of the birth certificate by the Division for Civil Registry
Forwarding of applications by the Division for Civil Registry
10 days later: Post from the Division for Civil Registry
Post with notifications from other authorities
You will receive the document bag before the birth, for example when you visit the maternity clinic.
You can take your time at home to fill out the forms and collect the necessary documents.
After the birth, hand in the closed document bag with the documents and completed applications to the maternity clinic.
The maternity clinic will safely forward the document bag to the Leipzig Division for Civil Registry.
The Leipzig Division for Civil Registry will certify the birth of your baby.
The applications you submit will be forwarded to the relevant authorities by the Division for Civil Registry along with a birth certificate.
If the documents for birth certification have been submitted in full, you will receive the requested birth certificates for your private purposes, as well as the original documents for birth certification that you submitted, by post from the Division for Civil Registry 10 days after submitting the document bag.
You will then receive notifications buy post from the responsible authorities regarding your further applications.
Receipt of the document bag
The document bag from the “Leipzig Parent Express” contains important forms and applications bundled in a document bag, which you receive before the birth, for example
- in the Leipzig maternity hospitals Klinikum St. Georg, Leipzig University Hospital and St. Elisabeth Krankenhaus
- in the Federal Employment Agency's Family Benefits Office (Familienkasse)
- in the Division for Civil Registry (Standesamt Leipzig)
- in the Family Information Office (Familieninfobüro)
- in the Parental Benefits Office (Elterngeldstelle) in Leipzig.
Your documents will be forwarded to the City of Leipzig, Office for Resident Services, Division for Civil Registry in the document bag.
Mandatory to submit:
- Birth certificate envelope
Voluntary to submit:
- Envelope for the child benefit application and the Saxony Family Pass application
- Application for continued payment of maternity benefit (without envelope)
Voluntary for parents living in Leipzig:
- Envelope for the parental benefits application
Before your child is born, take your time to gather or download the documents you need. Fill and seal the document bag.
Please hand in the document bag to your maternity clinic after the birth.
Birth certificate and name declaration
The birth certificate is the official registration of a person in the Civil Registry, which bindingly certifies the time and place of birth as well as the name and parentage. A birth certificate contains the most important information about a person’s identity.
Place the required documents for birth certification as well as the fully completed and signed binding declaration for naming your baby in the envelope and seal it.
The sealed envelope must be placed in the document bag.
Documents to be submitted depend on marital status
- Copy of the valid identity card (front and back) or copy of valid passport with registration certificate from the parents
- Completely completed and signed “Binding Declaration on Naming” (declaration is attached)
- Birth certificate and declaration of custody of previous children together
- Marriage certificate and birth certificates of both parents
or - Certified marriage registration printout
- Mother’s birth certificate
- Birth certificate and marriage certificate with current name and mother’s dissolution notice
or - Certified printout of the marriage register with the mother’s dissolution notice
or - Marriage certificate with the mother’s current name and the mother’s legally binding divorce decree
- Birth certificate and marriage certificate with current name and mother’s dissolution notice
or - Certified printout of the marriage register with the mother’s dissolution notice
or - Marriage certificate with current name and death certificate of the husband
- Acknowledgment of paternity with a declaration of consent from the mother and, if necessary, a declaration of custody from a Youth Welfare Office or notary
and - Father’s birth certificate and, if applicable, marriage certificate with the father’s current name if he is married or divorced
If you have a birth certificate with a foreign connection, you will receive a separate consultation form with a suggested date. Please be sure to include your contact details on the back of the birth certificate information.
Information and advice on the regulations surrounding adoption can be found on the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs website (in German).
Contact if you have any questions about the Birth certificate and name declaration
City of Leipzig, Office for Resident Services, Division for Civil Registry
Phone: 0341 115 (Bürgertelefon Leipzig)
Email: geburten@leipzig.de
Child benefit and "Saxony Family Pass"
Child benefit (Kindergeld)
The child benefit is one of the most important benefits for families in Germany. It reaches families directly and helps to relieve their financial burden.
Place the completed and signed child benefit application and, if applicable, the Saxony Family Pass application in the envelope and seal it.
Place the sealed envelope in the document bag.
Contact if you have any questions about the child benefit
Federal Employment Agency's Family Benefits Office (Familienkasse)
Phone: 0800 4 555530
www.familienkasse.de
Saxony Family Pass (Familienpass Sachsen)
With the "Saxony Family Pass" you can visit certain institutions in the Free State of Saxony - museums, collections, castles and palaces - free of charge. The Family Pass is independent of income, but must be applied for.
The following are eligible for a Family Pass:
- Parents with at least three children entitled to the child benefit
- Single parents with at least two children entitled to the child benefit
- Parents with a severely disabled child entitled to the child benefit
if you live in a common household and have your permanent residence in the Free State of Saxony.
Contact if you have any questions about the Saxony Family Pass
Phone: 0341 115 (Bürgertelefon Leipzig)
www.familie.sachsen.de/familienpass.html
Continued payment of maternity benefit (Mutterschaftsgeld)
The maternity benefit (Mutterschaftsgeld) secures your income if you are not allowed to work during your pregnancy or after the birth of your child, for example during maternity leave.
The application for continued payment of the maternity benefit will be forwarded to the City of Leipzig without an envelope in the sealed document bag. The City of Leipzig completes your child’s birth certificate and forwards the application to your health insurance company mentioned above.
If the child is born prematurely or has a disability, your health insurance company will need a medical certificate to calculate the maternity protection periods and pay out the maternity benefit. For this purpose, please have the certificate of premature birth or the child’s disability issued in the maternity clinic and attach it to this application for continued payment of the maternity benefit.
If further documents or information are required, your health insurance company will contact you directly. The use of this application is voluntary. You can also submit the application directly to your health insurance company.
Contact us if you have any questions about the maternity benefit
Please contact your health insurance company directly.
Parental benefits (Elterngeld)
Parental benefits are a family benefit that parents can claim after the birth of their child. This is a wage replacement benefit that is limited in time and is used from the start of parenthood. This means that parents can take time to raise and care for their child and are financially secure at the same time. The Youth Welfare Office where the parents live is responsible for the application for parental benefits.
Do you live in Leipzig?
Yes: Please fill out the application for parental benefits. You can find this online or locally at the Office for Children and Family Services (Amt für Jugend und Familie).
Print out the completed parental benefits application and sign it. Place the application with all attachments and evidence in the envelope and seal it.
Place the sealed envelope in the document bag.
No: Submit the parental benefits application yourself to your local municipality. To do this, you need a birth certificate, which the City of Leipzig will send you by post.
Contact if you have any questions about parental benefits if you live in Leipzig
City of Leipzig, Office for Children and Family Services, Division for Monetary Benefits, Unit for Parental Leave Allowance
Phone: 0341 123 3575 or 0341 123 3576
Email: elterngeld@leipzig.de
Handover of the document bag
Please hand in the document bag to your maternity clinic after the birth.
Häufig gestellte Fragen
A home birth within Leipzig must be reported verbally or in writing to the Division for Civil Registry within one week of the birth. If you would like to speak to us in person at the Registry Office, please send us an email in advance. Otherwise, send us an informal, handwritten notification with medical proof of birth (from a doctor or midwife).
The following persons are obliged to report the birth:
- Each parent if they have legal custody
- Any other person who was present at the birth or who has knowledge of the birth from their own experience (but only if the parents with legal custody are prevented from reporting it)
If a doctor or midwife was present at the home birth, a corresponding certificate of the birth must be presented with the verbal notification.
Notice
It is an administrative offense if the obligation to report a birth is not complied with. This administrative offense can be punished with a fine. In addition, you, as the person obliged to notify, can be required to make a proper notification by the imposition of a penalty payment of up to one thousand euros.
You can print out the information sheet (PDF 352 KB) about the required documents here.
If all documents for birth certification are available and certification can be carried out, you will receive your submitted original documents by post along with the additional birth certificates you requested for private purposes from the Leipzig Registry Office.
As part of the birth certificate, three free and use-related birth certificates are issued for applications for the child benefit, parental benefits and continued payment of the maternity benefit. When the relevant applications are submitted via the Leipzig Parent Express, the Registry Office will forward them directly to the responsible authorities.
The father of a child is the man who is or was married to the child’s mother at the time of birth. This legal regulation also applies to married couples who live separately or where the husband is not the biological father.
If there is no such legal presumption of paternity, the father of a child is the man who has acknowledged paternity and if no other man can be considered as the father.
The recognition of paternity must be publicly certified. The consent of the child’s mother is always necessary for the recognition of paternity to be effective. The mother’s declaration must also be publicly recorded.
If the father or mother is not yet of legal age, their legal representatives must also give their consent.
- To have paternity recognised, you can contact the Office for Children and Family Services Office for Youth and Family (free of charge), the Registry Office (chargeable) or a notary (chargeable).
- If the recognition is legally effective, the child’s birth register will be supplemented and a new birth certificate will be issued with the father’s name.
- The parents can acknowledge paternity and declare their consent together or separately. However, the recognition of paternity only becomes effective once all necessary consents have been given.
Notice
The acknowledgment of paternity does not include joint custody of the child. You can only submit a declaration about this to the Office for Youth, Family and Education or to the notary.
Please make an appointment online at the Registry Office to apply for a subsequent certification of your birth abroad. Otherwise, you can send your request to us by email (anerkennungsverfahren@leipzig.de).
For miscarriages that have occurred, it is possible to issue a certificate in accordance with Section 31 Paragraph 3 of the Civil Status Ordinance. In principle, any person who would have had personal custody of the child is entitled to report, for example the mother or father if joint custody has been agreed or the parents are married.
Please contact us by email: geburten@leipzig.de
If you subsequently need additional birth certificates, you can request them online via our certificate portal:
Alternatively, you can request additional documents in person at the Registry Office. Please note our opening times online at www.leipzig.de. There may be waiting times on site.
If it is not possible to request documents via the certificate portal or in person, you can request your certificate(s) using the following form: Document request from the Leipzig Registry Office.
Certification of birth is free of charge.
A fee of 15.00 euros is charged for private birth certificates and 7.00 euros for each additional birth certificate applied for at the same time.
An additional 4.40 euros must be paid for cash on delivery payment.
A fee of 35.00 euros will be charged for granting a name or changing your child’s family name.
by post:
Bürgerservice
Abt. Standesamt
SG Geburten
Burgplatz 1, 04109 Leipzig
by email at standesamt@leipzig.de or geburten@leipzig.de
by telephone for general inquiries:
Phone: 0341 115
in person during opening hours:
Please observe the current notice!
Monday: 9:00am - 12:00pm
Tuesday: 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. and 1:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m
Wednesday: closed
Thursday: 1:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m
Friday: closed
Please note that for organisational and technical reasons the acceptance deadline is half an hour before the end of opening hours.
Data protection notice
Data protection, legal provisions according to Article 12 of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR):
The personal data you provide will be collected and processed in accordance with the legal basis specified in the applications and notices.
Data protection officers of the participating institutions:
- at Leipzig University Hospital: www.uniklinikum-leipzig.de
- in the St. Elisabeth-Krankenhaus Leipzig: www.ek-leipzig.de/datenschutz
- at Klinikum St. Georg Leipzig: www.sanktgeorg.de
- in the Family Fund of the Federal Employment Agency: www.arbeitsagentur.de
- at the City of Leipzig: www.leipzig.de
This measure is co-financed with tax revenue based on the budget approved by the Saxon State Parliament.