A Child Born in Austria: Official Procedures Step by Step

When a child is born in Austria, several official procedures follow in the first days. Fortunately, many are started automatically or with the hospital’s help, and are free of charge. Here is what happens automatically and what parents need to arrange themselves.

At a glance

• The birth notification (Anzeige der Geburt) is due within one week. For a hospital birth, the hospital automatically sends it to the registry office.
• Parents must submit the required documents no later than one week after the birth.
• Registering the birth is free of charge.
• The registry office informs social insurance, and the baby receives its own e-card by post.
• A Babypoint, which is a hospital branch of the registry office, is not available at every hospital.

Who reports the birth and where?

The birth notification is received by the registry office (Standesamt). The responsible office is always the one for the place of birth, usually where the hospital is located:

• the municipality’s registry office or registry office association (Standesamtsverband),
• in a statutory city (Statutarstadt), the registry office of the magistrate,
• in Vienna, the registry office of the district where the birth took place.

For a hospital birth, the hospital automatically forwards the notification. For a home birth, the doctor or midwife present at the birth does so. If neither situation applies, the responsibility falls to the father, mother or other parent, if they are able to do it, or to the authority conducting the examination or another person with personal knowledge of the birth.

Important: the birth notification is not the same as issuing a birth certificate (Geburtsurkunde). The registry office issues the documents separately, at the parents’ request.

Which documents are required, and by when?

Parents must present the required documents no later than one week after the birth. The list includes:

• a written declaration choosing the child’s first name,
• the parents’ marriage certificate or registered partnership certificate,
• if the parents are not married: the mother’s birth certificate and her last marriage certificate,
• proof that a marriage or registered partnership ended or was declared invalid,
• proof of the parents’ citizenship,
• proof of the parents’ main residence if they live abroad,
• a birth confirmation if the birth was not reported by the hospital director, midwife or doctor.

Foreign-language documents: documents issued abroad in a foreign language must be submitted with a translation, and an apostille or legalisation is generally also required. The Austrian Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs (BMEIA) consular legalisation office can be contacted at (0501150-4425).

Which documents does the baby receive?

After the birth has been reported, the registry office issues the following documents at the parents’ request:

• Birth certificate (Geburtsurkunde): in every case.
• Registration of residence (Meldezettel) and confirmation of residence (Meldebestätigung): in every case.
• Proof of citizenship (Staatsbürgerschaftsnachweis): only if the child is an Austrian citizen.

If the parents are not married, additional declarations may be required or available:

• acknowledgement of paternity (Anerkennung der Vaterschaft),
• a declaration concerning the child’s name (kindesnamensrechtliche Erklärung),
• a declaration of joint custody (Erklärung der gemeinsamen Obsorge).

For these procedures, both parents often need to appear in person at the registry office.

Babypoint and hospital document services

Some hospitals cooperate with the registry office. Along with the birth notification, the hospital also forwards the documents required for the first birth certificate. The process differs from one hospital to another. Examples include:

• Babypoint at the hospital: AKH Wien and Landesklinikum Mödling.
• An official is present at set times: LKH Deutschlandsberg, LKH Feldbach and Klinikum Wels-Grieskirchen.
• Documents are submitted at the hospital and collected from the registry office: several hospitals in Lower Austria and Upper Austria.
• No separate service: for example, Klinikum Klagenfurt, LKH Bregenz and Kepler Universitätsklinikum Linz.

At a Babypoint, you must bring the required documents with you. In Vienna, this service currently operates at only one hospital, AKH. Ask your hospital or the responsible registry office how the procedure works there.

Social insurance and the e-card

Under the law, the child is generally covered as a co-insured family member through the mother and/or father. For a birth in Austria, the registry office automatically informs social insurance after the birth notification. The notification is processed on the same working day, and the baby receives a social insurance number.

The notification is automatic if at least one parent is insured with ÖGK, BVAEB or SVS. With another insurer, the insured person must report the birth themselves.

The baby’s own e-card is sent by post. If it has still not arrived 14 days after the birth, contact the insurer. Until then, doctors will often also accept the parent-child health pass (Eltern-Kind-Pass).

Financial support after the birth

At certain hospitals, the registry office automatically informs the financial authority responsible for family allowance when the birth is registered. Further information is available on Familienbeihilfe and Kinderbetreuungsgeld.

Receiving the full amount of childcare benefit requires the five Eltern-Kind-Pass examinations during pregnancy and the five examinations due during the first 14 months to be completed and documented on time.

Frequently asked questions

How much does registering the birth cost?

Nothing. There is no cost or fee.

What is the deadline?

The birth must be reported within one week, and parents must also submit the required documents no later than one week after the birth.

Are translations required for foreign documents?

Yes. Foreign-language documents issued abroad must be submitted with a translation, and an apostille or legalisation is generally also required.

Does the baby receive proof of Austrian citizenship?

Only if the child is an Austrian citizen.

Practical steps for parents

1. Ask the hospital whether it has a Babypoint or another registry-office service.
2. Confirm which Standesamt is responsible for the place of birth.
3. Prepare the required identity, civil-status, citizenship and residence documents.
4. Arrange translations and, where generally required, an apostille or legalisation for foreign-language documents.
5. Submit the documents and any necessary declarations within one week of the birth.
6. Check that the baby’s e-card arrives within 14 days; contact the insurer if it does not.

This article is based on information available online and does not constitute professional advice. For individual guidance, contact a lawyer, legal professional, healthcare professional, employment-law or labour-market specialist, or another relevant professional.

Source: oesterreich.gv.at