How to Add a Father to a Birth Certificate in Tulsa, Oklahoma

If a father’s name is missing from a birth certificate in Oklahoma, it creates a legal limbo that affects custody rights, and child support. Whether you are a mother seeking support or a father wanting to secure your parental rights, the process of adding a father to the birth certificate is the first critical legal step.

In Oklahoma, adding a father isn’t just about updating a piece of paper; it requires establishing legal parentage. This can be done through a voluntary administrative process or a court order.

Method 1: The Voluntary Acknowledgment of Paternity (AOP)

The fastest way to add a father to a birth certificate is by completing an Acknowledgment of Paternity (AOP). This is an administrative method used when both parents agree on the identity of the biological father.

• What it is: A legal form (Form 03PA209E) that, when signed by both parents, may have the same effect as a court order establishing paternity.
• When to use it: This is best used at the hospital immediately after birth or any time before the child turns 18. The best practice is to get this done within the first two years of the minor’s life, especially if the mother was married to another man or divorced from another man within 300 days of the child’s birth. The mother’s spouse or ex-spouse is presumed to be the father (requiring the biological father to file an acknowledgment and the spouse or ex-spouse to file a denial), and undoing this after two years requires a Court order and isn’t guaranteed. 
• The Process:
  1. Obtain the Form: You can get the form at the hospital, county health departments, or local child support offices.
  2. Sign and Witness: Both parents must sign the form. The signatures must be witnessed by someone not related to the parents.
  3. File: The form is mailed to the Division of Vital Records at the Oklahoma State Department of Health.
  4. Cost: There is no cost to file the AOP, but amending the birth certificate and getting a new copy typically has a nominal fee. 

Warning: Do not sign an AOP if there is any doubt about biological paternity. Once signed, it carries the full weight of a legal judgment. You only have 60 days to rescind (cancel) the acknowledgment. After that, it can only be challenged in court on the basis of fraud, duress, or material mistake of fact.

Method 2: Court Order (Paternity Action)

If the mother refuses to sign an AOP, or if the alleged father denies paternity, you must file a Paternity Action in district court.

• Legal Authority: Paternity proceedings in Oklahoma are governed by the Uniform Parentage Act (10 O.S. § 7700-101 et seq.).
• The Process:
  1. File a Petition: Either parent (or the child) can file a petition to adjudicate parentage in district court.
  2. Genetic Testing: If paternity is contested, the court may order DNA testing. At the cost of DHS (if providing services) or the moving party. If the probability of paternity is 99% or higher, a rebuttable presumption is created that the man is presumed to be the father. If either party wishes to contest paternity still, they must acquire another genetic test of the same type that states that the man is not the father. 
  3. The Order: Once paternity is established, the judge should issue an order directing the Oklahoma State Department of Health to amend the birth certificate. Provided, there are no complications with another presumed father existing for the first two years of the child’s life. 

Method 3: The Presumption of Paternity

Oklahoma law recognizes certain situations in which a man is legally presumed to be the father of a child, even without a court order or voluntary acknowledgment. These presumptions are set forth in 10 O.S. § 7700-204 of the Uniform Parentage Act.

Under Oklahoma law, a man is presumed to be the father if any of the following apply:

• He and the child’s mother were married to each other at the time of the child’s birth.
• He and the child’s mother were married to each other, and the child was born within 300 days after the marriage ended due to death, annulment, invalidity, separation, or divorce.
• Before the child’s birth, he and the mother attempted to marry in apparent compliance with the law (even if the marriage was later determined to be invalid), and the child was born during the attempted marriage or within 300 days after it ended.
• After the child’s birth, he and the mother married or attempted to marry in apparent compliance with the law, and he voluntarily asserted his paternity, such as by:
  • filing a record with the Oklahoma State Department of Health or the Department of Human Services,
  • agreeing to be named as the father on the child’s birth certificate, or
    promising in a written record to support the child as his own.
• For the first two years of the child’s life, he lived in the same household with the child and openly held the child out as his own.

Because a presumption of paternity can be overcome only by court adjudication, a presumed father generally has greater leverage when requesting the mother’s cooperation in filing an Acknowledgement of Paternity to amend the birth certificate, as the presumption weighs in his favor if litigation becomes necessary.

If a man qualifies as a presumed father pursuant to the above statute but is not listed on the birth certificate, additional administrative steps or a court order may be required to amend the birth record.

Comparison: AOP vs. Court Order

Legal Consequences of Establishing Paternity

Adding a father to the birth certificate triggers significant legal rights and obligations under Oklahoma law:

• Child Support: Once paternity is established, either parent may seek child support. A court may, in its discretion, order child support retroactive for a period of up to two years prior to the filing of the action, and may also allocate responsibility for reasonable expenses related to the mother’s pregnancy and childbirth.
• Custody & Visitation: Establishing paternity via a filed AOP and birth certificate, whether that happens as a result of a Court action or agreement of the parties, has the effect of granting the unmarried mother and biological father equal rights and obligations to the child. Basically, granting the unmarried father the same rights he would’ve had if he had been married to the mother when the child was born. However, how those “rights and obligations” exist in practice can be vague without a Court order or agreement between the parties. 

FAQ: Adding a Father to a Birth Certificate

Q: Can I add a father if the child is over 18?

A: Yes. If the “child” is an adult, they must consent to the addition. An Adult Child’s Consent to Acknowledgment form (03PA212E) must be signed along with the AOP.

Q: Does signing the birth certificate give the father custody rights?

A: No. However, Signing an Acknowledgment of Paternity and being listed on the birth certificate establishes the father as a legal parent. Under Oklahoma law, once paternity is established, the unmarried mother and biological father have equal legal rights and obligations to the child and are treated as if they had been married at the time of the child’s birth. This means the father is not a legal stranger and has full standing to seek custody, visitation, and decision-making authority.

However, Oklahoma statutes do not automatically assign physical custody or parenting time to either parent based solely on paternity. Without a court order or a written agreement between the parents, the manner in which those rights are exercised can be unclear and unenforceable. The specifics of custody and visitation must ultimately be determined by agreement or by a court.

Q: What if the mother is married to someone else?

A: If the mother was married at conception or birth, her husband is the presumed father. To add the biological father, the husband must sign a Denial of Paternity (03PA210E), and the biological father must sign the AOP. This must be done within the first two years of the child’s life to avoid the need for Court intervention. 

Q: Can I remove a father from the birth certificate later?

A: It is extremely difficult. If an Acknowledgment of Paternity (AOP) was signed, either parent has 60 days to rescind it. After that, the AOP may be challenged only in court and only on limited grounds, such as fraud, duress, or material mistake of fact, generally within two years.

An AOP may also be void or voidable if it improperly identifies the father—such as where another man is a presumed, acknowledged, or adjudicated father and a required denial of paternity was not properly executed or filed.

A void AOP has no legal effect, and a father listed on the birth certificate solely because of that acknowledgment may be removed once legal parentage is corrected.