Documents are required to establish the civil status of a person within the legal system, including names (binding evidence with probative value).

Certificates can be conveniently ordered online in the citizen service portal. They can also be ordered by post.

Certificates can only be issued to authorized persons. Authorized persons are generally persons to whom the document relates, as well as their spouses, ancestors and descendants. Other persons only have this right if they can credibly demonstrate a legal interest or if they are authorized by an entitled person. Please indicate the authorization!

Who is responsible for divorce proceedings and issuing divorce certificates, if necessary with a custody declaration?

Wiesbaden Local Court
-Probate Court
P.O. Box 3449
65024 Wiesbaden
Tel.: (06 11) 3 54-1

Yes, an appointment is required. You can make an appointment in our appointment calendar.

Apostilles must be ordered from the Darmstadt Regional Council. The address is

Darmstadt Regional Council
Department VI 63 - Certification Office
Hilpertstraße 31
64295 Darmstadt
Telephone: 06151 / 12 5302
Internet: http://www.rp-darmstadt.hessen.de

The documents required depend on the reason for the name change. Further information can be found in the service description.

In Hesse, since May 1, 2017, leaving the church has been done at the parish of residence. In Wiesbaden, the registry office carries out this task.

Without a passport, the identity of the person cannot be proven and no civil status certificates can be issued. In these cases, the certification of a birth or death will be accompanied by a restrictive note. In this case, no birth or death certificates will be issued. Only certified copies of the registers can be issued which contain this addition of restricted identity.

Marriage is not possible without proof of identity and the relevant documents.

The prerequisite for the entry of changes in the civil status register is always that the decision has become legally binding (this usually takes one month after the decision has been issued).

Divorces and paternity disputes, decisions on name changes and the like are entered promptly after receipt.

For the registration of adoptions and paternity determinations, various documents are required before entry in the civil status register. We usually obtain these ourselves. It takes up to six weeks for the documents to reach us (a total of up to three months can therefore pass between the decision being taken and the entry being made).

If the marriage took place in accordance with the customary form in the country in question and in compliance with the marriage requirements, the marriage is also valid in Germany. The foreign marriage certificate with translation serves as proof. This certificate can also be presented to all other German authorities. There is no official recognition procedure for marriages abroad. German nationals can have their marriage concluded abroad subsequently certified at the German registry office.

The marriage certificate should be presented at the residents' registration office so that the marital status can be changed in the register of residents. If the spouses were born in Germany, the certificate should also be shown at the registry office so that a note of the marriage can also be made in the birth register.

If the spouses wish to have a common married name, it may be necessary to submit a declaration of marriage to the German registry office. This is always the case if no married name is noted in the foreign deed, or if a name has been entered there that is not possible under German law.

For the duration of the wedding ceremony, the "wedding car" can be parked in front of the registry office "Altes Rathaus", provided that this vehicle is clearly recognizable as such (e.g. floral decorations, garlands, bows, etc.). Any other vehicles required can be parked in the "Dern'sches Gelände" parking garage. This is located in the immediate vicinity of the "Altes Rathaus" (approx. three minutes' walk).

No.

Sprinkling rice during a wedding ceremony has become common practice in Germany over the years and is said to bring the couple good luck in life. However, this tradition also has two faces. In the stairwell and in front of the town hall, rice becomes a real accident hazard! Rain softens the rice grains and leaves behind a greasy mass and in winter the floor becomes very slippery.

Rice is also a staple food for many people, who often have no more than a handful of rice a day to survive on. For this reason, the registry office asks you to refrain from scattering rice.

Balloons may be released.

No. As part of the birth certification process, the registry office automatically sends a notification to the relevant registration office.

After the birth certificate has been issued, the registration office sends the required data to the Federal Central Tax Office. The Federal Central Tax Office then assigns the child a tax identification number. This will be sent to the parents by post.

Family benefits office,
Employment Agency (1st floor),
Klarenthaler Str. 34,
65197 Wiesbaden,
Tel: (01 80) 1 54 63 37,
Fax no.: (06 11) 94 94-5 11,
Email: familienkasse-wiesbadenarbeitsagenturde

Application with the certificate issued by the registry office to the mother's health insurance fund.

Application with the certificate issued by the registry office at the
Hessian Office for Care and Social Affairs,
John-F.Kennedy-Str. 4,
65189 Wiesbaden,
Tel: (06 11) 7 15 7-0

Society for German Language e. V.
Spiegelgasse 13
65183 Wiesbaden
Tel.: (09 00) 1 88 81 28
Fax: (06 11) 9 99 55-30
(Information is subject to a fee!)

At any local court (see www.wiesbaden.de, enter "Ortsgericht" under "Suche") or a notary (subject to a fee).
Signatures (on presentation of an identity card) and foreign civil status documents can also be notarized at any registry office (subject to a fee of EUR 10, free of charge for pension purposes).

1. the registry office I Berlin has a collection of civil registers that were taken over from former German eastern territories. Please inquire in individual cases.
2. until 31.12.2008, Standesamt I Berlin was responsible for certifying the birth of German children born abroad.
3. the book for declarations of death and the former German consular registers are also kept at Standesamt I Berlin. Civil status certificates can be issued from both.