INSTRUCTIONS FOR DECLARATION OF PATERNITY

 

 

These instructions are intended as a guideline only and should not be relied upon as a comprehensive list of duties in declaring paternity.

 

Whenever an adult child is over the age of 23 and the birth certificate does not designate a father, a Joint Declaration must be filed in the county where the father lives, if the father is a resident of the State of Ohio.  If the father is not a resident of the State of Ohio, he may also file the Joint Declaration in this county.

 

A filing fee of $30.00 is required at the time of filing.  Please confirm the amount with the Cashier since filing fees may have changed subsequent to the publication of this instruction sheet.  This fee must be paid in cash, money order, certified check, Visa or Mastercard.  No personal checks will be accepted.

 

The forms may be obtained form the Issue Desk on the 9th floor of the Probate Court, 230 E. 9th Street, Cincinnati, Ohio or by downloading the forms from the web site.

 

 

STEP 1: Filing of the Application

 

After you fill out the Joint Declaration (H.C. 658.00), Order Affirming Joint Declaration (H.C. 659.00), and Supplemental Findings as to Birth Father (H.C. 623.07) take them to the Magistrate’s Assistant at the Information Desk to have a magistrate assigned.

The child’s birth certificate along with the genetic tests must be attached to the Joint Declaration.

Note: The child’s birth certificate must show that no one has been designated as father.

The child and both parents must appear before the magistrate.

The magistrate will review the forms and approve the Entry if everything is correct.

 

STEP 2: Filing of papers with Cashier

 

The Joint Declaration, Order Affirming Joint Declaration, and Supplemental Findings as to Birth Father are taken to the cashier who will assign a case number.

At this time the cashier will require the payment of the filing fee of $30.00

The cashier at this time will retain all the original papers and certify the pleadings you need to send to Vital Statistics.  The charge will be $1.10 per entry after the first one.

 

You must send a certified copy of the order and $16.50 for a new birth certificate to:

                                                                           Bureau of Vital Statistics

                                                                           Ohio Department of Health

                                                                           246 North High Street

                                                                           P.O. Box 15098

                                                                           Columbus, Ohio 43215-0098

 

You should receive the new birth certificate in about 8 to 12 weeks.