Parental responsibility agreement checklist

Read the parental responsibility agreement to make sure it meets your needs and that all names and addresses are right and spelt correctly.

By signing this, you will both be altering your legal position in relation to your child so be very sure that you fully understand this agreement and are happy to complete it.

For more information about parental responsibility, see Parental responsibility.

Remember that if you have any questions you can easily Ask a lawyer.

1. Print out the parental responsibility agreement because you cannot sign online. Do not sign or date it yet.

2. The next step is to make sure that you have all the identity evidence that you need:

   1. the child's birth certificate

   2. the mother's photo driving licence or passport so that she can properly identify herself as the mother of the child, and

   3. the father's photo driving licence or passport so that he can properly identify himself as the father of the child.

3. Take the unsigned agreement together with your documents to the County or Family Court (the address of your nearest court can be found using the government website).

4. Go to the office where an officer of the court will arrange to witness your signatures. They are very helpful and will make sure that the document is signed and witnessed properly for you. You cannot get this document witnessed by a solicitor, it has to be a properly authorised court official.

5. Both the mother and the father need to date and sign the agreement in the presence of the officer of the court.

6. The officer of the court will then witness your signatures.

7. Once you have the document correctly signed and witnessed you will need to take a photocopy of it and send the original and the copy, together with a copy of your child’s birth certificate to the Principal Registry of the Family Division, First Avenue House, 42-49 High Holborn, London, WC1V 6NP.

8. Explain in your accompanying letter that you are enclosing the parental responsibility form and copy for your child and that you also enclose a copy of your child’s birth certificate.

9. The Registry officials will then register the agreement, stamp both copies and return a copy to each parent.

10. The agreement will only then be valid once you have received your stamped copy from the registry.

11. This agreement will last until your child becomes eighteen years old or the court orders it to be ended.

• Make a copy and store your stamped original safely away.

• You may need to inform certain authorities about the agreement, such as the child’s school and doctor.