01.12.2021

Can I refuse a child? Voluntary renunciation of parental rights by father or mother


Different situations happen in life, but it is simply impossible to justify abandoning a child from a moral point of view. However, such a concept as "refusal" of one's own child is not provided for by the family code either. However, such a phenomenon in modern life is less and less surprising.

Young couples, neglecting contraception, often find themselves in such "delicate" situations as the birth of a baby. Being unprepared to shoulder the burden of responsibility for the offspring, or to provide for it financially, unfortunate parents tend to write a refusal even in the maternity hospital. And some even run away from there in slippers and a bathrobe, not even giving them the opportunity to issue a birth certificate for the baby.

What does the law say?

The process of abandoning a child is not provided for by law. But formally, you still have the right to fill out a special form in accordance with regulatory requirements, and when it is legally certified, that is, it enters into force, you will lose any parental rights to the child.

But do not rejoice prematurely. The Family Code has provided for all the nuances, and even if you learn how to correctly issue a child abandonment, you are not relieved of responsibility for its maintenance.

Moreover, you are obliged to take part in his upbringing, no longer being a mother or father.

Although the withdrawal procedure born child not provided for by law Russian Federation Today, young people who want to certify such a document are increasingly turning to notaries and lawyers.

Abandonment of the baby in the hospital

Refusal of a child by a young mother in a maternity hospital, or in the neonatal pathology department, is a phenomenon that cannot be called rare. The most unfortunate thing is that many newly-made mothers do not even give the guardianship authorities the opportunity to register the baby in order to get a chance for his early adoption. "Cuckoos", escaping from the hospital without permission, actually doom new life to permanent orphanhood.


Formally, any woman can issue a refusal of a child in a maternity hospital. And this is a very simple procedure, if you do not talk about painful remorse for the rest of your life. How do you spell child abandonment? By the usual traditional handwritten statement.

This document, along with other documents for the child, is sent to the guardianship authorities. And now the crumbs themselves have one road - to the Baby House. If the mother has made a voluntary decision, the state is obliged to give her a "second chance".

Within six months from the moment of birth, she can pick up the baby from the appropriate institution and reverse the case.

There are many such cases, and the reason for this is postpartum depression or the departure of the husband on the eve of such an important and responsible event. If the mother decides to return her baby, another paperwork will follow, but the child will be given back.

If during the year there were no attempts to return and register the child for herself from the mother, she is automatically deprived of parental rights. In this case, the crumbs can appoint a temporary guardian.


The right of guardianship remains with the father - he can take the child to him (if there was a disagreement with the mother, and she does not make attempts to take the child). Some close relatives also have the right of guardianship, but only with the official permission of the relevant authorities.

By the way, the transfer of the baby to the Baby House is possible even under those circumstances, if the woman simply has nowhere to go with her child. At the same time, guardianship can go fraudulently and put pressure on the woman in labor, forcing her to write a refusal, or voluntarily sign an adoption permit.

In fact, a young mother has the right to visit the child every day, breastfeed him, play and walk with him. And as soon as she has living conditions, she can take him away without any obstacles. Consider this fact if you are put under pressure by the guardianship authorities. No one has the right to take your child away from you until he is 6 months old. And all their frightening fables are based only on the unwillingness to bother with another "refusenik".

If the decision to abandon the child was made by you completely cold-bloodedly, balanced and deliberate, you better act more or less nobly and not doom the baby to orphanhood:

  • Cooperate with guardianship authorities;
  • Do not hide your name and passport details;
  • Issue a birth certificate for the baby;
  • Write an official waiver of the child;
  • Have a lawyer certify your permission to adopt.

If you do not do this, the paperwork can drag on for more than a year, and the child will have much less chance of finding a full-fledged family.

Father's refusal

Refusal of the child by the father is much more common than renunciation of him by the mother. Very often, young and mature fathers do not want to take any part in the life of their child. They begin to blackmail mothers and force them to refuse child support in exchange for paternal abandonment of the child.


The unfortunate dad can put pressure on you and demand to take away the writ of execution, or not go to court at all, offering you in exchange such a luxury as registration of the status of a single mother. And very often such male tricks work.

The unfortunate woman agrees to be content with little and receive a meager allowance from the state, so as not to go through such a shameful procedure as a judicial recovery of alimony.

In fact, the refusal to pay child support is impossible in the same way as the refusal of himself. Of course, “daddy” can prove to the court for a long time that this is not his child at all, but now there are analyzes in the public domain that can confirm or refute this fact in the shortest possible time. Of course, if a child really has nothing to do with a man, no one will force him to support a child until adulthood. But if this is the actual father, he is obliged to do so by law.

Children are a blessing, but not for everyone. Some parents, unprepared for the responsibility of parenthood, choose to abandon their underage babies. Most often, fathers are interested in this. Women also refuse children, but if this is done, then immediately after childbirth. Yes, and the newly-made mother has the right to take the child for some time from the baby's home - approximately within six months or a year. Welfare agencies allow mothers to recover from postpartum depression and make such a big decision. But how to abandon the child to the father? What to do for this?

Is it possible?

The first step is to find out if citizens have the opportunity to abandon the baby. This responsible decision leaves its mark for life. A serious step, almost irreversible.

As practice shows, abandoning a child is already a common thing. For one reason or another, many simply refuse newborns right in the hospital. But you can pick them up for some time.

So theoretically, you can refuse the baby. As practice shows, fathers think much more often about how to write a refusal of a child. They also have this opportunity. But putting it into practice is quite difficult.

by agreement

There are several options for solving the question. The first and simplest is the actual refusal to fulfill parental obligations by agreement with the mother of the baby. Usually there are situations in which the mother does not require alimony from the second parent, and he, in turn, does not claim the child and allows you to issue the status of a single mother.

Such an agreement has no legal force. Moreover, in reality, such a step does not exempt from alimony. Remember: child abandonment is not a green light for non-payment of child support. In which case, the children, with the actual and unproven refusal of the parent, will still have to support him in old age. A good, though not legal, reception.

Independently and legally

What else is worth paying attention to? How to give up a child to a father? To do this, you need to properly prepare a certain package of documents. But the denial of paternity is actually called a little differently. The whole problem lies in the fact that at the legislative level in Russia it is impossible to simply, at will, relieve oneself of parental obligations. So, without reasons, you will not be able to refuse the maintenance and upbringing of a minor.

What does the Family Code of the Russian Federation say? According to its 70th article, their complete deprivation is considered a waiver of parental rights. These are the rules that take place in Russia. It turns out that only the guardianship authorities or the court are able to take away the rights of paternity from the biological dad. But remember: this will not remove child support obligations.

No red tape

These are the interesting norms contained in the Family Code of the Russian Federation. The mother can abandon the baby immediately after birth, but the father cannot. But, as already mentioned, such a step does not exempt anyone from paying money for the maintenance of a minor.

Is it really all that difficult? In fact, now lawyers offer to simply draw up and certify a waiver agreement. So you will have grounds for not fulfilling your parental obligations. True, as practice shows, such a document will not be considered in court.

In principle, you can write something like: “I, full name, renounce paternity of the child (full name of the baby)”, and then certify this information. This document will do the most, it will confirm your intentions to abandon the minor. And no more. How to give up a child to a father? Without a trial, an idea can be brought to life only when we are talking about about adoption.

From adoption

Although this is not always the case. Without the participation of the court, you can not adopt a child only at the time of marriage. If you have already adopted a baby, then it is possible to refuse it only in court.

What needs to be done to bring the idea to life? The model for abandoning a child is extremely simple. Usually it is written at the conclusion of marriage, served in the registry office. You should get something like: "I, full name, refuse to adopt a child (data of a minor), who is the son / daughter of my wife (full name of the future wife)".

Basically, that's all. Put the date and signature - you're done. Now, after marriage, you will not become the father of a child. This application can be written even after the official registration of the relationship.

If you want to adopt a minor, then the biological father must write a waiver. It looks like: "I, full name, give up my child (full name of the baby) in connection with his adoption (data about the adopter), the spouse of my ex-wife, mother of the child (information about the mother I have no pretensions to adoption."

Through the court

How to give up a child to a father? It has already been said that this can only be done through the courts. The initiator can be both the spouse and the guardianship authorities / the judiciary themselves. True, there must be good reasons for this act. These include:

  • cruelty to children;
  • the presence of addictions in the father (alcohol, drugs, and so on);
  • abuse of parental rights;
  • neglect of the duties of a parent.

In these cases, you have every right to go to court with a claim for deprivation of parental rights of a negligent biological dad. Remember: you will need evidence to back up your claims. If there are witnesses, it's generally good, the main thing is that they be disinterested persons.
When deciding how to abandon the child to the father, one more fact must be taken into account: the child will not lose the right to the inheritance and the use of the dwelling in which he lives. All the possibilities that blood relationship gives remain. But a father deprived of parental rights does not have the right to claim maintenance and alimony. Therefore, this decision entails a certain number of consequences, sometimes not the best for the father of the child.

When refusing a minor, think carefully about what you are doing. The law establishes that child support is not canceled. Therefore, if you want to make a refusal only because of forced payments, it is advisable to amicably agree on everything with the mother of the baby.

Ekaterina Kozhevnikova

Reading time: 1 minute

Hello! I want to know if it is possible for a child to abandon his father? He drank all his life, raised his hand to his mother, never helped, did not pay alimony. The child does not communicate with him, and does not want to pay him alimony in old age.

Recently, there are more and more situations when fathers do not participate in the lives of their children, do not take care of their upbringing or treat them cruelly. What can be done in such situations? You can contact the guardianship and guardianship authorities with a complaint about such behavior of the parent. And to the questions “is it possible to refuse?” and “how can you give up your father?” the answer is unequivocal: the norms of the family legislation of the Russian Federation do not provide for such an opportunity. Parents cannot be abandoned; if necessary, they can only be deprived of parental rights.

For what reasons might a son (daughter) want to abandon his father?

As a rule, children are willing to abandon their parent in order to protect themselves in case he abuses members of his family. Such a desire is justified and quite legitimate.

Another reason, and quite common, is an attempt to refuse in order to avoid the need to support a parent in old age, which is provided for by the current legislation of the Russian Federation.

When can the procedure for depriving a father of his parental rights be initiated?

The procedure for depriving a father of parental rights in relation to his minor children is regulated by Articles 69-73 of the Family Code of the Russian Federation. Their text clearly indicates the grounds for the implementation of this procedure, as well as the procedure and consequences of its implementation.

The obligation to take care of their children, provide them with material support and satisfy their needs until they reach adulthood is assigned to parents by law. If the parent performed the duties in good faith, in old age or in case of illness, he can count on similar support from the child. Can a child under the age of 18 abandon their father/mother? Let's figure it out together.

Can a minor abandon his parents?

In accordance with the legislation in force in Russia, a minor citizen has the opportunity to abandon his parents. There are two ways to opt out, and the minor (or his legal representative) may choose the one that best suits the specifics of the particular situation:

Is it possible to give up mother or father after 18 years?

From the age of 18 comes the age of full capacity. From this moment on, a citizen is considered an adult, and parents are no longer responsible before the law for providing for his needs and his actions / inactions. In accordance with the law, an adult citizen has no right to abandon his father or mother.

How to terminate a parent's parental rights?

If a parent neglects his obligations in relation to the child (does not pay alimony, does not participate in the upbringing, refuses to pick up the minor from kindergarten, school or hospital without good reason), abuses parental rights or creates a threat to the mental / physical health of the minor, there are grounds to deprive him of paternity / motherhood. Attached to the lawsuit:

The father of a child does not have the right to unilaterally renounce paternity. Voluntary annulment of the parental powers of the father is possible only upon agreement with the mother of the child and on the condition that parental responsibilities are transferred to another person, who will replace the father of the child. In case of forced deprivation of rights, the transfer of paternity does not occur.

A minor cannot independently deprive his father of his rights (except as otherwise provided by law) - you will need to seek help from a legal representative. Most often, this is the mother of the child, in her absence or dishonest performance of parental duties - guardianship and guardianship authorities.

How to deprive a parent of the right to receive material assistance from adult children?

In accordance with the provisions of the Family Code of the Russian Federation, an able-bodied child who has reached the age of majority is obliged to provide material assistance to his parent if the latter is needy and disabled.

If the child refuses to fulfill this obligation, the father or mother has the right to apply to the court. However, the above rule does not apply in all cases. The law provides for situations when a child is released from the obligation to pay alimony to parents or a parent, and the latter lose the right to receive material support from him, including through a court order. A child support claim will be denied if:

  • the parent will not be able to prove the facts of his disability and neediness (if the court considers that the parent’s income is sufficient to meet his needs, or he turns out to be an able-bodied citizen, then the claim will be rejected);
  • the defendant will provide a court decision, according to which the plaintiff was previously deprived of parental rights in relation to him;
  • the plaintiff systematically evaded the payment of maintenance for the child until he reaches the age of majority (and the defendant has the opportunity to provide supporting documents), but there was no official deprivation of parental rights;
  • the parent avoided parental duties, although he was not deprived of paternity / motherhood (in this case, the defendant will need to collect strong evidence to convince the court).

Deprivation of paternity on a voluntary basis is a long process with many nuances. Judicial practice shows that such processes take time and require strong evidence to remove his rights from the actual father. As well as responsibilities towards the child. The law provides for a certain procedure for satisfying a declaration of renunciation of paternity.

General provisions

Renunciation of parental rights is a common occurrence in modern world. However, Russian law does not allow the father to abandon the child on a voluntary basis.

This can only be done through the court, providing strong evidence for refusal by both the father and the mother.

Even when disputing the fact of paternity and kinship with a child, a man is obliged to obtain a court decision to deprive him of parental rights.

It is important to remember that a court decision is also possible, and to restore your rights as the father of a child through the court, in accordance with. In addition to depriving the rights to the child, the court can restrict them.

The right to apply to the court for deprivation of paternal rights is available only to the following people:

  • parents who are included in the birth certificate;
  • biological parents, even if they are not recorded on the child's birth certificate;
  • guardians or trustees;
  • persons containing a child on;
  • adult child;
  • prosecutor or guardianship authorities, if there are good reasons, supported by evidence.

There are cases when the law may not give rise to a case for deprivation of paternity rights, in accordance with, namely:

  1. If the father is aware of the absence of biological actual relationship when recording data in the child's birth record book.
  2. If available from the actual father, confirmed in writing, for the use of artificial insemination.

What it is

Relinquishing paternity on a voluntary basis is essentially the same as relinquishing parental responsibilities and rights.

The legislation of the Russian Federation does not prescribe the possibility of voluntary renunciation of father's duties, except in court. Refusal is possible only if both parents (both mother and father) agree to such a procedure.

Voluntary refusal implies that the father of the child is aware of the consequences of the legal proceedings in the case of deprivation of his actual paternity - all obligations in relation to the child of which he was the father will be terminated, the same applies to the rights to raise him.

After the procedure is completed, the rights of the father will either be transferred to another person or terminated. When transferring rights to another person by law, notarization of all necessary documents is mandatory.

To submit an application to the guardianship and guardianship authorities in case of voluntary refusal, it is indicated:

  1. The full name of the organization to which this application is sent, with the actual address.
  2. Your place of residence and registration, if they differ, as well as passport data.
  3. Data and information about the birth of the child, as well as the reason for the denial of the rights of the father (usually this is adoption by another father).
  4. Be sure to have a signature with a date at the end of the document.

Filing an application with this government agency will result in further legal proceedings regarding disqualification. A sample application for guardianship authorities, along with a form to fill out, can be viewed on the Internet.

In a statement of claim filed directly with the court, you must specify:

  • the name of the district court;
  • all the data of the defendant and the plaintiff (places of residence and registration, passport data, telephone numbers by which they can be contacted), the same applies to their representatives, if any;
  • details of the child (including a birth certificate if the child is under fourteen years of age, and passport details if the child is over fourteen);
  • the place and date of the marriage and divorce proceedings (if they took place), as well as the specific date when the cohabitation of the mother and father was terminated;
  • grounds and evidence on which the plaintiff asks the court to deprive the father of his rights to the child;
  • description of the plaintiff's claims (for refusal, etc.);
  • if during the proceedings one of the parties wants to deal with the issue of collecting alimony, the statement of claim must indicate the price of the claim, however, even without this requirement, the court usually raises this topic;
  • list of documents attached to the application;
  • Mandatory signature and date at the end of the application.

You can take a blank form from the court or guardianship authorities for a sample of such an application.

Additional documents to be attached to the application:

  • about the place of residence of the child;
  • copies of both passports of the plaintiff and the child, if he is over 14 years old (or a copy of the birth certificate);
  • a copy of the claim itself;
  • a copy of the certificates of the fact of divorce and marriage, if any;
  • confirming the payment of the state duty;
  • if the application indicates the price of the claim for the purpose of obtaining alimony;
  • documents that could confirm the reasons for depriving the actual father of his rights.

After the trial and the decision in favor of the plaintiff, it is necessary to make changes to the book of records of acts civil status and get a new birth certificate.

The procedure for renunciation of paternity is faster if the renunciation is in favor of another person and the subsequent adoption of the child, as well as if there is a DNA test confirming the absence of relationship between the father and the child.

The court is allowed to provide witnesses who can confirm the failure of parental duties by the father.

After the decision of the court in favor of refusal, the child retains the right:

  1. From a disenfranchised father.
  2. Receive payments (alimony) for maintenance until the age of majority or until the appearance of a new father.

It should be remembered that the deprivation of parental rights does not exempt the father from the payment of alimony in accordance with Article 71, Part 2 of the Family Code of the Russian Federation.

Father's consent to the adoption of a child by another person

When making an application for abandoning a child in favor of another man, it is also necessary to issue a written form from the father to transfer his parental responsibilities regarding this child to another person, that is, to approve the adoption.

How to issue

First you need to contact the guardianship and guardianship authorities for a person who is ready to adopt a child (who currently has a father only on documents). Then, at a court hearing, the oral consent of the actual father or written consent may be required.

Written consent to the adoption of a child by another man must be notarized or certified by the guardianship authorities. After the decision of the court, the rights and obligations are terminated in accordance with Article.

Main nuances

Do not forget that the consent of the child to be adopted by another man is required if at the time of filing the application he is already 10 full years old.

However, it allows you to do without obtaining consent from him if the child has lived for a long time with the future adoptive parent and considers him his father.

There are cases when consent from the child's actual father is not required:

  • if his whereabouts are unknown to the court;
  • if he is declared incompetent;
  • if for disrespectful reasons he does not participate in the life of the child;
  • if he has already lost his paternal rights.

Waiver of their father's duties and rights in relation to the child on a voluntary basis is a lengthy process, which can be carried out only during the court session.

In order to deprive the rights of one of the actual parents, strong evidence must be provided in court. Only taking into account all of the above factors, it is possible to achieve deprivation of paternity.