Parental responsibilities and rights

Registering a parental responsibilities and rights agreement during coronavirus (COVID-19)

You cannot register a parental responsibilities and rights agreement right now because of coronavirus.

We'll update this page when the situation changes.

Parental responsibilities

Parental responsibilities mean the things you must do to look after your child.

Parental rights

Your rights include being able to make choices about:

• how your child is brought up
• where your child should live

Who has parental responsibilities and rights

All mothers have parental responsibilities and rights as soon as they give birth to a child.

A birth mother's parental responsibilities and rights can be removed by a court. They will also be removed if a birth mother's child is adopted.

Not all fathers have parental responsibilities and rights.

Find out more if:

• you're a father
• you're a step parent
• you have a same-sex partner