Marital Partners' Monikers

Spousal Maintenance: Financial Assistance Provided Post-Divorce for a Spouse's Sustainability

, and Administrator

2025 September 11 . 12:42 PM

2 min read

Marital Partners' Monikers

In Germany, a unique set of rules governs the choice and change of family names for spouses and their children. Here are the key points to understand these rules:

Spouses in Germany are required to choose a shared family name, often referred to as a marital name, under German law (§ 1355 BGB). This decision cannot be revoked until the end of the marriage.
Each spouse can add or revoke an additional name only once during the course of the marriage. The addition of an additional name can be revoked, but the marital name itself cannot.
If parents have a marital name at the time of a child's birth, the child automatically inherits this name as their birth name (§ 1616 BGB). If parents do not have a marital name, they must declare the child's birth name to the registrar.
If parents do not make a decision regarding the child's birth name within one month of the birth, the child automatically receives a double-barrelled name with a hyphen (in alphabetical order of the parents' names) (§ 1617 BGB). The double-barrelled name can be written with or without a hyphen and must not exceed two names in total.
If only one parent's name is chosen as the marital name, the other parent can add their birth name or the name they were using at the time of marriage to the marital name as a prefix or suffix.
If parents decide to change their surname retroactively, the new surname will automatically apply to their child who is not yet five years old (§ 1617c (1) BGB). If the child is five years or older, they must declare their consent to the surname change to the registrar.
Persons entitled to retroactively change their marriage names after the child age of five years are those legally permitted under name law. This typically includes minors with appropriate consent or court approval; in such cases, obtaining consent from involved parties such as both parents or legal guardians is required, or alternatively, a court decides based on the child's best interest.
If one parent objects to the automatically assigned name, the family court will decide which parent the naming decision is transferred to (§ 1617 BGB). If the child is between 5 and 14 years old, the legal representative must make the declaration of consent. If the child is between 14 and 18 years old, the consent of the legal representative is required for the declaration of consent.
If a spouse becomes widowed or divorced, they can resume their birth name or the name they were using at the time of marriage by declaration to the registry office.
Parents can choose a double-barrelled name combining both parents' names for their child's birth name (§ 1617 BGB). This option provides flexibility for families to create a unique identity while adhering to the rules set by German law.