Pregnancy and birth in Germany

Once a pregnancy is confirmed, you have regular prenatal check-ups (Schwangerschaftsvorsorge) under official guidelines: usually every four weeks, and every two weeks from the 32nd week. They include weight, blood pressure, urine and blood tests, checking the position of the baby and its heartbeat. A gynaecologist or a midwife can do most check-ups, and you can alternate between them; ultrasound scans are done by doctors.

Statutory insurance covers three basic ultrasound scans, in weeks 9 to 12, 19 to 22 and 29 to 32. Additional scans without medical reason are not covered and, since 2021, are not allowed purely for "baby viewing". You have the right to decline any examination.

At the first check-up you receive the Mutterpass, a small booklet (now also available electronically) that records your blood group, the expected date of birth, test results and any risks. Carry it with you at all times during pregnancy; in an emergency it gives the hospital the key information immediately.

Statutory and private insurance pay for the regular check-ups.

A midwife (Hebamme) can support you during pregnancy, run antenatal classes, assist at the birth and, very importantly, visit you at home after the birth (Wochenbettbetreuung). With statutory insurance you are entitled to up to 20 midwife visits in the first ten days after the birth and up to 16 further visits or phone contacts until the baby is twelve weeks old. Breastfeeding support is included.

Midwives are in short supply in many regions, so start looking as soon as your pregnancy is confirmed. Use:

• the official midwife search of the GKV-Spitzenverband, which you can filter by location and services such as pregnancy care, antenatal classes, postnatal care, home birth or birth centre,
• the German Midwives Association (Deutscher Hebammenverband) and local networks,
• in Berlin, the central midwife call of the Berliner Hebammenverband, (030) 2142771.

Ask whether the midwife works in English or another language you speak.

Statutory insurance covers a birth in a hospital, in a midwife-led birth centre (Geburtshaus) or at home with a midwife. Contact the hospital or birth centre you prefer during the pregnancy and ask whether and when you need to register in advance. Bring your Mutterpass and insurance card to the birth.

Insurance also covers medicines and aids related to pregnancy and birth, and, if needed because of pregnancy or birth, home nursing and household help (Haushaltshilfe).

If you are employed, tell your employer about the pregnancy and the expected date as soon as you know; the law expects this, and several protections depend on the employer knowing.

• Protection periods (Mutterschutzfristen): six weeks before the expected date (you may choose to keep working) and eight weeks after the birth, when you may not work. After premature or multiple births the period after the birth is twelve weeks, and also on request if a disability of the child is diagnosed within eight weeks. If the baby comes early, the days you missed before the birth are added afterwards.
• After a miscarriage from the 13th week, protection periods of two, six or eight weeks apply depending on the week of pregnancy (since June 2025), during which you only work if you explicitly want to.
• Protection against dismissal (Kündigungsschutz): your employer may not dismiss you during the pregnancy, until four months after the birth, or for four months after a miscarriage after the 12th week, provided it knew of the pregnancy or you inform it within two weeks of receiving notice.
• Maternity pay (Mutterschaftsgeld): during the protection periods, members of statutory insurance receive up to 13 euros per day from their insurer, and the employer tops it up to your average net pay (Arbeitgeberzuschuss). Employees who are privately or family-insured can receive up to 210 euros in total from the Federal Office for Social Security (Bundesamt für Soziale Sicherung). Apply with the certificate of the expected date of birth from your doctor or midwife.

Self-employed women are not covered by these rules in the same way; check what your health insurance pays, for example a daily sickness allowance. The guide on employment rights covers parental leave (Elternzeit).

Everyone has a legal right to free counselling on all questions around pregnancy at state-recognised counselling centres (Schwangerschaftsberatungsstellen), anonymously if you wish and with your partner. They help with benefits and applications, legal questions, housing and financial support, for example from the federal foundation Mutter und Kind for people in financial difficulty. Some centres advise in other languages. Find a centre with the search of the Federal Institute for Public Health (BIÖG), which lists more than 1,500 centres.

Every birth in Germany must be registered at the registry office (Standesamt) of the place where the child was born, regardless of where the parents live. In Berlin this is the registry office of the district of birth.

• Hospitals and birth centres report the birth to the registry office themselves. Home births must be reported by the parents within one week.
• The registry office needs the parents' passports or ID cards, the parents' birth certificates and, if married, the marriage certificate. Unmarried parents also need the acknowledgement of paternity and, if made, the joint custody declaration. Foreign documents need certified German translations and, depending on the country, an apostille or legalisation; names in non-Latin scripts are transliterated by standard rules.
• Both parents sign a declaration of the child's first and family names. If the hospital reports the birth, this declaration may already be part of its notice.
• In Berlin you receive three birth certificates free of charge for parental allowance, child benefit and health insurance or maternity pay. Further certificates cost 12 euros each (2026).

Missing or untranslated documents are the most common cause of delays, so collect, translate and authenticate them during the pregnancy.

Unmarried parents: the father (or the person acknowledging paternity) can acknowledge paternity before or after the birth, free of charge at the youth office (Jugendamt), where you can also declare joint custody (Sorgeerklärung), or for a fee at the registry office (40 euros in Berlin) or a notary. The mother must consent.

Citizenship: a child born in Germany to foreign parents acquires German citizenship at birth if one parent has lived lawfully in Germany for five years and holds a permanent right of residence (or an EU-Swiss free movement right). Otherwise, contact the embassy of your country about registering the child and getting a passport, and the immigration office about a residence permit for the baby.

• Health insurance: register the baby with your statutory insurer for family insurance, using one of the free birth certificates. If one parent is privately insured and earns more than the other parent and above a certain income, the child may need its own insurance; see the guide on health insurance.
• Child benefit (Kindergeld): apply to the family benefits office (Familienkasse) of the Federal Employment Agency. See the guide on child benefit.
• Parental allowance (Elterngeld): in Berlin, apply to the parental allowance office (Elterngeldstelle) of the youth office in your district. It is paid retroactively for at most three months before the month you apply, so apply early. For births from 1 April 2025, parents with a combined taxable income above 175,000 euros are not eligible. For non-EU citizens, eligibility depends on the residence permit, which you submit with the application. See the guide on parental allowance.
• Paediatrician (Kinderarzt): choose a paediatric practice early. The child check-ups U1 to U9, from birth to around age six, are covered by statutory insurance and also check development and vaccinations.
• Childcare: start thinking early about a daycare place (Kita); see the guide on childcare in Berlin.