This is the English version of a Turkish article. The original, with further detail and linked petition templates, is at Soybağı: Tanıma, Babalık Davası ve Soybağının Reddi.
Parentage between a child and a father is established in one of three ways: marriage to the mother, acknowledgement, or a judgment of paternity (TMK art. 282). For a child born outside marriage the quickest route is an acknowledgement made by the father before the civil registry or a notary. If he does not acknowledge, the mother or the child brings a paternity action, in which DNA evidence is decisive.
Parentage with the mother arises from the birth. With the father it must be established, and the route chosen governs the deadlines.
How Parentage Is Established
Under TMK art. 282, parentage between child and mother arises from the birth. With the father it arises from marriage to the mother, acknowledgement or a judgment, and may also arise by adoption.
For a child born within marriage the presumption of paternity applies (art. 285): the husband is the father of a child born during the marriage or within three hundred days of its ending.
For a child born after that period, it must be proved that the mother conceived during the marriage.
Acknowledgement
Acknowledgement is the father's unilateral declaration accepting the child as his own.
Under TMK art. 295 it is made by the father's written application to the civil registry officer or the court, or by a declaration in an official deed or his will.
An important limit: a child whose parentage with another man is established cannot be acknowledged unless that link is set aside.
An acknowledgement can be annulled on an action by the mother, the child, the child's descendants if the child has died, the public prosecutor, the Treasury and other interested parties, brought in the court of the acknowledger's residence.
The period for that action is one year from the claimant learning of the acknowledgement and that the acknowledger is not the father.
The Paternity Action
Where the father does not acknowledge, parentage is established by judgment. TMK art. 301: the mother and the child may seek a judicial determination of paternity.
The action is brought against the father, or against his heirs if he has died. It is also notified to the public prosecutor and the Treasury; where the mother brings it, to the child's guardian ad litem, and where the guardian brings it, to the mother.
Time limits (art. 303): the action may be brought before or after the birth. The mother's right lapses one year after the birth.
Where a guardian ad litem was appointed for the child after the birth, the child's one-year period runs from notification of the appointment to the guardian; where none was appointed, from the date the child reaches majority.
Even after those periods, where there are reasons justifying the delay, the action may be brought within one month of that reason ceasing.
DNA Evidence
TMK art. 302 creates an important presumption: sexual relations between the defendant and the mother between the three hundredth and the one hundred and eightieth day before the birth are presumptive of paternity.
The presumption also applies where relations outside that window are established within the actual period of conception.
It is displaced where the defendant proves the impossibility of his being the father, or that a third party is more likely to be.
In practice the decisive evidence is DNA. Under HMK art. 292 the court may order the examinations necessary and not hazardous for establishing parentage, and where a person refuses, the judge may order that the examination be carried out using force.
So refusing to give a sample does not defeat the action.
| Action | Who brings it | Period |
|---|---|---|
| Acknowledgement | The father (a declaration, not an action) | No time limit |
| Paternity action — the mother | The mother | 1 year from the birth |
| Paternity action — the child | The child | 1 year from reaching majority |
| Annulment of acknowledgement | Mother, child, prosecutor, Treasury | 1 year from discovery |
| Denial of paternity — the husband | The husband | 1 year from learning of the birth and that he is not the father; 5 years in any event |
Where there is a reason justifying the delay, the action may be brought within one month of that reason ceasing (TMK art. 303).
Denial of Paternity
The converse action is denial of paternity, brought by a husband asserting that the child is not his (TMK art. 286).
It is brought against the mother and the child. The child may also bring it after reaching majority, against the mother and the husband.
Time limit (art. 289): the husband must bring it within one year of learning of the birth and that he is not the father, or that the mother had relations with another man at the time of conception.
The child may bring it within one year at the latest from reaching majority.
These periods too may be extended by one month from the ceasing of a reason justifying delay.
The critical point: until a judgment denying paternity is given, the husband's obligations — maintenance among them — continue. That is why the deadlines must not be missed.
In a paternity action the mother's right lapses one year after the birth; in denial of paternity the husband's right lapses one year after he learns of it. Where there is a reason justifying delay, the action may be brought within one month of that reason ceasing.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is paternity established for a child born outside marriage?
By marriage to the mother, acknowledgement, or a judgment. Acknowledgement is made by declaration to the civil registry, the court, in an official deed or in a will.
Who can bring a paternity action, and when?
The mother and the child. The mother's right lapses one year after the birth; for the child the period runs from notification to a guardian ad litem or from majority.
Can I refuse a DNA test?
No. The court may order the necessary and non-hazardous examinations, and where a person refuses, that the examination be carried out using force.
Can a child registered to another man be acknowledged?
No. A child whose parentage with another man is established cannot be acknowledged unless that link is set aside.
What is the period for denying paternity?
One year from the husband learning of it; for the child, one year at the latest from reaching majority.