How to Fill Out and File the Minnesota Recognition of Parentage (DHS-3159)

The Minnesota Recognition of Parentage form (DHS-3159) is the state document unmarried parents sign to establish legal fatherhood without going to court. Both parents complete the form, sign it under oath before a notary, and file it with the Minnesota Department of Health’s Office of Vital Records. There is no filing fee. Once processed, the father’s name is added to the child’s birth record, which opens the door to custody petitions, child support, insurance coverage, and inheritance rights.¹

Who Can Sign

The form is for a biological mother and father who were not married to each other when the child was conceived or born.² Both must believe in good faith that the man signing is the biological father. If there is real doubt, do genetic testing first. Signing a false Recognition of Parentage carries legal consequences, and reversing a completed one gets difficult once the 60-day window closes.

If the mother was married to someone else at the time of conception or birth, the Recognition alone is not enough. Minnesota law presumes her husband is the father. To overcome that presumption, the husband or former husband must sign a separate notarized document, called a joinder in recognition in the statute and a Spouse’s Non-parentage Statement in court forms, renouncing his presumed-father status.² The joinder must be executed within one year of the child’s birth and filed with Vital Records alongside the Recognition.³ A joinder standing on its own has no legal effect.

Where to Get the Form

Hospitals routinely offer the Recognition of Parentage form to parents shortly after delivery, and staff can often notarize it on the spot.³ If you leave without signing, you can still get one. Download DHS-3159 from the Minnesota Department of Children, Youth, and Families website, or pick up a paper copy at your local county child support office.⁴ There is no deadline to sign, but signing sooner means the father’s name appears on the birth record sooner.

How to Fill It Out

Accuracy matters here because the Department of Health uses the information to update the state’s permanent birth record. Both parents provide their full legal names, dates of birth, Social Security numbers, and states or countries of birth. A separate section captures the child’s full legal name, date of birth, and place of birth.

Before signing, both parents have to read or view educational materials prepared by the commissioner of Children, Youth, and Families explaining what the Recognition means legally. The form has a checkbox or verification line confirming that review.² Read the printed notices carefully. They spell out three things worth understanding before you sign:

The Recognition becomes binding 60 days after signing, or earlier if there is a court or administrative hearing involving the child before then.
Signing gives the father the right to ask a court for custody and parenting time. It does not grant either one.
The Recognition creates a legal basis for child support, which a court can order retroactively for up to two years before a support action is filed.

Both parents sign in front of a notary public, who verifies identity, witnesses the signatures, and applies an official seal. A Recognition signed without proper notarization is not valid.²

If Either Parent Is Under 18

Parents under 18 can sign, but the legal effect is different. When either signer is a minor, the Recognition creates only a presumption of paternity rather than a binding determination. Either parent then has six months after the youngest signer turns 18 to bring a court action challenging the father-child relationship.⁵ If no one challenges it in that window, it becomes final the same as any other Recognition.

How to File It

The signed, notarized form has to be filed with the Office of Vital Records at the Minnesota Department of Health. An unfiled Recognition is not legally valid.¹ If you signed at the hospital, staff typically handle filing as part of the birth registration. If you signed later, mail the original to:

Office of Vital Records
Minnesota Department of Health
PO Box 64499
St. Paul, MN 55164-0499

There is no fee to file.⁶ Processing times move with volume; as of early 2026 the office was running roughly four to five weeks on birth record amendments.⁷

Once the record is updated, you can order a certified copy of the amended birth certificate. The first copy is $26, and additional copies ordered at the same time are $19 each.⁸ That certified copy is what schools, insurance companies, and government agencies will ask for as proof of the parent-child relationship.

What Signing Actually Does

The Recognition establishes legal fatherhood. From that one fact, several rights follow for the father:¹

His name goes on the birth record.
He can petition a court for custody and parenting time.
He can add the child to his medical and dental insurance.
He is entitled to notice of any adoption proceedings involving the child.

For the mother, the Recognition gives her the right to seek child support from the legal father, including basic support, medical and dental support, and child care support, and to obtain the father’s medical information relevant to the child’s health.¹

What the Recognition does not do catches many fathers off guard. It gives you no custody and no parenting time. The form itself says so in large print.⁴ Until a court issues an order, the mother has sole legal and physical custody by default. Overnights, decision-making authority, and any formal parenting schedule require a separate custody and parenting time petition in district court, decided on the child’s best interests with no automatic presumption favoring either parent.² Child support is similar: signing does not create an order, only the standing to ask for one.

Changing Your Mind After Signing

The law provides two ways to undo a Recognition, and which one applies is entirely a matter of timing.

Within 60 days, either parent can revoke by signing a written revocation before a notary and filing it with the Office of Vital Records. The deadline is the earlier of 60 days after signing or the date of any court or administrative hearing involving the child in which the revoking parent is a party.² A husband who signed a joinder can revoke that joinder separately within 60 days of signing it. Vital Records notifies the other parent once a revocation is filed.

After 60 days, the Recognition carries the same weight as a court judgment of paternity. Undoing it then requires a district court lawsuit, and the person asking to vacate has to prove fraud, duress, or a material mistake of fact. The action must be filed within one year of signing the Recognition, or within six months of receiving genetic test results showing the man is not the biological father, whichever is later. A child can bring a similar action within one year of turning 18 or within six months of getting disqualifying genetic test results.² The burden of proof rests on whoever is trying to set the Recognition aside.

1
Minnesota Department of Human Services. Recognition of Parentage
2
Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 257.75 – Recognition of Parentage
3
Minnesota Judicial Branch. Paternity – Frequently Asked Questions
4
Minnesota Department of Children, Youth, and Families. Recognition of Parentage
5
LawHelp Minnesota. DHS-3159 Minnesota Voluntary Recognition of Parentage
6
Minnesota Department of Health. Change a Birth Record
7
Minnesota Department of Health. Minnesota Vital Records and Certificates
8
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Where to Write for Vital Records – Minnesota