The Illinois Denial of Parentage, Form HFS 3416D, lets a spouse or former spouse who is not a child’s biological parent give up all legal parental rights and duties. It only works when it’s filed with the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services together with a signed Voluntary Acknowledgment of Parentage (Form HFS 3416B) from the actual biological parent. There is no filing fee, and most families complete both forms at the hospital shortly after the birth.
When This Form Is the Right Tool
Under the Illinois Parentage Act of 2015, you are legally presumed to be a child’s parent if you were married to or in a civil union with the birth parent when the child was born, or if that marriage or civil union ended within 300 days before the birth.1Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 750 ILCS 46/204 Without a denial, your name goes on the birth certificate by operation of law, and you become responsible for child support regardless of biology.2Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services. HFS 3416B Illinois Voluntary Acknowledgment of Parentage
Form HFS 3416D is the administrative way out, but it has a hard requirement: the biological or intended parent must sign a Voluntary Acknowledgment of Parentage (HFS 3416B), and both documents must be on file before either takes legal effect.3Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 750 ILCS 46/304 – Rules for Voluntary Acknowledgment and Denial of Parentage If the biological father won’t sign, the denial alone does nothing. In that case the parties have to go to court, where genetic testing may be used to establish parentage.4Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 750 ILCS 46/401 – Proceeding Authorized
One disqualifier catches people off guard: a presumed parent cannot sign a denial if a court has already adjudicated them as the child’s parent, or if they previously signed a voluntary acknowledgment that hasn’t been rescinded or successfully challenged.5Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 750 ILCS 46/303 – Denial of Parentage
What Goes on the Form
Use black or blue ink, and print or type clearly. Every field must be filled in. Forms with errors or missing information are rejected, and when that happens the biological parent’s name won’t be placed on the birth certificate.6Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services. Illinois Denial of Parentage
Child’s Information
Enter the child’s details exactly as they appear (or will appear) on the birth certificate: full name with any suffix, date of birth in mm/dd/yyyy format, sex (M or F), and place of birth — hospital name or street address, plus city, state, and county.
Spouse or Former Spouse’s Information
The presumed parent provides full name and suffix, current address, daytime phone with area code, date of birth, place of birth (city and state, or country if born outside the United States), and either a Social Security number or an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number.
Birth Parent’s Information
The birth parent gives the same categories as the spouse, plus two additional items: maiden name (the birth parent’s last name before any first marriage), and the date of the marriage or civil union with the spouse signing the denial.6Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services. Illinois Denial of Parentage
Signing, Witnessing, and the Genetic-Testing Waiver
Both the spouse and the birth parent sign and date the form in front of a witness. The witness must be at least 18 and cannot be anyone named on the denial as a parent or child.6Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services. Illinois Denial of Parentage Both signers are certifying under penalty of perjury that what’s on the form is true.
Read the warning on the form carefully. By signing, the spouse gives up the right to request genetic testing for the child. If you have any doubt about biological parentage and want a DNA test, get one before you sign. Once the denial is filed, that right is gone.6Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services. Illinois Denial of Parentage
The denial and the companion acknowledgment (HFS 3416B) can be signed as separate documents or combined into one, and they can be filed together or at different times. Neither has any legal effect until both are on file with HFS.3Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 750 ILCS 46/304 – Rules for Voluntary Acknowledgment and Denial of Parentage
Where to File It
The simplest route is finishing the paperwork at the hospital right after the birth. Hospital staff put the biological parent’s name on the birth certificate and forward both forms to HFS.6Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services. Illinois Denial of Parentage
If you don’t complete it at the hospital, mail the original to:
HFS – Administrative Coordination Unit (ACU)
PO Box 19152
Springfield, Illinois 62794-91526Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services. Illinois Denial of Parentage
Send the acknowledgment with it if both are ready. There is no filing fee.7Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 750 ILCS 46/306 – No Filing Fee You can download the form from the HFS website, pick one up at any Illinois hospital, or get a copy at a local county clerk’s office.
What the Filing Does
Once HFS has a valid denial and a valid acknowledgment on file, the combination carries the same legal weight as a court order declaring that the spouse is not the child’s parent. The spouse is discharged from all parental rights and duties.8Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 750 ILCS 46/305 – Effect of Valid Denial
If a birth certificate was already issued with the spouse’s name on it, HFS coordinates with the Illinois Department of Public Health’s Division of Vital Records to amend the record and replace the spouse’s name with the biological parent’s. A certified copy of the amended certificate costs $15 for the first copy and $2 for each additional copy ordered at the same time.9Illinois Department of Public Health. Illinois Department of Public Health Fee Schedule
If You Change Your Mind
The 60-Day Rescission Window
You can rescind the denial by filing a signed and witnessed rescission with HFS. The deadline is 60 days after the denial’s effective date, or the date of any court or administrative proceeding involving the child (such as a child support case), whichever comes first.10Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 750 ILCS 46/307 – Proceeding for Rescission A successful rescission puts the spouse back in the role of legal parent, with support responsibility.6Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services. Illinois Denial of Parentage
Challenging After 60 Days
Once the rescission window closes, the only way to undo a denial is a verified petition in court on grounds of fraud, duress, or material mistake of fact. You have two years from the denial’s effective date to bring that challenge, with the clock pausing during any period of legal disability, duress, or fraudulent concealment of the grounds. The person challenging carries the burden, and the standard is clear and convincing evidence. Child support obligations that arose from the original documents generally aren’t suspended while the challenge is pending.11Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 750 ILCS 46/309 – Procedure for Challenge
Getting a Certified Copy Later
After HFS files your denial, you can request a certified copy using Form HFS 3416H. Only certain requestors qualify: the parents named on the form, the child’s guardian, the child if emancipated, legal representatives of those individuals, appropriate federal agencies, and courts or agencies of Illinois or another state. An attorney requesting on a client’s behalf must use letterhead and include the client’s signed authorization. The requestor’s signature on HFS 3416H has to be notarized, and the form goes to the same ACU address in Springfield used for the original filing.12Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services. HFS 3416H