How to Fill Out and Submit the Wisconsin Voluntary Paternity Acknowledgment Form

To establish legal fatherhood for a child born to unmarried parents in Wisconsin, both parents complete and sign the Wisconsin Voluntary Paternity Acknowledgment form (state form F-05024), have their signatures notarized, and file the form with the Wisconsin Vital Records Office in Madison. Once filed and past the 60-day rescission window, the acknowledgment carries the same legal weight as a court judgment of paternity, with no hearing required.¹ The father’s name is then added to the child’s birth certificate.

Who Can Sign

Both parents must be adults. Wisconsin law bars anyone under 18 from signing a paternity acknowledgment.¹ Both must also be certain the man signing is the biological father. If either parent has doubts, the voluntary route is the wrong one; a paternity action with a court-ordered genetic test is the appropriate alternative.

The form cannot be used if the mother was married to anyone else at any point from conception through birth. Wisconsin law presumes the husband is the legal father in that situation, and his name will appear on the original birth certificate even when everyone involved knows he is not the biological parent. That presumption has to be removed in a court proceeding before a VPA can be filed.²

Where to Get the Form

Hospitals are the easiest place. Every Wisconsin hospital stocks the form and offers it to unmarried parents during the birth admission process, and trained staff can walk you through each section on the spot.²

After you leave the hospital, the form is available from your local child support agency, your county Register of Deeds office, or the Wisconsin Vital Records Office in Madison.² It is also listed as form F-05024 in the Wisconsin Department of Health Services online forms library.³ Midwives, medical clinics, and tribal enrollment offices are authorized to assist as well.⁴

What to Have Ready Before You Sign

Gather this information before sitting down with the form:

Each parent’s full legal name, current home address, date of birth, and Social Security number.
The child’s full name, date of birth, and the county where the birth occurred.
A valid photo ID for each parent, which the notary will need to verify identity.

Accuracy matters. Mismatched names or dates will slow processing at Vital Records. If a parent does not have a Social Security number, ask the hospital staff or child support agency assisting you how to complete that field.

Signing and Notarizing

Before you sign, read the attestation clause carefully. It confirms that both parents received oral and written notice of the legal consequences of signing, the rights and responsibilities that follow, and the alternatives to signing.¹ Staff at the hospital or child support agency are required to explain this notice before you sign.

Both parents must sign, and both signatures must be notarized. Hospitals typically have a notary available on site. If you are signing at a child support agency or Register of Deeds office, call ahead to confirm notary services are available. A form that is not properly signed and notarized will not be accepted for filing.

Filing the Form and Updating the Birth Certificate

When you sign at the hospital, staff normally mail the completed form to Vital Records for you. If you are filing on your own, send the notarized original to:

Wisconsin Vital Records Office
PO Box 309
Madison, WI 53701

Keep a photocopy of the completed, notarized form before mailing the original. Once Vital Records processes the acknowledgment and the information matches the existing birth record, the state issues an amended birth certificate listing the father’s name. A certified copy costs $20, with additional copies at $3 each.⁵ Processing can take several weeks to a few months depending on the office’s backlog.

What the Form Does and Does Not Do

Once filed and past the rescission window, the VPA is a conclusive determination of paternity. That has important legal effects, but it does not resolve every parenting question by itself.

Child Support

Filing the form does not automatically create a child support order. It allows a court to order support without first holding a hearing to prove who the father is.² Either parent, or the local child support agency, can then bring an action to set an amount. Support generally continues until the child turns 18, or 19 if the child is still pursuing a high school diploma.¹

Custody and Placement

Fathers are most often caught off guard here. The VPA does not give the father legal custody or physical placement. Under Wisconsin law, an unmarried mother has sole legal custody until a court orders otherwise.⁴ To get custody or a placement schedule, the father has to file a separate family court action, and the court will decide custody and placement using the standards it applies to any other family case.¹

Birth Certificate, Benefits, and Inheritance

The most immediate practical effect is the amended birth certificate. That updated certificate works as evidence of the parent-child relationship for a U.S. passport application, Social Security survivor benefits, and inheritance rights if the father dies without a will. Without established paternity, a child born to unmarried parents may be unable to claim these benefits.

Changing Your Mind: The 60-Day Rescission Window

Either parent who signed can withdraw the acknowledgment by filing a rescission form, but only if two conditions are met: no court has yet ruled on a family matter involving the parents and child, and the rescission is filed within 60 days of filing the original VPA.² If a court hearing on custody, support, or placement happens inside those 60 days, the right to rescind ends at that point. The rescission form is available from the same offices that provide the VPA.

After the 60-day window closes, the acknowledgment becomes a conclusive determination of paternity. Overturning it then requires filing a case in circuit court and proving fraud, duress, or a material mistake of fact. That is a high bar. A father with second thoughts, or who hears a rumor he might not be the biological parent, will not clear it. A negative DNA test can support a claim of material mistake of fact, but the court decides whether to accept it; the test alone does not void the acknowledgment. Anyone considering a challenge after 60 days should talk to a family law attorney before filing.

1
Wisconsin State Legislature. Wisconsin Statutes 767.805 – Voluntary Acknowledgment of Paternity
2
Wisconsin Department of Children and Families. Establishing Legal Fatherhood (Paternity)
3
Wisconsin Department of Health Services. Voluntary Paternity Acknowledgement
4
Wisconsin Department of Children and Families. Voluntary Paternity Acknowledgment
5
Wisconsin Department of Health Services. Amending a Vital Record