Pennsylvania statutes limit LRR to spouse or parents of an unemancipated minor child. 23 Pa. C.S. § 4371 55 Pa. Code § 187.22
A spouse is a husband or wife, whether they got married during a ceremony or by common law.
It may be considered a common law marriage if a man and woman:
Lived together and were free to marry (single, divorced or widowed);
Declared that they had a common law marriage;
Made it appear to the community that they were married.
Acts 144 of 2004 states that common law marriages contracted after Jan. 1, 2005, are not valid. Common law marriages contracted before Jan. 1, 2005, are valid. 23 Pa. C.S. § 1103
The CAO must review the client’s marital status in the case record and must determine the marital status. When an applicant says a common law marriage exists, the CAO should ask the applicant how long the common law marriage has existed.
If an applicant says that he/she is a common law spouse, the CAO must get proof that the couple was holding themselves out to the community as a married couple before Jan. 1, 2005. Proof includes, but is not limited to:
The deed to their home;
Income tax records;
Bank records;
Leases;
Utility bills;
Statements from knowledgeable persons.
The CAO should recognize the common law marriage if the record shows the couple presented themselves as married under common law before January 1, 2005. If so, they are still married under common law. The marriage can be dissolved only through the legal process. A common law marriage does not exist if it was established after January 1, 2005.
A person may be a biological or adoptive parent, or a man may become the legal father of a child through the acknowledgment of paternity process or through a court proceeding. When a child is born to a woman married by law, the husband is the father of the child even if the husband is not the biological father.
A parent is the biological or adoptive father or mother of a child.
A putative father is not an LRR. An alleged father of a child born when the couple is not married is considered a putative father until paternity is legally determined. 23 Pa. C.S. §§ 5102 & 5103
Paternity is established by one of the following:
Paternity is legally established by court order.
The putative father and mother sign an Acknowledgment of Paternity Form (PA/CS 611) that is submitted to and recorded as valid by the Bureau of Child Support Enforcement (BCSE). 55 Pa. Code § 187.22 23 Pa. C.S. § 5103(c)
A person cannot establish paternity just by saying he is the father or by being listed on a birth certificate.
The paternity of a child must be determined if the mother is unmarried at the time the child is born.
The paternity of a child does not need to be determined if:
The mother is not married when the child is born because the marriage ended by death or divorce between conception and birth or a court declared the marriage legally void.
The mother of the child or children states that her husband is not the biological father. The woman’s husband is the legal father and has responsibility to support the child or children financially and medically. The husband may challenge responsibility only in court.
For children born on or after Jan. 1, 1998, the voluntary Acknowledgment of Paternity Form is used by birthing hospitals and the CAO to allow an unmarried birth mother and birth father to acknowledge the paternity of a child born outside marriage. 23 Pa. C.S. § 5103
For voluntary acknowledgment of paternity:
CAO staff must sign the Acknowledgment of Paternity (AOP) form, PA/CS 611 as the required witness when the form is completed in their presence.
CAO staff must give written and oral notice to the birth mother and putative father about the legal consequences of and the rights and responsibilities that they are taking on by signing the AOP, as well as about the other choices that the parents have such as requesting genetic testing. The AOP form is the written notification. The CAO staff must explain the form orally to the birth mother and the putative father before they fill out and sign the form.
A completed AOP form with parents and witness signatures is a conclusive legal finding of paternity, but either the birth mother or the birth father who signed the form may rescind acknowledgment of paternity. 55 Pa. Code § 153.44(e) 23 Pa. C.S. § 5103
To rescind acknowledgment of paternity, the person must send a signed statement asking that acknowledgment be rescinded. The signed statement must be sent to BCSE at PO Box 8018, Harrisburg, PA17105. The BCSE address is on the form. The request to rescind acknowledgment of paternity must be sent to BCSE no later than 60 days after the form is signed or on the date of a court proceeding about the child, whichever date is sooner.
After the 60-day period or after a court proceeding about the child, whichever date is earlier, an acknowledgment of paternity may only be challenged in court on the basis of fraud, duress, or material mistake of fact established with clear and convincing proof.
The CAO must mail the completed PA/CS 611 to:
COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA
DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES
BUREAU OF CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT
PATERNITY COORDINATOR
PO BOX 8018
HARRISBURG, PA 17105-8018
Hospitals and birthing centers are required by law to give unmarried parents of newborns the chance to acknowledge paternity at the time of birth. Hospitals and birthing centers use the PA/CS 611 and send the completed form to BCSE. 23 Pa. C.S. § 5103(c)
NOTE: The father’s name may be included on the record of birth (birth certificate) of the child of unmarried parents only if:
The father and mother have signed a voluntary acknowledgment of paternity, or
A court or administrative agency of competent jurisdiction has issued an adjudication of paternity.
The BCSE reviews each submitted AOP form to ensure it is fully and accurately completed before recording the information into the Paternity Tracking System (PTS). It takes three to five weeks from the day the form is submitted to BCSE to certify it in the PTS. The CAO can call, write or fax a request to BCSE for a certified copy of the AOP. See Appendix C for procedures to access the PTS.
When a person presents a completed and signed copy of an AOP, the CAO must access the PTS to determine if the AOP is certified. If the form is not on the PTS and the signature date is less than five weeks, the CAO may assume that paternity is established for determining benefits. Assume paternity was not established if the AOP was signed more than five weeks ago and is not in the PTS or if the form does not have:
The first and last names of the mother, the father and the child;
Dated signatures of the mother, father and witness;
Date of birth of the mother, father and child;
Social Security Number for the mother and father;
Address of the mother and father;
Birthplace of the child.
The CAO should always check the PTS to be sure there is no duplicate AOP.
The CAO must follow Section 131.3 support procedures when:
A putative father is not willing to acknowledge paternity voluntarily;
The mother denies the putative father’s paternity claim and refuses to sign the AOP form.
NOTE: The putative father may establish a claim of paternity by signing and having his signature witnessed on an AOP form. An action to establish paternity must be started before the child’s 18th birthday. By signing the form without the mother’s consent, the putative father has the right to receive notice of any proceedings to terminate his parental rights involving the child . 23 Pa. C.S. § 5103(b)
Reissued: October 22,2013 replacing January 31, 2012