For some married couples, the birth of a baby is the happiest day in their life, but there are also couples where the addition of another family member is nothing more than disappointment and a burden. Recently, many women have decided to take a desperate step - to leave their newborn in the maternity hospital. There can be many reasons for this; each woman in labor has her own reasons, so they should not be condemned for such an act. If the decision has already been made and is not subject to challenge, then it would be reasonable to familiarize yourself with the legal aspects of such a procedure as abandoning a child in a maternity hospital.
Is it possible to abandon a child in the maternity hospital?
Is it possible to abandon a child in the maternity hospital? A huge number of women, in particular young women, who have become hostages of life circumstances and do not see any other way out of the current situation, are interested. In fact, according to the law, it is impossible to abandon her offspring; however, the mother can write an application to abandon her newborn; the maternity ward workers always have a claim form. Based on this application, as a consequence, her parental rights will be deprived and the baby will be sent straight from the maternity hospital with the relevant documents to an orphanage.
If the child is abandoned voluntarily in the maternity hospital, then after placing the baby in the home, the mother is given 6 months to change her mind. After this time, the baby will be assigned a guardian or he will be adopted anonymously by another family.
It will be interesting to know that if a mother refuses to pick up her child from the maternity hospital, this is already a reason for depriving her of parental rights. In such a situation, in court, she will be deprived of her rights to the baby, even if she does not write a waiver herself. The father or grandparents can also take the child from the hospital, but if they also refused to visit the maternity hospital, then the newborn can be immediately adopted. Today there are a huge number of childless couples who stand in line for years to accept a new family member and take care of him from the first days of life.
Is it possible to leave a child in the maternity hospital?
Free legal consultation
Is it possible to leave a child in the maternity hospital? According to the law, such a right is not granted. It is believed that the rights of parents are inalienable, even if deprived. But under any circumstances, and this includes the abandonment of children in the maternity hospital, parents still retain the obligation to support a minor or a child up to a different age, depending on the specific circumstances.
In addition, the fact that the mother left the baby in the maternity hospital will not appear on his personal rights. This also includes hereditary ones. In other words, after the death of a parent who has been deprived of parental rights, the child retains the right to inherit. This will not apply to children who were adopted. In this case, the right of inheritance will apply exclusively to the property of the adoptive parents.
Read also: How to obtain guardianship of a disabled person?
The personal rights of a child also include the possibility of receiving a pension in the event of the loss of a breadwinner. In particular, if the parent paying child support to his (non-adopted) child died at this time, then the state will pay a pension to the minor.
We can conclude that it is actually impossible to abandon a child (either the first, second or third) after his birth in the maternity hospital. But the state has developed a special algorithm, according to which it is possible to transfer the rights to upbringing either to other persons (allow adoption) or to the state. But child support payments for maintenance are still assigned to the parent by blood.
Options for abandoning a child
The procedure for abandoning children in the maternity ward differs in different countries; for example, Russia implies two forms of abandonment:
- stay in a medical facility;
- signing consent for adoption.
How exactly to write a statement is up to each woman to decide for herself; of course, in the first case, she will have more time to think carefully about her action; in the second case, when leaving the maternity hospital, the woman may never see her baby again. In court, she will be deprived of parental rights and adoption will be quickly processed if there are anyone willing, and they will be charming. The secrecy of adoption is guaranteed by the Constitution; therefore, a woman will not be able to find out by whom exactly and where the newborn was transported to live.
Registration of voluntary renunciation of paternity
Consequences of abandoning a child in the maternity hospital
The current legislation does not define such a concept as “abandonment of a child in a maternity hospital.”
This is what people say. In the Family Code of the Russian Federation there is such a thing as parental consent to adoption. This is exactly what is meant when it comes to abandoning a newborn. Many people are careless and do not think about the consequences of their decisions. They mistakenly believe that by leaving the baby in the maternity hospital, they will not have to take part in its maintenance. But that's not true.
The legal procedure for abandoning a baby by a mother in a maternity hospital is that the woman must write a written statement. She needs to indicate that she does not intend to take part in the life of the newborn. This document must be certified by the head of the institution.
It should be noted that it is impossible to simply leave a child to the mercy of fate. There must be compelling reasons that confirm that a woman will not actually be able to raise and support a newborn baby.
The mother of the child must have good reasons. Otherwise, such an act is guilty behavior. Until the child is recognized as adopted, the parents’ responsibilities for its maintenance do not cease.
Even if they don't have the right to do so. The delicacy of circumstances often does not give citizens the opportunity to objectively assess the current situation.
In this case, you must definitely contact a specialist. The servant of the law will conduct a thorough analysis of the problem from the point of view of current legislation and morality at the same time. You need to start looking for a qualified lawyer.
Registration of refusal
The procedure for abandoning a child in a maternity hospital begins from the moment the application is submitted. It is written in the name of the head physician of the hospital where the woman gave birth. In the application, the woman must indicate that she does not intend to take the newborn from the medical institution and that she has nothing against his adoption. The application may have the following structure:
- First and last name of the head physician or the name of the medical institution where the woman is staying.
- Your personal information and residential address.
- Document's name.
- The main text, which indicates information about the little citizen’s date of birth, his gender and other characteristics, and also indicates his voluntary refusal.
- The date the document was drawn up and the woman’s signature.
Sometimes, a woman in labor is offered a ready-made form, in which she only needs to enter her data and confirm it with a signature.
To formalize the refusal, the head physician, having received the application, contacts the Guardianship Authorities. Employees of this government agency prepare a package of documents to submit to the court, and deprive the woman of parental rights. A woman can withdraw her application within six months if she has not given consent to the adoption.
It should be noted that the father also has the same rights to the newborn, therefore a statement of the same content must be taken from him. If he refuses to write it, then all responsibilities for the upbringing and financial support of his offspring fall on him. The Guardianship Authorities do not have the right to take a baby from the biological father without good reason and give him up for adoption. If a woman has been divorced for more than 300 days or the name of the father is unknown, then an application for abandonment of the father is not required.
Refusal procedure
The procedure for registering a refusal involves filling out an application by the woman who gave birth to the baby using a special form. The document is drawn up in the name of the head physician of the institution where the birth took place. This statement indicates that the child will remain in the maternity hospital, and the mother is not against the baby being adopted by third parties.
It is permissible to draw up a document in written form without strict norms. There is no sample as such. In the upper right corner you should indicate the addressee's name, Mother's full name and actual address of her residence. The baby's details are also indicated. It is necessary to certify the document with the woman’s personal signature. You can rely on the sample we offer as one of the options for drawing up an application.
Read also: Law on silence 2021 in the Leningrad region: at what hours you can’t make noise
As soon as the head doctor of the institution receives such a document, he reports the situation to the guardianship and guardianship authorities. They prepare the required documentation for the court, where the woman will be deprived of parental rights. Typically, this procedure takes up to six months. Essentially, this is the time that is given to the mother to reconsider the decision she has made, perhaps to cope with the life problems that pushed her to abandon the child. In some cases, this is enough for the mother to change her mind and still take the child home. This is possible within six months from the date of application.
You need to understand that parental rights belong to both the mother and the father. Accordingly, in order to abandon a newborn, a statement from a man is required. If such a statement is not received, then education is transferred to men’s shoulders.
Worth knowing! The father of the child is also considered to be the man who divorced the woman at the time of birth, but provided that less than 300 days have passed since the divorce. In such a situation, statements are required (no sample is needed, it is drawn up in free form) both from the woman and from the ex-spouse. Likewise, if the application is not received, then the upbringing of the child is transferred to the men’s shoulders. But the statistics are disappointing. The history of refusals of sick and even healthy children says that in rare cases a man agrees to raise them independently.
In all other cases, for example, if the woman was not married or more than 300 days have passed since the divorce, then only a statement from the mother is sufficient. If a man is aware that he is a father, he can take on the upbringing of the child, becoming his legal representative, guardian or adoptive parent. The situation is similar with all other relatives of the infant. They also have the right to become the legal representatives of the baby if the mother abandoned him and was deprived of parental rights for any reason. And remember that you always have six months to change your mind and still take your baby home. Read also: Registration of ownership of a garage
Can a minor mother write a refusal?
Marriage allows you to speed up the onset of a person’s legal capacity; people who have officially entered into marriage are considered equal to adult citizens and have the same rights. If a minor mother who is officially married wants to abandon the child, then the law does not prohibit her from doing this; it is enough, as mentioned above, to write a statement.
Sample statement of claim for collection of alimony for a child and mother
A minor mother who is not married is essentially a child herself, whose guardian is her parents. In the maternity hospital, a minor mother is not discharged and the child is not given to her until her relative or guardian comes to pick her up and writes an agreement that he assumes all responsibilities for caring for both the mother in labor and the small child.
The signature of a minor woman will not have any legal force in the application for abandonment of the child. If a girl does not want to become the child’s mother, the official guardian, of course, by consent, can be her parents or the child’s father, who can file a claim to establish paternity and take the child from the maternity hospital.
In general, a minor mother will not have to think about how to write a refusal of a child in a maternity hospital, since, in principle, no one would give her the child alone. If her parents or guardians do not come for her, the child will be taken to the orphanage in any case.
Consequences of a mother abandoning her child
Not all women understand the consequences of abandoning a child in the maternity hospital; they mistakenly assume that their child will be in the baby for years, and they will bring him candy once a year and watch how beautiful he grows. There is a very high demand for small children and they are quickly adopted.
If the mother abandoned the child in the maternity hospital, she is deprived of parental rights through the court with or without her presence. As a result, she will not be able to restore parental rights if the child is adopted. She won't even be able to get temporary custody of him.
A mother’s abandonment of a child in a maternity hospital does not give her the right to refuse financial support for the child. Until he comes of age, she is obliged to pay money to the baby’s account, which will be opened by the Guardianship Authorities. The amount of payments will be decided by the court. The mother can abandon the child at any time while in the maternity hospital. This right is guaranteed to her by law. But she must understand that from the moment she signs the application, she loses her actual family relationship with the newborn. She will not receive social payments and benefits for him, which are due to families with children. At the same time, the child himself retains family ties with his grandparents. Can claim inheritance in order of priority.
Now you know how to abandon a child in the maternity hospital. Of course, it would be better if this knowledge was not useful to you and you always warmly welcomed new family members. But, nevertheless, we live in difficult times and it is better to immediately give the baby into good hands than to condemn him to poverty and orphanhood while his parents are alive.
Popular life hacks for home and garden on the portal https://build-experts.ru, construction tricks and recommendations from experienced foremen.
