• The recognition must be publicly certified.
• The acknowledgement of maternity can be submitted to any city office, youth welfare office or notary public.
• Recognition and consent are not subject to receipt and do not require receipt by a particular registry office or other authority in order to be effective.
• Recognition of maternity is only applicable in cases where the parentage of a child born to parents who are not married to each other is governed by the law of the country in which the child has its habitual residence or, alternatively, by the mother's home country law.

If the foreign law of the mother's or father's home country requires a maternity acknowledgment, this will be publicly authenticated. The same rules apply as for paternity recognition.

• Recognition under condition or time provision is ineffective.
• The recognition also requires the child's consent if the mother is not entitled to parental care in this respect.
• A person with limited legal capacity can only acknowledge himself or herself, but requires the consent of the legal representative. If the legal representative is a guardian, the approval of the guardianship court is required.
• For an incapable child, or a child who is not yet 14 years old, only the legal representative can consent to the recognition.
• Acknowledgements or consents cannot be declared by an authorized person.