First names

Between 1803 and 1993, parents in France had to choose a baby name from a long list of acceptable prénoms laid out by authorities. The list was scrapped under President François Mitterand and French parents were given the liberty to be a little bit more inventive.

If you want to see if your name would have been ‘French enough’ under the previous law, you can test out the website ViteMonPrénom, HERE. Be aware – the ‘alternatives’ that it offers are not entirely accurate (it was set up as a joke response to the proposal from far-right pundit Eric Zemmour that all parents be required to choose a ‘French’ name for their baby).

As the law currently stands, French courts can still ban names if they decide it is against the child’s best interests, but on the assumption you’re not about to name your child after Captain Underpants, you’re pretty much given free rein.

READ ALSO The baby names banned by the French courts

Giving your child an anglophone name is not a problem – but there are some names popular in the English-speaking world that we would strongly advise against, given their unfortunate meanings in French.

READ ALSO The 9 names that mean something very different in French

Surnames

The first child of a couple may have the surname of either parent; or the surname of both parents, in either order, separated by a space (not a hyphen)

If one of the parents already has a composite double surname, such as Dupond Durand, only one of these names may be used.

So for example if the father’s surname is Dupond Durand and the mother’s surname is Dupuis, the child may bear the name Dupond Dupuis, Durand Dupuis, Dupuis Dupond or Dupuis Durand – but not Dupont Durand Dupuis. 

A further complication: a hyphenated name from before 2005, or a hyphenated name following a simple adoption cannot be split.

Therefore, if the father’s name is Ledru-Rollin and the mother’s name is Dupont, the child may bear the name Ledru-Rollin Dupont or Dupont Ledru-Rollin. Or Ledru-Rollin. Or Dupont.

Similarly, the hyphenated or compound surname of a parent who is not a French citizen cannot be split.

These rules apply whether the parents are married or not.

For additional children

If both parents appear on the birth certificate of their first child, the choice of surname for that child applies to any subsequent children of that couple. That means you can’t give one child their father’s surname, then the next one their mother’s.

Registering a birth

Registering a birth is mandatory for any child born in France. The declaration must be made within five days, starting from the day after the birth. If the last day of the registration period falls on a weekend or public holiday, this period is extended to the next working day.

The birth declaration is usually made at the town hall of the place of birth – though some hospitals have a duty registrar who can do this.

You will need to provide: 

• a medical certificate showing the delivery date – this is supplied by the doctor, midwife, or hospital;
• Proof of residence that is less than three months old (eg a utility bill)
• ID for both parents;
• Your livret famille if you have one.

A female couple who have a child using IVF will also need a joint recognition document, for which they will have to consult a notaire, usually before undertaking the fertility procedure.

Joint recognition after the fact is possible in some cases, until August 3, 2024.

If you miss the five-day deadline, you need a judicial declaration of birth, for which you will need to consult a lawyer.