Acknowleldgement Of Paternity Process

The Acknowledgment of Paternity (AOP) is for parents who are not married to each other. When both the biological father and the mother sign the AOP form, it becomes a legal finding of paternity. The biological father becomes the legal father  and has all the rights and duties of a parent, including his name being placed on the birth certificate.



Questions to ask yourself


1.Have you ever signed an acknowledgement of paternity before?

2.Has a court case been open or finished on the child you intend to sign AOP paperwork on?

3.Was mom married at the time of the birth or 300 days prior? If so are you divorced?

Please call our office if you answered yes to any of these questions. An AOP may not be the action you need to take to change the birth certificate.

If you answered no to all of these, then you can proceed with the AOP process.

To speed up the AOP process you can download and fill out our questionnaire before coming in.


The next step to take in the AOP process is to come to our office between the hours of 8am-3:30pm. We will walk you through the process of signing the AOP. There will be a 35 minute video you will need to watch on the legal findings behind signing the AOP.

All you will need to bring with you is a valid I.D. and the questionnaire (if you chose to fill out ahead of time).

Things to consider


All parties do not have to be present at the same time. You may come in at different times and/or different locations to sign your part of the AOP. The AOP process is not considered finalized until all parties have signed their part and it has been received by the Texas Vital Statistics Unit.

The entire AOP process will take approximately 40 minutes to complete. Please be considerate and come in during the appropriate time manner.

Acknowledgement of Paternity Process
(No Appointment Necessary)
Monday - Friday
8 am - 3:30 pm
940-761-7802

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