The Connecticut Parentage Act: What You Need to Know Before January 1, 2022

The Connecticut Parentage Act goes into effect on January 1, 2022, ensuring that all children — regardless of the circumstances of their birth or the marital status, gender, or sexual orientation of their parents — have equal access to parentage. Here’s what to know about how your family could be impacted.

Printable PDF of this document: What you need to know before January 1, 2022

For more in-depth information about the Connecticut Parentage Act, visit our FAQ page.

When does the Connecticut Parentage Act go into effect?

The Connecticut Parentage Act (CPA) goes into effect January 1, 2022, except for the provisions on de facto parentage, which go into effect on July 1, 2022.

What does the CPA do?

The CPA creates clear and accessible methods for establishing legal parentage of children in Connecticut, which is particularly important for LGBTQ parents who often have children through assisted reproduction.

For children born through assisted reproduction, the CPA ensures that parentage can be established easily after birth. The CPA makes available a simple administrative form, called an Acknowledgment of Parentage, to establish legal parentage for married and unmarried parents. The Acknowledgment of Parentage requires the consent and signatures of the birth parent and non-birth parent, and affirms that both agree they are the legal parents of the child and that the child does not have another parent.[1]

The Acknowledgment of Parentage can be completed in the hospital before or after the birth of the child, or at a later date,[2] and functions as a decree of parentage that is recognized in Connecticut and should be recognized throughout the United States. If completed before the child’s birth, the acknowledgment will not take effect until the child is born.

What if I/we are expecting a child before January 1, 2022?

If you are expecting a child before January 1, 2022, you will still be able to complete an Acknowledgment of Parentage to establish your legal parentage once the new law goes into effect.

Currently in Connecticut, LGBTQ parents can establish parentage through the marital presumption, a surrogacy agreement,[3] or through a co-parent adoption. For information or referrals to lawyers to consult on what option is best for your family, contact GLAD Answers.

What if I/we already have a child or children but haven’t undergone a co-parent adoption? Can we still use an Acknowledgment of Parentage to ensure we are both legally parents?

Yes. If you currently have a child or children, you can still sign an Acknowledgment of Parentage when the law goes into effect in January. While the Acknowledgment of Parentage can be completed at birth, it can also be completed after birth.

What if I/we are already in the process of completing a co-parent adoption?

If you are already in the process of completing a co-parent adoption, consult with your attorney on the new law and what next steps make sense for your family.

Want more information?

Learn more about the Connecticut Parentage Act at GLAD.org/CPA. If you have specific questions, contact GLAD Answers for additional information or lawyer referrals.

Additional resources:

• Frequently Asked Questions about the CPA
• FAQ: Acknowledgement of Parentage in Connecticut
• Webinar: What You Need to Know About the Connecticut Parentage Act

[1] Specifically, the signatories are attesting that the person establishing parentage through the acknowledgment qualifies under law as a parent and that no other person has completed an acknowledgment, has been determined by a court to be the child’s parent, or is an intended parent of the child if the child was conceived through assisted reproduction, and the child does not have a birth certificate identifying as a parent someone other than the signatories to the acknowledgment.

[2] If a person is establishing parentage based on residing with the child and holding out the child as the person’s child for the first two years of the child’s life, the Acknowledgment of Parentage cannot be signed until the child is two.

[3] Parents of a child born through a surrogacy arrangement must use a court adjudication process to establish parentage, not an acknowledgment of parentage.

Updated September 2021. View or print this page as a PDF.