Rights of the adoptive child
General information
A judicially approved adoption contract gives rise to the same rights
- between on the one hand the adoptive father and/or adoptive mother and their descendants and
- on the other hand the adoptive child and, where applicable, his or her descendants who are minors at the time of adoption
as the rights established by the parentage of a child (e.g. custody). This means, for instance, that the adoptive child is entitled to maintenance and inheritance from his or her adoptive parents.
Advice
Adopting persons can be individuals or couples, regardless of whether they are heterosexual, same-sex, or have a gender entry of "diverse". Joint adoption by two persons is possible if they are married, in a registered partnership, or living in a domestic partnership.
At the same time, the adoption results in the termination of all legal family law relationships with the biological parents and their relatives. However, in relation to the biological parents and their relatives, the adoption does nothing to change the right of inheritance. An adoptive child therefore inherits twice in accordance with the statutory rules of succession, i.e. both upon the death of his or her biological parents and upon the death of the adoptive parents. The obligation to pay maintenance by the biological parents generally remains unaffected but is subordinated to the maintenance obligation of the adoptive parents.
No family relationship is established with the other relatives of the adoptive parents (e.g. adoptive grandparents). There is therefore no statutory right of inheritance either.
Right of inheritance in the event of the death of the adoptive child
In the event of the death of the adoptive child, the entire inheritance passes to the first line, i.e. the descendants of the adoptive child. If the adoptive child leaves no descendants, however, the adoptive parents and their descendants take precedence over the biological parents and their descendants in the succession. It is only if the adoptive parents and their descendants cannot or do not want to inherit that the biological parents and their descendants have a chance of inheriting.
However, if the adoptive child was adopted by only one parent, the right of inheritance of the other biological parent is preserved. In this case, the child’s estate is divided equally between the adoptive parent and the biological parent.
Law on family names
Adoption does not automatically result in a change of surname. However, the surname of the adoptive child may be re-designated following the adoption. The relevant Standesamt provides guidance on matters concerning family names.
Further links
Legal basis
Allgemeines bürgerliches Gesetzbuch (ABGB)
