Cap. 16 Art. 92Surname of a child conceivedandborn out of wedlock.

(1) If a child conceived and born out of wedlock has been acknowledged by the parent who did not give birth, that child shall assume the surname of any of the parents, or the surname of both parents, in the order they choose.

(2)A child who has not been acknowledged by the parent who did not give birth shall assume the surname of the parent who gave birth.

(3)If the child conceived and born out of wedlock has been acknowledged jointly by both parents on the Act of Birth, the surname by which that child shall be known shall be declared in terms of article 292A.

(4) In any of the cases provided for in sub-articles (1) and (3):

(a) the combination of the parents’ surnames shall not result in a surname which is longer than the combination of four surnames; and

(b) when the surname of any one or both of the parents already has a combination of two or more surnames, the order of the surname of that parent shall be retained, and the child shall not change such order and, or drop any part of that surname. (5)All children conceived and born out of wedlock and acknowledged by the same parents shall be given the same surname, in accordance with the surname given to the first child so acknowledged.

(6)This article shall also apply to any child conceived and born out of wedlock in Malta prior to the coming into force of the Civil Code and Various Other Laws (Amendment) Act, 2020:

Provided that both parents, or one of the parents where the other parent is deceased, or the tutor or curator where both parents are deceased, shall deliver, or cause to be delivered to the Director of the Public Registry, Form WW contained in Part II of the First Schedule to this Code, showing that the child is to assume a new surname in terms of this article:

Provided further that such note may not be made after the lapse of five (5) years after the coming into force of the Civil Code and Various Other Laws (Amendment) Act, 2020:

Provided further that where the child is of age, Form WW shall be delivered to the Director of the Public Registry by that child:

Provided further that upon receipt of such Form, the Director of the Public Registry shall make an annotation of this declaration on those acts of civil status where that child appears.

(7) The provisions of sub-article (6) shall also apply to any child conceived and born out of wedlock in respect of whom Form W had been submitted to the Director of the Public Registry.

(8) The declaration made by means of Form WW shall be irrevocable and shall only have effect on the surname of the child conceived and born out of wedlock.

(9) The spouse and descendants of the person in respect of whom Form WW had been submitted to the Director of the Public Registry, may, by not later than three (3) years following the date of submission of Form WW, also submit to the Director of the Public Registry Form XX contained in Part II of the First Schedule to this Code, declaring that they wish to use the same surname as their spouse’s or ascendant’s surname as duly annotated in the respective acts of civil status by virtue of sub-article (6). Upon receipt of such form the Director of the Public Registry shall make an annotation of this declaration on every act of the civil status of the person in respect of whom Form XX has been submitted:

Provided that where the child is under the age of eighteen (18) the declarations made by means of Form XX shall be made by the parents, or by one of the parents if the other is deceased, or, if both parents are deceased, by their tutor or curator:

Provided further that where Form XX is submitted by the spouse, such declaration shall not affect the surname as indicated in that spouse’s Act of Birth.

(10) The provisions of sub-article (9) shall also apply to any descendant in respect of whom Form X had been submitted, and to the spouse of the descendant who has submitted Form XX.

(11) For the purposes of this article, a declaration of parenthood by a judgment of the competent court shall have the same effect as an acknowledgment.

(12) Notwithstanding the provisions of this article or of any other article in this Code, where the parenthood of a person has been acknowledged, the filiation of a person has been declared by the Court, or the presumption referred to in articles 101 to 112 has been made to apply, any person who in consequence of such acknowledgement, declaration, or the application of the presumption, is to assume a surname other than the surname used before such acknowledgement, filiation, or application of the presumption, or his legitimate representative may by means of an application against the Director of the Public Registry request the competent court to be allowed to continue to use such other surname, and the court, if satisfied that third parties will not be prejudiced thereby, and, where the application has been done on behalf of the minor, that such use shall be in the best interest of the minor, shall accede to such request and order the Director to make an annotation of its decision on the relevant Act of Birth of the person so acknowledged, or whose filiation has been so declared, or in relation to whom the said presumption is to apply.

(13) For the purposes of this article, "surname" shall include the surname of the parent at birth or the surname of the parent at the time of the child’s birth.