Parents’ body: Avoid internet paternity tests

PARENTS should avoid doing paternity tests through the internet as many of these laboratories aren’t approved and results may not be reliable for use in court.

This warning comes from the National Federation of Services for Unmarried Parents.

Doctors, taking swabs for such tests, say the number of parents seeking paternity has more than doubled in the past year. It’s estimated that at least 1,000 such tests are requested in Ireland each year. Many tests are used by mothers to ensure maintenance payments from fathers while fathers use the test process to help gain access to their children. Tests can cost from €300 to more than €1,300.

Minister for Children Brian Lenihan yesterday launched a new information leaflet on paternity testing produced by Treoir, the National Federation of Services for Unmarried Parents and their Children.

Treoir chairwoman Eilis Walsh said: “It is really important for, and indeed a basic right of, all children to know who they are and where they come from. This information leaflet outlines the various ways in which paternity can be established and includes information on the DNA testing procedure.”

“A note of caution is advised in contacting agencies through the internet which may not have approval from an appropriate authority and, therefore, any results would not be reliable for court procedures. In addition, unregulated agencies may be willing to undertake paternity testing without a mother’s consent. This could be seen as unethical and illegal,” she added.

Figures show that one-in-three Irish births is outside marriage. The number of lone parent families increased by 8.8% between 1994 and 2003, with 153,900 families headed by one parent.

Children of parents who are not married to each other have no automatic right to have their paternity established, but Ireland has ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child which clearly states that children have a right to a name and an identity.

The leaflet was developed in response to growing queries from parents and is available on www.treoir.ie/publications.

It contains a list of contacts where samples can be taken for approved testing abroad. There are no laboratories testing in Ireland.