Hi @Sherine
You can generally stay for the 8 weeks after the birth of the child. The period of six weeks before and eight weeks after birth is called ‘Mutterschutz’, meaning a period of time when the health of the mother has to be especially well protected. In this time, it is not expected of mothers to have to leave Germany, even if they overstay their visa.
It is important to make contact with your local immigration office ‘Ausländerbehörde’ before your visa expires. It is not clear if you intend to stay for some time or wish to stay long-term in Germany. If it is just for some time after the birth, the immigration office can issue you with a temporary paper which confirms you are still legal in this time.
If you wish to stay long-term in Germany, you have to make an application for a residence permit as the parent of a German child. As part of the application, you will have to provide a recognition of the paternity of the father (Vaterschaftsanerkennung) and declaration on shared custody (Sorgerechtserklärung). You get these documents at the office called Jugendamt.
If you have those documents which prove you are the parent of a German child, then you are entitled to a residence permit to stay in Germany. However, there is one common difficulty in such cases. The immigration office expects people to come to Germany with the correct visa. For example, if a person comes on a tourist visa and then goes to the immigration office with a job contract and applies for a work permit, they will be told to first leave Germany and apply for a work visa before coming back.
There are some exceptions to this rule about the correct visa. An exception can be made for parents of young children. It is because going through the visa process would mean a separation between parent and child. Especially as you will have a newborn child, such a possibly lengthy separation cannot be seen as reasonable. The legal basis for this rule is paragraph 5, section 2 of the immigration law (Aufenthaltsgesetz):
https://***-gesetze--im--internet-de.translate.goog/aufenthg_2004/__5.html?_x_tr_sl=de&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=wapp
It does not clearly define when it is and is not reasonable to require someone to leave Germany for a visa. The immigration office have some discretion in applying this rule. Here is an article which gives a good overview on this question:
https://***-advogarant-de.translate.goog/rechtsanwalt/gebiete/rechtsanwalt-fuer-internationales-recht/nachholung-visumsverfahren?_x_tr_sl=de&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=wapp
In addition to your immigration status, you also need to clarify healthcare costs and whther you are able to cover them yourself. A useful place to get assistance at this time is from the support services for pregnant women (Schwangerenberatungsstelle). They can help you access financial supports if you require this. Here you can search for one:
https://***-familienplanung-de.translate.goog/beratung/beratungsstelle-finden/?_x_tr_sl=de&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=wapp
Please note the links are in English via online translation.
Best,
Éanna