The first year for dads: month by month, plus the paperwork
The first year has three tracks running at once: the baby (what is typical each month), the two of you (sleep, recovery and how you are both coping), and the admin (birth registration, benefits, insurance and leave windows that close at the first birthday). This page links every month and every deadline, checked against the NHS, CDC, GOV.UK and the US Department of Labor.
- UK: register the birth within 42 days in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, or 21 days in Scotland. [GOV.UK · National Records of Scotland]
- UK: claim Child Benefit from 48 hours after registering. It only backdates 3 months. [GOV.UK]
- US: add the baby to your employer health plan: the plan must give you at least 30 days from the birth. [U.S. Department of Labor (EBSA)]
- US: apply for the baby's Social Security number at the hospital. [Social Security Administration]
- Both: UK Paternity Leave ends within 52 weeks of the birth; US FMLA bonding leave must be used within 12 months. [GOV.UK · U.S. Department of Labor]
▸Month by month
Months 1 to 3 are covered week by week in the baby week guides. From month 4 there is one guide per month: what is typical for the baby (development, sleep, feeding), your jobs, her recovery and the relationship, and the money and paperwork due around then.
Covered week by week: baby week 1, baby week 2, baby week 3, baby week 4.
Covered week by week: baby week 5, baby week 6, baby week 7, baby week 8.
Covered week by week: baby week 9, baby week 10, baby week 11, baby week 12.
Cooing and chuckles. Milk only until around 6 months. Next vaccines due. Month 4 guide →
Reaching and rolling. Not solids yet: learn the readiness signs. Month 5 guide →
Solids usually start around now. Learn gagging versus choking. Month 6 guide →
Getting mobile. Move from purees to lumpier textures. Month 7 guide →
Stranger shyness is typical. Be one of the familiar faces. Month 8 guide →
Babbling and sitting. UK: 9 to 12 month review, go together. Month 9 guide →
Pulling up to stand. Plan any first-year leave you have left. Month 10 guide →
Book the 1 year vaccines. Last call for first-year leave. Month 11 guide →
First birthday: 1 year vaccines, cows' milk, leave windows close. Month 12 guide →
▸Tools
▸Your head counts too
The NHS says fathers and partners can also have depression after a baby, and postnatal depression symptoms in mothers can start any time up to a year after the birth. Up to 1 in 5 women and 1 in 10 men develop a mental health problem such as depression or anxiety in pregnancy or the first year after the birth. [NHS · NHS Best Start in Life]
UK: talk to your GP, midwife or health visitor. In England, adults can also refer themselves to NHS talking therapies. PANDAS runs support groups, a text line and a callback service, and Samaritans answer on 116 123. In an emergency call 999. [NHS · PANDAS]
US: talk to her OB or your own doctor. The Postpartum Support International HelpLine is 1-800-944-4773 (call or text; it takes a message and a trained volunteer gets back to you), and PSI runs a support group for dads. For a crisis, call or text 988, any time. In an emergency call 911. [PSI · PSI · 988]
▸Common questions
What does a dad need to do in the first year?
Three things run all year: share the nights and the routine jobs, go to the checkups and vaccine visits, and keep on top of the paperwork. In the UK that means registering the birth (42 days, or 21 in Scotland) and claiming Child Benefit within 3 months. In the US it means adding the baby to your health plan within 30 days.
When do the first-year leave windows close?
UK Paternity Leave must end within 52 weeks of the birth, and Shared Parental Leave must be used in the first year. US FMLA bonding leave must be taken within 12 months of the birth.
Can dads get postnatal depression?
Yes. The NHS says fathers and partners can also have depression after a baby, and NHS Best Start in Life says up to 1 in 10 men develop a mental health problem such as depression or anxiety in pregnancy or the first year. Talk to your GP or doctor.
This is general information for expectant fathers, not clinical guidance. Anything about symptoms, pain, or bleeding goes to your midwife, doctor, or emergency service, not to an app.
Your first year, dated from the birthday.
In the DAD-OS app, enter the birth date once and get this month's guide, the vaccine visits and every paperwork deadline as real dates, with a calendar export.
▸Sources
Every fact on this page was checked against these official pages.
- GOV.UK: Register a birth checked 2026-10-17
- National Records of Scotland: Registering a birth checked 2026-10-17
- GOV.UK: Child Benefit checked 2026-10-17
- GOV.UK: Paternity pay and leave, leave checked 2026-10-17
- GOV.UK: Shared Parental Leave and Pay checked 2026-10-17
- U.S. Department of Labor (EBSA): HIPAA special enrollment checked 2026-10-17
- U.S. Department of Labor: Fact Sheet #28Q, leave for birth and bonding checked 2026-10-17
- Social Security Administration: When will my child get a card checked 2026-10-17
- NHS: Postnatal depression checked 2026-10-17
- NHS Best Start in Life: Your mental health checked 2026-10-17
- NHS: NHS vaccinations and when to have them checked 2026-10-17
- CDC: Recommended vaccines for young children (parent schedule) checked 2026-10-17