Detailed description
If you or a close family member in the direct line of descent were born abroad, you can apply for the subsequent certification of the birth in the birth register (formerly birth book) at the registry office in Germany.
You are not obliged to have the birth registered retrospectively. Birth certificates from abroad are often recognized in Germany as long as their authenticity is beyond question.
However, the subsequent entry in the birth register can be an advantage because the local registry office can then issue you with a German birth certificate. This means that you no longer have to have the foreign certificate translated and certified for future purposes.