Legal vs Home paternity test

Home DNA Paternity Test
In cases where a DNA test is required simply in order to satisfy one's own need to know, it is quicker, easier and cheaper to carry out a home DNA paternity test. This kind of test is carried out using oral swabs that are sent to you by the testing company at your home address or any other address of your choice. In cases where the alleged father resides at a different address or even a different country to the child, many testing companies will send different 'home DNA sampling kits' to different addresses, adding to the accessibility and convenience of the test.

Collecting the DNA sample is very simple and straightforward, all that is required is that the cotton swabs be rubbed along the inside of the mouth and on the tongue in order to collect saliva and cheek cells. The cotton swabs need to be left to dry, before being mailed back to the laboratory accompanied by the relevant consent forms. Results are usually available fairly quickly; many laboratories will make the results available within 5-7 working days and will send the results by e-mail for rapidity and ease of access.

Legal DNA Paternity Test
If, however, the DNA results need to be used as proof of paternity, for example, in legal cases, or to apply for immigration into a country, than a legal DNA paternity test needs to be carried. In essence, a legal paternity DNA test is one in which the identity of the persons taking the test has been verified by an independent third party, and which therefore can guarantee the authenticity of the results. For this reason a legal DNA test is most often carried out at a clinic or a specialised centre, and cannot be carried out at home.

Therefore, in a legal DNA paternity test a third party will check the identity of the persons participating in the test, collect the samples him or herself, and generally assume responsibility to assure that the sampling procedure is not in any way tampered with. This whole procedure is referred to as 'maintaining chain of custody', and is required for the results of the test to be considered valid in a court of law or by government authorities. In addition the results are signed by a notary and sent to the client by mail.

Costs of Testing
Due to the aforementioned procedures, a legal test tends to be more time-consuming and expensive than a home DNA paternity test, as it will involve additional expenses such as clinic fees, notaries fees etc. It is important to note that whilst a legal DNA paternity test is also used for informational purposes, the reverse is not true, and results of a home DNA paternity test cannot be used for legal purposes. It is also important to note that one cannot carry out a home DNA paternity test, and then make it 'legal', and the test will have to be repeated using chain of custody procedures in order for the results to be valid before a court of law. This is because an independent third party must always be present as a witness in order for the results to be recognised officially.