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The SacramentsEssentials

Are children of an annulled marriage considered illegitimate?

The Sacraments

The short answer

No. As canon lawyer Edward Peters explains, an annulment does nothing to affect the legitimacy of children; that status is settled before any question of annulment arises.

The annulment doesn't change it

In Annulments and the Catholic Church, canon lawyer Edward Peters explains that granting an annulment has no effect on the legitimacy of children.

Already determined

Legitimacy — which in any case has very little canonical significance — is determined before any questions about an annulment are ever raised.