The highest court in Switzerland has declined to recognise a gay couple as the fathers of their children.

The Local reports that the supreme court struck down an earlier ruling by an administrative court in Saint Gallen, which legally recognised the two men as the fathers of their 4-year-old, who was born to a surrogate mother in America.

The two men, who entered into a registered partnership, applied to have their child’s California birth certificate recognised by their local register office.

Thursday’s ruling by the supreme court overrode the lower court’s decision, and said the biological father was the only one who could be recognised as the father.

It said the surrogate mother should be registered in Saint Gallen as the legal mother.

The issue faced is that using a surrogate mother is illegal in Switzerland, and the court did not recognise the California birth certificate, by which the biological mother abandoned her parental responsibility for the child.

A lawyer acting for the couple said the ruling was not in the best interest of the child, and the men expressed their disappointment.

The next step, if the couple wish to appeal the decision, is for them to take their case to the European Court of Human Rights.