How to Change Your Name After Marriage

Okay, you have decided to hear your wedding bells ring and take the plunge, finally. It is going to be a whole new life, with the person of your dreams (Gosh- not everyone has a fairy tale life!) and a whole new NAME! That will be the last straw in your wedding hat- name change. Well, yes, my dear brides-to-be, you are going to have to face this. You have to be ready mentally for a name change. If it does not happen, great. If it does, lovely ladies, you are expected to have at least a slight idea of how the procedure is like. Check out, here it goes.

Changing Your Name after Marriage

Get the Documents: To begin with, keep extra copies (certified and authenticated) of the marriage certificate with you to furnish it to the agencies which would be involved in the name change or where you need to notify about the name change. For instance, the passport office or department of motor vehicles.

Man to Man: This is rare but, if you are a man wanting to change his name, then see if your marriage certificate has a space for indication of name change. In case there isn't, you will require court papers to legally change your name after the wedding. For that, you will need to get in touch with an attorney to know about the procedure for changing name in your state. All the women, though need not worry about this part.

Be Socially Secure: Once you get the name changed, ask for or apply for new social security card or cards with the changed name. Contact your local social security department office for the requisite details.

Passport to (Name) Change: After the name change is official an important thing to do is to go to the passport office and get hold of the passport amendment or validation form. Fill in the details and along with the stipulated fees and current passport, marriage certificate or court papers of name change, send it to the passport office.

License to your Name: Just like you went through the passport drills, contact the department of motor vehicles to obtain a fresh driver's license, with the name change. After you contact them, they will furnish you with the information as to what are the documents that would be required. Other than this you should ideally notify these agencies-

• Employer
• Inland Revenue
• Doctor
• Bank
• Building Society (mortgage and/or savings accounts)
• Credit Card and Store Charge-Card Companies
• Finance/Loan Companies
• Premium Bond Office
• Investment Companies
• Companies that you have Shares in
• Pension Company
• Insurance Companies (e.g. motor, medical, life, property, property contents etc)

This was the procedure related to how to change your last name after marriage in USA. Now, if you are in Canada, what you need to do is-

• First, wherever you need to give your identity, give your marriage certificate for changing your identification. Now in Canada, the most common practice is that your maiden name is your legal name.
• In case you wish to change your legal name, which will mean changing of the name on your birth certificate, you would have to fill and submit an election to change surname form. If you want to avail the benefit of a free name change procedure, do it before you finish 90 days from the day you got married.

The issue of getting the name changed after marriage is at the end, a bit of a hassle, but it is a necessary evil. Otherwise, you would have to play the name game all your life!