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A deed of change of name is a legal document used in the United Kingdom, Ireland and some other countries with legal systems based on English common law, to record an intended change of name by a person or family. It is one use of a deed poll. [1]
Some organisations, such as government departments issuing passports and driving licences, may not recognise a name change without a deed poll. [1] [2] However, an official document is not a legal requirement for a valid name change in common law. [3]
In England and Wales, such a deed may be registered in the Central Office of the High Court. Deeds so registered are advertised in The London Gazette . A deed of name change on behalf of a minor must be approved by the Senior Master on behalf of the Master of the Rolls who will take into account the child's best interests. A deed poll can also be used to change a child's name, as long as everyone with parental responsibility for the child consents to it [4] and the child does not object to it. [5]
Registration of deeds is regulated by the Enrolment of Deeds (Change of Name) Regulations 1994 (SI 1994/604) [6] (as amended). Compared to some other European countries, for example Germany, a name change in the UK is easy and virtually unrestricted regarding choice.
Registration of a deed of change of name is not a legal requirement in the United Kingdom. A standard legal document, with stock wording, filled in by the person making the deed poll, and signed in presence of a witness, carries sufficient legal authority to be recognised. The witness need not be a solicitor, but can be anyone over the age of 18 independent of the person changing their name.
The procedure, requirements and law surrounding the issue in Northern Ireland are similar to those in England and Wales.
In England, Northern Ireland and Wales, a deed of change of name will not change the name on a birth certificate. For instance, when applying for a passport, both the certificate and the deed would need to be presented as documents of identity. [7] In Northern Ireland, for children between the ages of two and eighteen years, only one change of forenames and one change of surname may be recorded. In Scotland, it is also possible to record a change of name on the original birth register entry at the General Register Office. However, only one change of forename and three changes of surname are permitted. [8]
This restriction does not apply to transgender people who have a Gender Recognition Certificate, as a new entry in the Gender Recognition Register bearing one's new name and acquired gender is established by the General Register Office, and all subsequent birth certificates are issued from that register. [9]
In the Republic of Ireland, a deed poll of change of name (Irish : Athrú Ainm de réir Gníomhais Aonpháirtí) is obtainable from the Central Office of the Four Courts, Dublin at a cost of €30. Like in the UK, there are very few restrictions on name changes. One is that foreign nationals must also obtain a change of name licence from the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service. One of Ireland's most noted name changers was the politician Seán Loftus, who repeatedly added middle names referring to his political views so that they would appear on election ballot papers.
In Hong Kong, a deed poll of change of name needs to be signed in the presence of a Hong Kong solicitor and submitted to one of the Registration of Persons Offices together with the relevant forms for a name change to be approved. There are very few restrictions on name changes, including that the new name cannot exceed six Chinese characters or 60 English characters. Like in the United Kingdom, a deed poll used to change a child's name needs to be signed by everyone with parental responsibility for the child.[ citation needed ]
In re Parrott, Cox v Parrott [1946] Ch 183, [10] Mr Justice Vaisey stated that he did not believe that a deed poll could be used to change a person's Christian name if given in a baptismal ceremony – that could be done only by an act of Parliament. Deeds that change a person's first name can be registered by the applicant in the Enrolment Books of the Senior Courts of England and Wales, which is located within the Royal Courts of Justice on Strand, London, and they are usually endorsed "Notwithstanding the decision of Mr Justice Vaisey in re Parrott, Cox v Parrott, the applicant wishes the enrolment to proceed".
A deed poll is a legal document binding on a single person or several persons acting jointly to express an intention or create an obligation. It is a deed, and not a contract, because it binds only one party.
A notary public of the common law is a public officer constituted by law to serve the public in non-contentious matters usually concerned with general financial transactions, estates, deeds, powers-of-attorney, and foreign and international business. A notary's main functions are to validate the signature of a person ; administer oaths and affirmations; take affidavits and statutory declarations, including from witnesses; authenticate the execution of certain classes of documents; take acknowledgments ; provide notice of foreign drafts; provide exemplifications and notarial copies; and, to perform certain other official acts depending on the jurisdiction. Such transactions are known as notarial acts, or more commonly, notarizations. The term notary public only refers to common-law notaries and should not be confused with civil-law notaries.
Name change is the legal act by a person of adopting a new name different from their current name.
A birth certificate is a vital record that documents the birth of a person. The term "birth certificate" can refer to either the original document certifying the circumstances of the birth or to a certified copy of or representation of the ensuing registration of that birth. Depending on the jurisdiction, a record of birth might or might not contain verification of the event by a healthcare professional such as a midwife or doctor.
An identity document is a document proving a person's identity.
Civil partnership in the United Kingdom is a form of civil union between couples open to both same-sex couples and opposite-sex couples. It was introduced via the Civil Partnership Act 2004 by the Labour government. The Act initially permitted only same-sex couples to form civil partnerships, but the law was expanded to include opposite-sex couples in 2019.
A death certificate is either a legal document issued by a medical practitioner which states when a person died, or a document issued by a government civil registration office, that declares the date, location and cause of a person's death, as entered in an official register of deaths.
The General Register Office for England and Wales (GRO) is the section of the United Kingdom HM Passport Office responsible for the civil registration of births, adoptions, marriages, civil partnerships and deaths in England and Wales and for those same events outside the UK if they involve a UK citizen and qualify to be registered in various miscellaneous registers. With a small number of historic exceptions involving military personnel, it does not deal with records of such events occurring within the land or territorial waters of Scotland, Northern Ireland or the Republic of Ireland; those entities' registration systems have always been separate from England and Wales.
His Majesty's Land Registry is a non-ministerial department of His Majesty's Government, created in 1862 to register the ownership of land and property in England and Wales. It reports to the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government. The registry contains 87% of land in England and Wales as of 2019.
General Register Office or General Registry Office (GRO) is the name given to the civil registry in the United Kingdom, many other Commonwealth nations and Ireland. The GRO is the government agency responsible for the recording of vital records such as births, deaths, and marriages, which may also include adoptions, stillbirths, civil unions, etc., and historically, sometimes included records relating to deeds and other property transactions.
Sir Harry Bevir Vaisey was a British judge, who sat in the Chancery Division of the High Court between 1944 and 1960. An authority on ecclesiastical law, he is remembered for some of his more colourful turns of phrase.
Land registration is any of various systems by which matters concerning ownership, possession, or other rights in land are formally recorded to provide evidence of title, facilitate transactions, and prevent unlawful disposal. The information recorded and the protection provided by land registration varies widely by jurisdiction.
A legal name is the name that identifies a person for legal, administrative and other official purposes. A person's legal birth name generally is the name of the person that was given for the purpose of registration of the birth and which then appears on a birth certificate, but may change subsequently. Most jurisdictions require the use of a legal name for all legal and administrative purposes, and some jurisdictions permit or require a name change to be recorded at marriage. The legal name may need to be used on various government issued documents. The term is also used when an individual changes their name, typically after reaching a certain legal age. A person's legal name typically is the same as their personal name, comprising a given name and a surname. The order varies according to culture and country. There are also country-by-country differences on changes of legal names by marriage. Most countries require by law the registration of a name for newborn children, and some can refuse registration of "undesirable" names.
A marriage certificate is an official statement that two people are married. In most jurisdictions, a marriage certificate is issued by a government official only after the civil registration of the marriage.
The Polish Identity Card is a national identity document issued to Polish citizens. As Poland is a European Union member state it is also serves a European Identity card. Every Polish citizen 18 years of age or older residing permanently in Poland is required to have an identity card issued by the local office of civic affairs. Children as well as Polish citizens living permanently abroad are entitled, but not required, to have one. Identity cards are valid for a period of 10 years.
A voter identification law is a law that requires a person to show some form of identification in order to vote. In some jurisdictions requiring photo IDs, voters who do not have photo ID often must have their identity verified by someone else or sign a Challenged Voter Affidavit in order to receive a ballot to vote.
Transgender rights in Australia have legal protection under federal and state/territory laws, but the requirements for gender recognition vary depending on the jurisdiction. For example, birth certificates, recognised details certificates, and driver licences are regulated by the states and territories, while Medicare and passports are matters for the Commonwealth.
Multiple countries legally recognize non-binary or third gender classifications. These classifications are typically based on a person's gender identity. In some countries, such classifications may only be available to intersex people, born with sex characteristics that "do not fit the typical definitions for male or female bodies."
Gender self-identification or gender self-determination is the concept that a person's legal sex or gender is determined by their gender identity, without medical or judicial requirements.
The British Certificate of Travel (COT) is an international travel document and a type of Home Office travel document issued by the UK Home Office to non-citizen residents of the United Kingdom who are unable to obtain a national passport or other conventional travel documents. Until 17 March 2008, the Certificate of Travel was called a Certificate of Identity (CID). It is usually valid for five years, or if the holder only has temporary permission to stay in the United Kingdom, the validity will be identical to the length of stay permitted.
To change the name of a child aged under 16 (sometimes called a 'minor') you'll need either: the agreement of everyone with parental responsibility [or] a court order