What can you do online, and what not?#
You can do most of a name change online, but not all of it. You can order a deed poll online, apply for a new passport online, and tell HMRC, the electoral register and many banks online. Two steps stay on paper: the deed poll must be printed, signed in ink in both names and witnessed by someone in the room with you, and DVLA changes the name on a driving licence only by post, on form D1. Bodies that check identity closely, the passport office among them, want your original documents in the post rather than an upload.
Can I change my name by deed poll online?#
You can get the deed poll online, and HM Passport Office is relaxed about that. The guidance its staff work from says an unenrolled deed poll has no set format or wording and "can be done online", and because customers can get one online, staff must not make inappropriate comments about the deed or the company that issued it.
The signing is the part that cannot move online. The same guidance says staff must accept the deed only if, among other things, "all signatures are a wet signature", and must ask for a new one if not. Section 1 of the Law of Property (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1989 requires the deed to be signed in the presence of a witness who attests the signature; a video call does not count. So order online, then sign the printed deed in ink, in both names, with your witness watching, and date it that day. Your name changes when you sign.
We work that way. You order online, a paralegal drafts and checks the deed, and it is printed and posted the same working day for £18.50, ready to sign. How our service works.
Enrolling a deed poll with the High Court starts online too, but ends on paper. GOV.UK says HM Courts and Tribunals Service emails you forms to print: one signed in front of two witnesses, the others before a solicitor or another authorised witness, and all posted back. It costs £53.05, can take several months, and is optional.
Which organisations take a new name online?#
| Organisation | Online? | How, in its own words or GOV.UK's |
|---|---|---|
| HMRC | Yes | An online form after signing in, or the HMRC app |
| Electoral register | Yes | Register again on GOV.UK; it usually takes about 5 minutes |
| HM Passport Office | The application, yes | Apply online for £102, then send the original deed poll or certificate |
| DVLA, driving licence | No | Form D1 from a Post Office, posted with your licence and original documents; free |
| DVLA, log book (V5C) | No | The whole log book by post, with a letter and proof such as a deed poll |
| Your GP | Not in the NHS App | The NHS App's help says to contact your GP surgery |
| NatWest | Yes | In the app, with an eForm and an emailed image of your document |
| Monzo | Yes | A chat in the app |
| Lloyds Bank | Partly | The iPhone app, with a driving licence or passport in the new name; otherwise a branch or post |
| HSBC and Santander | No | A branch visit with your documents |
| National Records of Scotland | No | By post only, if you were born or adopted in Scotland |
| GRONI, Northern Ireland | No | A form signed before a justice of the peace or solicitor, sent or brought in |
Most other organisations, from councils to energy and phone companies, take a new name through an online account or form. Every government body to tell and banks compared go through them one by one.
Can I change my name on my passport online?#
You apply online for a new passport in your new name; a name cannot be changed on the passport you have. GOV.UK says it costs £102 online or £115.50 on a paper form. The evidence still goes on paper: HM Passport Office's guidance says evidence of a change of name must be an original document, so you send the original deed poll or certificate, plus one document showing you already use the new name. If you are in a hurry, GOV.UK says the 1 day Premium service only renews a passport, while the 1 week Fast Track covers a change of name.
Your passport application
Apply direct: on GOV.UK or at a Post Office
We make deed polls. We do not fill in, check or send passport applications, and you do not need anyone to. Apply direct with HM Passport Office, or through the Post Office, and do not use any other website or company.
Online, on GOV.UK
Apply, pay and upload your documents with HM Passport Office: £102 for an adult, £66.50 for a child. The 1 week Fast Track is applied for, paid for and booked there too, with the appointment at a passport office.
Change the name on your passport, GOV.UKIn a branch, at the Post Office
Selected branches offer Check & Send, for an extra fee: staff check your application and send it to HM Passport Office for you. Digital Check & Send takes your photo and applies online; with Paper Check & Send you use the paper form, £115.50 for an adult.
Passport Check & Send, Post OfficeNot through any other website, company or agent. Services that offer to fill in your form, check it or find you a Fast Track appointment charge extra for what GOV.UK and the Post Office do themselves, and HM Passport Office has warned about copycat websites that look official and charge a premium. If a web address does not end in gov.uk or postoffice.co.uk, do not give it your passport details or pay it.
Can I change my name on my driving licence online?#
No. DVLA's online service changes an address, and GOV.UK says that if you want to change your name at the same time you have to apply by post. Send form D1, from most Post Offices, with your licence and the original documents. With a deed poll, add one document in the new name, or your UK passport number. It is free, and you can still drive while you wait. The DVLA guide has the detail.
Can I change my name after marriage online?#
Mostly. A husband's, wife's or civil partner's surname needs no deed poll: GOV.UK's instruction is to send each record-holder a copy of the certificate, and many accept it through an online account or a photo in an app. HMRC takes the change online. The passport and driving licence still want the certificate itself, posted. Do I need a deed poll after getting married?
The order that saves time#
Tell the online organisations first, HMRC and your bank especially, because with a deed poll the passport office and DVLA each ask for a document that already shows the new name. Then send the passport application, then DVLA, since each wants the original deed and posts it back. With an unenrolled deed poll, leave Lloyds or Santander until the passport or licence arrives, because they want one of those in the new name too.
Questions people ask
Is a deed poll bought online legal?
Yes. A deed poll is valid because of how it is signed, not where it was bought. HM Passport Office's guidance says an unenrolled deed poll can be done online, tells staff to accept one that is signed in both names, witnessed, signed in ink and dated, and tells them not to make inappropriate comments about the company that issued it.
Can I sign my deed poll electronically?
No. HM Passport Office tells its staff to ask for a new deed if any signature is not a wet signature, and the law requires your witness to be present when you sign. Can a deed poll be signed digitally? explains both.
Can I change my child's name online?
You can order a child deed poll online, but it is still signed on paper, and it is valid only if everyone with parental responsibility for the child agrees, or a court orders the change. Changing a child's name.
Is there a free way to change my name online?
GOV.UK publishes the wording for a deed poll you write yourself, at no cost, but you print it and sign it on paper like any other. Telling HMRC, the electoral register and DVLA is free; a new passport is not. Is there a free deed poll?
Something else? Ask us, and a person replies by email, normally the same working day.
