Does a deed poll need to be registered?#
No. An unenrolled deed poll is complete once you have signed it in front of your witnesses, and GOV.UK says you can use it straight away as proof of your new name; the only register is enrolment with the High Court, which is optional. The deed is a document you hold, not an entry on a list. Nobody stamps it, nobody approves it, and no government department keeps a copy. The Deed Poll Office at the Royal Courts of Justice deals only with deeds that are being enrolled; it does not issue or record unenrolled ones. The enrolment checker says whether anyone you deal with would want it enrolled.
Websites that offer to "register" a deed poll with an official body are describing something that does not exist.
What is enrolment, and do I need it?#
Enrolment is the one real register, and it is optional. It records a deed with the King's Bench Division of the High Court, on the court's own forms, for a fee of £53.05, and GOV.UK says it can take several months. The change of name, with your address, is published in The Gazette. Adults enrol at 18 or over; a parent or guardian enrols for a child with the agreement of everyone who has parental responsibility or a court order.
Enrolment rarely makes a deed poll more likely to be accepted. HM Passport Office, DVLA, most banks and employers accept unenrolled deed polls every day, because fewer than 1% of changes of name by deed poll were ever enrolled, according to The National Archives. The exceptions we know of are a few banks, which want a passport or driving licence in the new name beside an unenrolled deed poll (banks compared), and Railcards, which ask for an enrolled one. If an organisation has specifically asked you for an enrolled deed poll, that is what it is asking for; ask it to confirm before you spend the money and the months.
How to enrol a deed poll sets out the whole process.
Does a registered deed poll count for more?#
| Unenrolled deed poll | Enrolled deed poll | |
|---|---|---|
| Registered anywhere | No: you keep the original | Yes, with the High Court |
| Made public | No | A notice in The Gazette, with your address |
| Cost | Nothing to write yourself; £18.50 drafted by us | £53.05 court fee |
| How long | Usable the day you sign it | Several months, GOV.UK says |
| Who can make one | Anyone aged 16 or over, or a parent for a child | Adults aged 18 or over, or a parent or guardian for a child |
| Approved by anyone | No: it is valid because of how it was signed | Approved and sealed by the Deed Poll Office |
Both record the same change of name. Enrolment adds a public record; it does not make the change any more valid. Keep the original safe and let certified copies do the travelling.
Enrolled vs unenrolled deed poll sets the two side by side in full.
Looking for a record of someone else's change? How to find a record of a name change explains what exists and where.
