Glossary of name change terms

A certificate attached to a UK document by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office confirming that the signature, seal or stamp on it is genuine, so that the document is accepted in the countries that signed the 1961 Hague Convention. A paper apostille costs £45 and an e-Apostille £35.

The witness's part of a deed: watching you sign, then signing themselves and adding their name, address and occupation to confirm that they saw it. An attested signature is what turns a signed sheet of paper into a deed.

Registering a birth again to record new facts, for example to add a father's details or after the parents marry. It is separate from a change of name, which a birth certificate in England and Wales does not record.

A copy of your deed poll certified as a true copy of the original. Many organisations accept one in place of the original, and keep it, which is why people order several: the original stays at home while the copies do the travelling. HM Passport Office and DVLA ask for the original deed itself.

Another name for a deed poll used to change a name. The two terms mean the same document.

The Act that governs decisions about children in England and Wales, including who has parental responsibility and the orders a court can make about a child's upbringing, such as a specific issue order about a change of surname.

A person of good standing who confirms your identity on a passport application by signing the form and a photo. GOV.UK says you do not need a countersignature just because you are changing your name, only if your appearance has changed so much that you cannot be recognised from your existing passport.

A short letter sent with a copy of your deed poll asking an organisation to update its records, stating your old name, your new name and any account or reference numbers it holds for you.

A written promise or declaration that the law treats as binding because of the way it is signed rather than because anything was paid for it. For a person to make a deed, the document must make clear it is a deed, and they must sign it in the presence of a witness who also signs. Those rules come from section 1 of the Law of Property (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1989.

A deed made by one person alone, rather than an agreement between two. For a change of name it records that you have given up your old name and adopted a new one for all purposes. The word "poll" is old: a deed between parties was cut with a wavy edge so the halves could be matched, and a deed made by one person was cut straight, or "polled".

Read more: What is a deed poll?

The office within the King's Bench Division of the High Court, in Room E15 at the Royal Courts of Justice, that processes enrolments. It deals only with deed polls being enrolled; it does not issue, approve or hold unenrolled ones.

The country a person treats as their permanent home in law. GOV.UK says someone who is a permanent resident overseas cannot change their name by deed poll, so where you live matters more than where you were born.

A surname made of two joined names, with or without a hyphen. After a marriage or civil partnership the certificate is enough to take a double-barrelled name for a passport; in other cases a deed poll records the change.

The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency, which issues driving licences and registers vehicles in Great Britain. Changing a name on a licence is free and done by post on form D1; the V5C log book must be updated separately. Northern Ireland has its own agency.

A deed poll recorded with the King's Bench Division of the High Court, which puts the change of name on public record. It costs £53.05, can take several months, and the notice of your new name and your address is published in The Gazette. Enrolment is optional and does not make a deed poll more likely to be accepted.

Read more: Enrolled and unenrolled deed polls: the difference

A digital record of a person's UK immigration status, viewed through a UK Visas and Immigration account. Someone with an eVisa updates the name on their account rather than applying for a new physical document.

Signing a deed in the way the law requires so that it takes effect. For an individual that means signing it in the presence of a witness who attests the signature. A deed poll is executed the moment you and your witnesses have signed and dated it, and your name changes on that date.

Read more: How to sign and witness your deed poll

Your forenames are your first and middle names; your surname is your family name. A deed poll can change any part of either, add or remove names or hyphens, or change the spelling.

The DVLA application form for a car or motorcycle licence, used to change the name on one. It is available from most Post Offices and is sent to DVLA with your current licence and the original document that confirms your new name.

A certificate issued under the Gender Recognition Act 2004 that gives legal recognition of a person's acquired gender. It is not needed to change your name: a deed poll does that on its own, whatever your gender.

The office that holds the register of births, deaths, marriages and civil partnerships for England and Wales. A birth certificate is a record of the facts at the time of registration, so a change of name by deed poll does not alter it; only limited corrections and re-registrations are possible.

The principle, from the 1985 House of Lords case Gillick v West Norfolk and Wisbech Health Authority, that a child under 16 who has enough understanding and intelligence may make some decisions for themselves. It is why a child's own wishes carry weight in decisions about their name even before they can make a deed poll at 16.

The General Register Office for Northern Ireland, which keeps the registers there and can record a change of name against a Northern Ireland birth entry.

The government office that issues British passports. It asks for the original deed poll, not a copy, and one document showing the new name in use.

The process of having a document certified for use abroad, usually by getting an apostille. Countries outside the Hague Convention may also require the document to be stamped by their own embassy or consulate.

The court form used to enrol an adult's deed poll with the High Court. It is signed in front of two witnesses, and is sent with forms LOC021 (a statutory declaration) and LOC027 (an exhibit cover sheet), which are signed in front of a solicitor or another authorised witness.

A child in the care of a local authority, whether under a care order or by agreement with the parents. Where there is a care order the local authority shares parental responsibility, and the child's surname cannot be changed without the written consent of everyone with parental responsibility or the court's leave.

The surname a person had before marriage. GOV.UK says you may be able to go back to it after a divorce by showing your marriage certificate and decree absolute (or civil partnership certificate and final order), though some organisations will not change the name back without a deed poll.

A single name, used as both forename and surname. Some organisations' systems cannot record one; HM Passport Office's guidance on names covers how it treats a single name.

A title used instead of Mr, Mrs or Ms by people who prefer one that does not state a gender. Like any title it is not part of your legal name, so it is chosen rather than changed by deed poll.

The list of names a person has used, with the dates and the documents behind each change. HM Passport Office may check the history of both an old and a new name when it issues a passport in a new name.

The body that keeps the registers for Scotland. Someone whose birth was registered in Scotland can apply to have a change of name recorded against the birth entry, for a fee, so that new certificates show both the old and the new name.

The process by which an adult becomes a British citizen. A certificate of naturalisation is one of the identity documents accepted when enrolling a deed poll, and the name on it is the name your first British passport will show unless you also provide evidence of a later change.

A qualified lawyer whose signature and seal are recognised abroad. In England and Wales notaries are appointed and regulated by the Faculty Office of the Archbishop of Canterbury. You do not need a notary to make or witness a deed poll in the UK; a notary comes in when a document has to be used in another country.

A declaration or letter confirming that two different names on two documents both refer to you. Organisations sometimes ask for one when a name appears in different forms and no single document links them.

All the rights, duties, powers and responsibilities a parent has in law for a child, defined in section 3 of the Children Act 1989. A mother has it automatically; a father has it if he was married to the mother, is named on the birth certificate, or obtains it by agreement or court order. Everyone who holds it must agree before a child's name is changed by deed poll.

A passport issued in a new married name up to three months before the wedding or civil partnership ceremony. It cannot be used until after the ceremony, and some countries will not issue visas for one.

A court order that stops a parent taking a particular step without the court's consent. One is sometimes made to stop a child's surname being changed.

The check an employer must make of a person's documents before employing them. When the documents show different names, the employer needs the document that links them, such as a deed poll or marriage certificate.

The court building on the Strand in London that houses the High Court, including the Deed Poll Office where enrolments are processed.

The family of court orders under section 8 of the Children Act 1989: child arrangements orders, specific issue orders and prohibited steps orders. Two of them can decide a child's name.

A court order under the Children Act 1989 that appoints someone other than a parent to care for a child permanently. A special guardian has parental responsibility and may exercise it to the exclusion of the parents, but changing the child's surname still needs everyone with parental responsibility to agree, or the court's permission.

A court order deciding one particular question about a child's upbringing, such as whether a surname may be changed when the parents disagree. GOV.UK says you must try to reach agreement first; the application is made on form C100 and the court fee is £263.

A written statement that you declare to be true in front of a solicitor, a commissioner for oaths or another person authorised to take declarations, under the Statutory Declarations Act 1835. It is used as evidence of a change of name in some situations, for example in Scotland or where an organisation asks for a sworn statement of your name history.

The UK's official public record. Every enrolled deed poll is published in it as a change of name notice, and has been since 1914. Unenrolled deed polls are never published anywhere.

Mr, Mrs, Ms, Mx, Dr and so on. A title is not part of your legal name, and GOV.UK says a deed poll cannot change one. You simply tell each organisation which title to use; DVLA changes a title on a driving licence by the same process as a name, with evidence needed only for a hereditary title.

A deed poll that has not been recorded with the High Court. It is the usual kind: GOV.UK says anyone aged 16 or over can make one and use it straight away as proof of a new name. Nothing is filed anywhere, so the signed document itself is the evidence.

Read more: Enrolled and unenrolled deed polls: the difference

The old common law idea that a name is simply what you are known by, so you may adopt a new one by using it, provided you do not do so to deceive. A deed poll exists to prove such a change to organisations that need written evidence.

The vehicle registration certificate that names the registered keeper. GOV.UK says you must update it when you change your name, and it is done separately from the driving licence.

An adult who watches you sign your deed poll and signs it to say so. GOV.UK's wording for a home-made deed names two witnesses aged 18 or over, and notes that some organisations will not accept a witness who lives at your address or is a close relative. Our deeds have space for two, and we recommend using both.

Read more: How to sign and witness your deed poll