How do I change my name with Bank of Scotland?#
Bank of Scotland's help page gives three routes: its app, a branch, or a letter to its Leeds office. A marriage or civil partnership certificate is enough on its own. An unenrolled deed poll, the ordinary kind, is accepted only with a "valid driving licence or UK/EU passport in the new name", so one of those has to change first. Its pages mention no fee.
- The app. Your name is among the details you can change in the app, and for a new name Bank of Scotland says you need your driving licence or a UK or EU passport. The service is still being rolled out and is not yet on Android; if you cannot use it, write or visit a branch. Most app changes show the next time you log in, and some take up to 48 hours.
- A branch. Take the printed change of name form and your documents to a Bank of Scotland branch.
- Post. Send the form and your documents to Bank of Scotland, The Green Building, Kirkstall Road, Leeds, LS78 1LB.
The form is printed from online banking, not downloaded. Log in, or register, and from the menu at the top of the page choose Your profile, Change your contact details, then Change name. Bank of Scotland asks for your old signature and your new one. Its credit card help says you can also pick up the form in a branch, and if you do not bank online, its page points you to its contact page.
What does Bank of Scotland ask to see?#
One document from its list, or several after a divorce:
| Why your name changed | What Bank of Scotland asks for |
|---|---|
| Marriage or civil partnership | Your marriage certificate or civil partnership registration document |
| A deed poll | An enrolled deed poll, which the list marks "not available in Scotland", or an unenrolled one with a valid driving licence or UK or EU passport in the new name |
| A statutory declaration or adoption | The statutory declaration, or your adoption certificate |
| A change recorded in Scotland | A copy of the entry in the Register of Corrections, or an amended birth certificate issued by the Registrar General in Edinburgh |
| Divorce | Your divorce papers or decree absolute and your marriage certificate, plus your birth certificate, a deed poll on the terms above or, in Scotland, a Register of Corrections entry |
The list does not separate a new surname from a new first name, so the deed poll rule covers both. It is word for word the list on Lloyds Bank's page, which belongs to the same group.
With a deed poll, what comes first?#
The passport or the licence. The deed poll cannot change your name at Bank of Scotland by itself, so it has to open other doors first:
- Sign the deed poll, then tell your employer, HMRC, your council or a bank that accepts a deed poll on its own, such as Royal Bank of Scotland, and keep the first letter or statement in the new name.
- Apply for a new passport or driving licence with the deed poll and that document. HM Passport Office wants one document showing the new name in use, and its guidance lists a bank statement from the last 12 months; DVLA wants one issued in the last 12 months, such as a UK bank statement, or your new UK passport number. Bank of Scotland needs only one of the two.
- When it arrives, change your name at Bank of Scotland: in the app, or with the form, the deed poll and the new passport or licence.
HM Passport Office and DVLA have their own guides.
Two other ways in, if you are in Scotland#
Bank of Scotland's list offers two documents that need no passport or licence beside them:
- A statutory declaration. It is on the list with no condition attached. You declare your change of name true in front of someone authorised to take it, such as a notary public or a justice of the peace (statutory declarations explained).
- A change recorded with National Records of Scotland. If you were born or adopted in Scotland, NRS can record a change of name against your birth entry for £40, by post on its own form. New copies of your birth certificate then show your new name and your previous one; NRS does not send one automatically, so order one once it confirms the change. The list's amended birth certificate from the Registrar General is that kind of certificate. Changing your name in Scotland explains the record and its limits.
Posting your documents#
Bank of Scotland takes originals or certified copies and recommends recorded delivery. Once the change is made it returns any originals; certified copies come back only if you ask. A certified copy of your deed poll keeps the original at home for the passport office, and we certify copies of the deed polls we draft. Bank of Scotland gives no time for a change made by post or in a branch.
One change across Lloyds Banking Group#
Bank of Scotland says that when you contact it, it updates your name on all your Lloyds Banking Group accounts, naming Halifax, Lloyds, MBNA and Lloyds Bank Private Banking. Insurance is the exception: not every policy it sold is managed by Bank of Scotland, and it will not update your name on those, so check the policy for whom to tell, because your cover could be affected.
Its mortgage pages give no separate route for a change of name. Taking someone off a mortgage, or adding someone, is a different request, which starts with a call. Taking a joint holder off a current account is done in a branch, once any overdraft is paid off. Changing your name with Halifax covers the group's other brand, and changing your name with your bank compares the rest.
Questions people ask
Is there a Bank of Scotland change of name form to download?
Not as a download. Log in to online banking on a computer, or register for it, then choose Your profile, Change your contact details and Change name, and print what it produces. Bank of Scotland's credit card help adds that you can pick up a copy of the form in a branch.
Does Bank of Scotland accept a deed poll I made myself?
Only with a valid driving licence or UK or EU passport that already shows the new name. Bank of Scotland does not distinguish a deed you wrote from one you bought: both are unenrolled, and the same condition applies.
How do I change my name at Bank of Scotland after marriage?
Your marriage certificate, or your civil partnership registration document, is enough on its own. Take it to a branch with the printed form, or post the form with the original or a certified copy. The app route asks for your driving licence or a UK or EU passport as well.
Is Bank of Scotland changing to Lloyds like Halifax?
No. Its page on the Halifax brand change says Bank of Scotland "will continue to serve customers in Scotland as a distinct brand", and that the change has no impact on Bank of Scotland accounts. You can still use Bank of Scotland, Halifax and Lloyds branches.
Can I change my title to Mx?
Your title is among the details Bank of Scotland lets you change in its app, and its account opening guide gives Mx as an example title beside Mr, Mrs and Ms. Mx and other gender-neutral titles covers other organisations.
Something else? Ask us, and a person replies by email, normally the same working day.
