The documents that usually do it#
GOV.UK's deed poll guidance says that if you divorce or end your civil partnership, you may be able to go back to your original name by showing record-holders your marriage certificate and decree absolute, or your civil partnership certificate and final order. The two documents together tell the story: the certificate shows the name you had before and the name you took, and the decree or order shows that the marriage or partnership has ended.
The same page adds the caveat that matters: some organisations will not change your name back without a deed poll. GOV.UK does not say which, and in practice it varies by organisation and sometimes by the member of staff. If you are refused, you have two choices, to argue the organisation's own published policy or to make a deed poll, and the second is usually quicker.
What the passport office wants#
HM Passport Office is the most demanding, and its list is a good guide to what the strictest organisation will ask for. GOV.UK says that to return to a previous surname on your passport you send, with your application:
- your birth certificate;
- a statement signed by you saying you have gone back to a previous surname, for example your maiden name, "for all purposes", meaning you will not use your married or civil partnership name at all;
- a document that shows you are using the new name, for example a payslip or a letter from your local council;
- a marriage or civil partnership certificate showing both names, and if you do not have it you can order a copy.
The "for all purposes" statement is the passport office's way of confirming you are not keeping two names in use. Changing your name with HM Passport Office has the application itself.
What a bank wants#
NatWest's published list, typical of the banks, accepts for divorce or dissolution either the decree absolute with your birth certificate, or the final dissolution order with your birth certificate, or the marriage certificate alone if it links your married name to your maiden or former name. For separation without divorce it accepts the marriage certificate together with your birth certificate. So a bank may let you revert before the divorce is final; GOV.UK's guidance only covers the point at which it is.
Before the divorce is final#
Many people want their own name back long before the decree absolute or final order arrives, and the documents route depends on that order. A deed poll does not: you can make one at any point, married, separated or divorced, and it records the change on the day you sign it. Going back to your maiden name after divorce weighs the two routes.
A different name altogether#
The documents route only takes you back to a name that appears on your certificates. If you want a name you have never had, a fresh start rather than a return, that is a deed poll, the same as for anyone else, and the divorce papers are not needed at all.
Your children#
Your children's surnames are a separate question, and a harder one: a child's name can only be changed with the agreement of everyone who has parental responsibility, or with a court order, whatever has happened between the parents. Changing a child's name explains who has to agree, and changing a child's surname without the other parent's consent explains the court route.
The order to do it in#
Start with the organisations that pay you or that you pay by direct debit, so that the bank and the payers agree on your name: the bank, your employer, HMRC and any benefits. Then the passport and driving licence, which are the identity documents everyone else checks. Then the long tail. Who to tell, and in what order lists them.
Copies of the papers#
Organisations that take the documents route want to see them, and some keep a copy. Do not post your only decree absolute or final order: if you have lost it, the court that granted the divorce or dissolution can supply a copy, and GOV.UK's passport guidance says you can order a copy of a marriage or civil partnership certificate if you no longer have yours. Send certified copies where an organisation accepts them and keep the originals at home. If you make a deed poll instead, the same applies to it: certified copies travel, the original stays with you.
If you are keeping your married name#
You do not have to change anything. A married name is your name for as long as you use it, and no organisation can require you to revert after a divorce. If you later decide to change, the route is the one above.
