Name Change Glossary

The documents, offices and forms involved in changing your name in the United States — defined plainly, once.

Certified copy

An official copy of a record issued by the office that holds the original, bearing that office's raised seal, stamp or security paper. It is not a photocopy and not a scan. Agencies updating your name will accept a certified copy and refuse a photocopy, which is the single most common reason people are turned away at a counter. Order at least three: several agencies keep the copy they are given.

Marriage certificate

The record proving a marriage took place, issued by the county office that recorded the marriage license — usually the county clerk, though the office is named differently in some states. For a name change after marriage it is the legal document itself: no court filing is required, because the certificate is what every agency accepts as proof.

Marriage license vs marriage certificate

The license is the permission to marry, issued before the wedding. The certificate is the record that the marriage happened, issued after. Only the certificate changes your name.

Divorce decree

The court's final order ending a marriage. Where it restores a former name, the decree is the document agencies accept, and certified copies come from the court that issued it — not from the county clerk who handled the marriage. If a decree does not mention the name, a separate court-order name change is needed.

Court-order name change

The route taken when there is no marriage or divorce behind the change. A petition is filed with the civil or district court, a fee is paid, and in most states a judge signs an order at a short hearing. Some states additionally require a background check, a published notice, or both. This is the only one of the three routes that involves a court.

County clerk

The county office that holds marriage records and issues certified copies of them. The title varies by state — Probate Court in Ohio and Georgia, Register of Deeds in North Carolina, Recorder of Deeds in Missouri, Circuit Court Clerk in Virginia and Maryland, County Auditor in Washington, municipal Local Registrar in New Jersey. Going to the wrong office is a wasted trip, which is why these pages name the correct office per county.

District clerk / clerk of court

The court office that holds case files, including name-change orders and divorce decrees, and issues certified copies of them. Separate from the county clerk in most counties. In smaller counties the two roles are sometimes combined in one elected office.

Form SS-5

The Social Security Administration's Application for a Social Security Card, used to change the name on your Social Security record. There is no fee — the form itself opens with “Applying for a Social Security Card is free!” Update Social Security before your driver’s license: licensing agencies check the SSA record.

Form DS-5504

The US passport form used when it has been less than one year since both your passport was issued and your name was legally changed. There is no fee for routine service. You submit your most recent passport, an original or certified name-change document issued within that year, and one photo.

Form DS-11

The US passport form used when more than a year has passed since your passport was issued or your name changed, or where you have no legal documentation of the change. Applied for in person, with the age-based fee.

REAL ID

The federal standard for state-issued licenses and IDs. When your name changes, a REAL ID application requires documents linking your birth name to your current one — which in practice means bringing the certified marriage certificate, decree or court order to the licensing office, not just the new Social Security card.

Fee and form details above are taken from the issuing agencies: SSA Form SS-5 · US Department of State — change or correct a passport · how we verify this