48 Places to Change your Name when you get Married!

…Becoming a ‘Mrs’ on paper!

So the big day has come and gone and now you’re wondering what to do with all those spare hours in the day that you previously spent Wedding planning!

Now for the next step, ACTUALLY becoming a ‘MRS’… on paper!

There are MANY places to change your name after getting married… and some that you might not have thought of!

So here I’ve put together a list of all the places to notify (48 to be precise!) when you wish to properly become Mrs (insert your husband’s surname here)! Where possible I’ve also noted how many original copies of your wedding certificate you will need, who will request them and who will accept photocopies.

You can obtain additional wedding certificates from your local Registrar for £11. Just head to your local county council website to do this (e.g. for Northumberland Registry Office click here).

You will need:

The name of church, chapel, register office or licensed venue
The date of wedding
The name of both of the married parties

Or you can order one on directgov.uk here.

*Places that ask for original copies to be sent will usually have a return service for your documents.

**Anywhere that I’ve mentioned that you will need your marriage certificate – if you’ve already been married previously you will also need your ‘decree absolute’ as proof of your divorce).

First things first…

Social Media: Which you can do straight away when waking up in your Bridal suite the morning after your wedding!… (after giving your new husband a good morning kiss of course!… and maybe drinking a Berocca for that hangover!)

Facebook (which allows you to log your maiden name so old friends can still find you!)
Instagram
Twitter
Snapchat (unfortunately you can’t change your original username but you can change your display name)
Whatsapp
YouTube
LinkedIn
Pinterest
Any other apps/platforms that you use… just spend an hour going through your phone one day and making sure you’ve covered all of them!
You may also wish to set up a new email address for your new married name – remember to get all your emails forwarded to your new email address if you do!

The super important places:

Your Employer (Each employer will be totally different in what they request, documents wise, just make sure your name changes on your payslip!)
HMRC (Inland Revenue) for Tax and NI records (this could also let you know whether you’re eligible for ‘Marriage Tax Allowance!’) This is a bit of a fiddly one!
Department of Work & Pensions (if you are entitled to any benefits) – this should be updated when you update HMRC but make sure to double check!
Bank (mortgage and/or savings accounts) (You will need to visit your local branch with Photo ID (Passport or Driving License) and a copy of your Marriage Certificate – remember to request new debit/credit card & chequebooks to be sent out asap in your new name!)
Building Society (mortgage and/or savings accounts) – (same as above).
Credit card companies – (same as above)
Finance/loan companies (e.g. Car)
Local Authority (Council Tax & Electoral Register – important as this can affect your credit score! Sometimes you get a letter through the post asking you to do this… if not, click here).
Police (if you have any criminal actions against you)
HM Land Registry (if you own any land or property)
Pension providers (your employer MAY do this for you for your ‘People’s Pension’ but double check, and make sure you update any private pensions)
Passport Office (You can do this online or get a form at the Post Office and use their check & send service (I recommend this!) (1 x ORIGINAL COPY) REMEMBER you can keep your passport in your own name if you want to save the money, especially if you just recently renewed it, HOWEVER all flights must be booked in your maiden name until your passport is renewed. DON’T FORGET this when booking your honeymoon tickets!
DVLA (You will need a D1 Form ‘Application for a driving licence’ – You can pick these up from the Post Office. You must include your photocard licence and 1 x ORIGINAL copy of your marriage certificate! It’s free to change your name and address but if you want to update your photo at the same time you’ll have to pay).
Motoring organisations (breakdown organisations)
Utility Services (i.e. Gas, Electricity, Water providers)
Telephone provider
Internet provider (if different)
Mobile Phone provider (I don’t know about other networks but I’m with EE and I know they request you to come in-store with your marriage certificate and one form of Photo ID)
Royal Mail (+ Address redirect – If you’ve moved out of your family home to live with your new Hubby).
Insurance Companies (buildings, life, motor, endowments, contents etc.)
Premium Bonds Office
Mail Order Companies
Student Loan
PayPal (For this you will need 2 forms of Photo ID – so you can only do this once you have changed BOTH your drivers license and your passport – and you will need an original copy of your marriage certificate).
Doctor (Local GP Surgery – in person).
EHIC Card (after passport renewal)
Dentist (in person).
Vets (in person).
TV License Office (Online)
School/College/University
Professional institutes and bodies
If either or both of you have a will, this should be reviewed after you are married

Also:

Gym/Country Clubs
Loyalty Card Schemes/Store Cards/Online Accounts (e.g. Boots, Superdrug points cards etc. – you can do these online).
Library
Clubs, Societies & associations
Magazine subscriptions
Shopping sites like eBay/Amazon/Etsy etc. – make sure your name is changed so it matches your new debit/credit cards otherwise orders may bounce.

Plus remember to keep a copy of your wedding certificate for yourself!

Hubby:

Although he is not changing his name, your husband may also want to inform a lot of the same people that he is now married and therefore update his ‘Next of Kin’… for example with places such as:

His workplace (‘Death in Service/Expression of Wish policies)
Any other Insurance Policies
HMRC (Marriage Tax Allowance)
Solicitor (for his Will)
His Local GP Surgery (for medical records).
And most importantly… update his Facebook Relationship Status to MARRIED!!!

In any case, it’s definitely worth passing this list onto him, for him to double check everything at his end too!

It might even be the case that he has to change his name as well… now more than ever husbands are taking their wife’s name…or couples are choosing to double-barrel or even MESH their surnames (which I think is a brilliant break away from tradition… you can really start your own family together and have a name that is all your own.

FYI…

There are no rules to say which way you MUST do it! Some women even choose to keep their maiden name as a middle name.

You can change your name in a very official way… by Deed Poll (UK Deed Poll Office) but this is not necessary, simply changing your name through the list above will officially make you ‘Mrs ____’.

You can also use the service ‘Name Switch’ which apparently takes all the hassle out of this very time-consuming process, prices start around £30.

Destination Weddings:

If you get married abroad (as we did), you can’t actually register a marriage which occurred overseas at a UK Registry Office… however, as long as you followed the correct process of the country you got married in the marriage will be recognised in the UK. Your marriage certificate will need to be translated into English to be accepted by the places listed above (ours already had the translated version on the back of the document so double check as yours may too… if not ask your destination wedding planner to make sure this is arranged for you).

Why my name isn’t fully changed:

If you joined me for ‘Wine & Whine Wednesday’ the other day on my insta stories you will know that I mentioned that my name isn’t actually fully changed STILL even after 2 years of marriage

This is MAINLY because of my Passport. Because you can still use your passport in your maiden name until it expires, mine had 2 years left and I didn’t want to update it early! Then all the Brexit nonsense happened/is still happening and with me being half Portuguese (My mum is from Madeira but my dad is English, they met here so I was born and raised in Northumberland) I wanted to get my Portuguese passport first before I changed anything… which I never got round to so its actually expired now… whoops!

So my passport is still in my maiden name… and as I’ve mentioned some places require 2 forms of ID so not only is my name still not changed on my Passport but I’m still a ‘Miss’ with EE and PayPal too!

It may seem like a long list, but my advice is DON’T PUT IT OFF…(like I did!) it’s exciting at first… getting your name changed everywhere, then all the paperwork can become a bit tedious… but once it’s done that’s it sorted! I can’t even begin to explain how many issues I’ve come across later down the line (with random things that you wouldn’t think would cause a problem… like buying a car for example) that I wouldn’t have encountered if I’d have had this list at the time and gone through and ticked it all off! (And who doesn’t love ticking off a list! – any ‘Hinchers’ out there?).

Luckily for you I’ve created this list for you, so you shouldn’t have the same problems that I did… you’re welcome!

In fact, this list is one of the reasons I wanted to start this blog in the first place… so it’s very exciting to finally be at a point where I’m able to publish it!

I know it’s a bit more serious than my other blog posts usually are… but I hope you found it useful!… and if you’re not yet at the stage of changing your name yet, remember to save this post for when that date comes.

Happy name-changing everyone!

Lots of Love,

Mrs T x