Name Changes

What’s in a Name? The Government appears to be little in touch with what current law around names is – let alone legislation on Equality and Human Rights, both of which suggest that it cannot, should not be clamping down on current name change practice.

You do not, in theory, need any legal documentation –  deed poll, stat dec, etc – to change name; though current practice is making demands for such documentation increasingly widespread.

If you would like to know more about how the law on naming works in England and Wales, please read on. If you’re in Scotland, our friends at the Scottish Trans Alliance have information about name changes on their website. In addition, a step-by-step guide to free legal name change via Statutory Declaration in Scotland is available at Legal Name Change (Scotland). Links are provided to everything described in the guide, as well as some information about deed poll.

Note: TransActual make every effort to ensure that external links are accurate, up to date and relevant, however we cannot take responsibility for pages maintained by external providers.

An overview

It is a principle of the law in England and Wales that a person’s legal name can be changed simply by using a new name and becoming known by it. There is no legal requirement for a new name to be enrolled or registered. Despite this, many organisations insist that trans and non-binary individuals show proof of their legal name by enrolled deed poll.

This requirement discriminates against trans and non-binary people by creating unnecessary barriers to recognition of their name. 

These pages outline the law on name changing, the impact of these administrative burdens for trans individuals and other minority groups, and suggestions for how this process can be challenged.

Click Name changes for children and young people to read a research paper, provided by a leading law firm, to outline the legal process for changing the names of children and young people.

These pages summarise general legal information relating to the rights of transgender and/or non-binary individuals under the law in England and Wales. It is not intended to give specific legal advice on which you should rely. If you require legal advice, or further details on any matter referred to, please consult an independent legal professional.

TransActual and its contributors are unable to accept any loss, damage or expense incurred as a result of relying on the information provided. While TransActual and its contributors have taken reasonable steps to ensure that the information provided through the website is correct at the time of creation, TransActual and its contributors make no representations, warranties or guarantees, whether express or implied, that the information contained on this website is accurate, complete or up-to-date. TransActual and its contributors also takes no responsibility for the contents of linked websites, and links should not be taken as endorsement of any kind. TransActual and its contributors has no control over the availability of the linked pages.

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