Changing Your Child’s Surname: Rules and Consent

A parent or guardian completes a child deed poll on the child’s behalf. Every holder of parental responsibility signs a consent letter. The deed poll is signed in ink in front of two independent witnesses aged 18 or over. Keep the consent letters with the deed poll — HM Passport Office and schools may ask for them.

The £17.99 child deed poll pack generates both documents together, and it is an unenrolled deed. GOV.UK says a child’s deed poll can also be enrolled with the High Court for £53.05. Enrolment needs the agreement of everyone with parental responsibility or a court order, can take several months, and publishes the child’s new name in The Gazette — compare enrolled and unenrolled deed polls before choosing. A child’s passport name change is a new child passport (£66.50 online, GOV.UK fees checked 24 September 2026) plus the original deed and the consent letters.

For a baby born in England or Wales, first names (not the surname) can be added or changed in the birth register within 12 months of registration under section 13 of the Births and Deaths Registration Act 1953. That is a register update, not a deed poll: see whether the birth register itself can show a new name.

A surname signals family identity, and the law treats changing it as a major decision, so every holder of parental responsibility must agree — whatever the contact or maintenance arrangements. Consent disputes after separation are the single most common reason child deed polls fail at schools and at HM Passport Office.

Read parental responsibility and name changes and whether the father has to agree before you pay. If you are unsure who holds parental responsibility, check GOV.UK rather than guessing — an unmarried father not on the birth certificate often does not hold it.

Any deed poll made without everyone’s consent is not valid, and record-holders who discover the dispute will refuse it. The lawful route is a Specific Issue Order on form C100. A court fee applies, and a judge decides on the child’s welfare. Free official guidance is on GOV.UK.

We ask about consent before payment and block the purchase if it cannot be confirmed. That is a skip-us rule, not a sales objection. Do not use an adult deed poll in the child’s name as a workaround — organisations check age and parental responsibility.

Yes, if everyone with parental responsibility agrees. GOV.UK says step-parents do not automatically get parental responsibility, even if they are married to the child’s parent, so the existing holders — usually both parents — must still consent. If one of them refuses, the court route on form C100 applies.

In England and Wales, a step-parent who is married to, or the civil partner of, a parent with parental responsibility can get parental responsibility in two ways under section 4A of the Children Act 1989: an agreement on court form C(PRA2), which both living parents with parental responsibility must sign, or a court order on the step-parent’s application. HMCTS advises everyone involved to get legal advice before making the agreement. Gaining parental responsibility adds the step-parent to the people who must agree; it does not remove the other parent’s consent. Scotland has its own rules.

If you enrol a child’s deed poll with the High Court, GOV.UK asks for a letter from your current partner agreeing to the change if you are in a new relationship or marriage. Some families consider a double-barrelled surname that keeps both family names. If a holder of parental responsibility refuses, see what happens without the other parent’s consent.

Carry evidence that links you to the child. GOV.UK suggests a birth or adoption certificate, and a divorce or marriage certificate if you are a single parent and your family name is different from the child’s. You also need permission from everyone else with parental responsibility, or from a court, before taking the child abroad.

GOV.UK says a letter from the other person with parental responsibility is usually enough to show permission; it should include their contact details and details of the trip. Taking a child abroad without the required permission is child abduction. If a child arrangements order says the child lives with you, you can take them abroad for up to 28 days without that permission, unless a court order says you cannot. Read get permission to take a child abroad.

Border Force says it may ask a few questions if you may appear not to be the child’s parent, for example because you have a different family name. Its leaflet suggests carrying copies of a birth or adoption certificate, and divorce or marriage certificates if you are the parent but have a different surname. If the child’s name has changed by deed poll, keep the deed and the signed consent letters with those documents. GOV.UK also suggests checking the age limit for a child with the embassy of the country you are travelling to.

From 16, yes: a person executes their own adult deed poll and usually needs no parental consent. HM Passport Office guidance says a court order, such as a care order, can still require the consent of everyone with parental responsibility until 18. Child deed polls are for under-16s only. The adult document is £14.99 from us, or free if they copy the government wording themselves and can find two independent witnesses.

Adult route: adult deed poll or the free template. Who can change a name at all: who can change their name.