How to change your name with HMRC

Start with GOV.UK’s name-change service and sign in; create sign-in details there if needed. You can also use the HMRC app. Start from the official HMRC change-of-details page, rather than paying an intermediary to report the change.

Follow the identity checks and information requested by the official service. HMRC updates your Self Assessment details once you have reported the change, but business records and some benefit changes need separate reports, explained below. Keep any confirmation you receive and check that the name displayed in your account is correct. If you also moved home, check your address separately.

Use a device you trust and make sure you can complete your normal HMRC sign-in checks. When we checked on 24 September 2026, the service’s sign-in page offered a Government Gateway user ID or GOV.UK One Login, or the option to create new sign-in details. Have the exact new name and any requested supporting record to hand. Follow the service’s prompts rather than sending an unsolicited identity-document attachment to an address found in a search result.

1. Open the official change-of-details page and follow its name-change link, or open the genuine HMRC app.
2. Sign in, or follow the official process for setting up access.
3. Enter the requested details carefully, checking spelling, spaces and hyphens.
4. Complete any checks HMRC asks for and keep the outcome for your records.
5. If the update does not appear or the service cannot verify you, use HMRC’s own support route.

We do not access your tax account, handle your sign-in code or send this request for you. You do not need to enter your National Insurance number anywhere on this website to read this guide or use the organiser.

No. GOV.UK states that your National Insurance number stays the same for life. A name update changes the personal details associated with records; it is not an application for a new number.

Keep using your existing number when an authorised organisation requests it. If you cannot find it, use the official recovery route linked from GOV.UK. Do not create a second identity record simply because a payslip, letter or online account still displays your previous surname.

Yes. GOV.UK treats a relationship change as a separate report from a name change. Tell HMRC straight away if you marry, form a civil partnership, divorce, separate or stop living with your partner; otherwise you could pay too much tax or get a tax bill at the end of the year.

GOV.UK’s relationship or family changes guidance says you can report online if you are paid a salary or pension through PAYE. You need to sign in and have a National Insurance number; a temporary reference number will not work. If you also send a Self Assessment tax return, your details are updated for both.

If your husband, wife or civil partner has died, GOV.UK says to report the death and any changes to your income after it. Our bereavement guide explains how the Tell Us Once service fits in.

Your employer’s HR or payroll team through its usual secure process. Ask which evidence it needs; request a dated letter or payslip in your new name once its records are updated. Payroll reports contain your name. Updating your employer does not replace telling HMRC yourself. An employer letter can help with DVLA evidence requirements.

HMRC’s payroll guidance tells employers to report your surname and your first full forename, spelt correctly and without nicknames or familiar names. Ask HR which records it will update: payroll, workplace pension administration, staff directories and correspondence can be handled by different systems. Tell payroll if your bank has also changed the name recorded on the receiving account. Check your next payslip and raise a mismatch with the team that produced it.

A payslip or employer letter in your new name can also help elsewhere. GOV.UK’s passport guidance gives a payslip as an example of a document showing you use a new name, and HM Passport Office’s evidence guidance also accepts tax records, such as a letter from the tax authority, issued within the last 12 months.

These are practical checks for keeping records consistent. They do not change how your tax is calculated or replace advice about your tax affairs.

Only send evidence if HMRC has written to you or asked for it. GOV.UK has a separate online form for this, and the evidence must show your date of birth.

Upload an image or PDF of the original document or a certified copy. A certified copy must be stamped with a date and signed by, for example, a government department employee, a solicitor or accountant, or a doctor’s surgery. GOV.UK’s evidence guidance sets out which documents to send:

If you cannot use the online form, post the evidence or a certified copy to HM Revenue and Customs, National Insurance Contributions and Employer Office, BX9 1AN. HMRC says it will review your evidence and contact you, which may take up to 8 weeks.

HMRC says your Self Assessment details are updated once you have reported the name or address change. Running a business can involve additional records, so check the business guidance linked from HMRC’s personal-details page.

GOV.UK’s business changes guidance says to update your details for every tax and scheme you are registered for:

• VAT: tell HMRC about changes within 30 days.
• Corporation Tax: tell Companies House about changes to your Corporation Tax details before you tell HMRC.
• PAYE for employers: update your payroll details as an employer as well as your own record.
• Construction Industry Scheme: tell HMRC separately, as a contractor or subcontractor.

GOV.UK says you can tell HMRC about changes through your business tax account for every service except the Construction Industry Scheme.

If you are self-employed or in a partnership, GOV.UK says you can also write to the address on your most recent HMRC letter or call the Income Tax helpline. A person changing their surname is different from changing a limited company’s registered name, changing a trading name or changing a tax agent’s details. Identify which change you are making before using a form. If you use an accountant, tell them the name and date you are now using so they can help you check the relevant records.

GOV.UK’s Child Benefit changes guidance sends a claimant’s own name change to the same HMRC change-of-details service. Other Child Benefit changes have their own routes. Use the Child Benefit general enquiry service if a child you claim for changes their name by deed poll. If your relationship ends, call or write to HMRC. Only the person claiming Child Benefit can report a change.

Universal Credit has its own change-of-circumstances process, and other benefits may be administered by different offices or devolved services. Do not delay reporting a benefit change while waiting for HMRC or your bank to finish an update. Follow each provider’s evidence instructions and coordinate any payment-detail changes. Our benefits name-change guide covers Universal Credit and other benefit offices.

GOV.UK says HMRC is usually told automatically when you change gender legally by applying for a Gender Recognition Certificate. HMRC then updates its records with your gender and any name change.

According to GOV.UK’s gender change guidance, HMRC also tells DWP, restricts your records so only specialist staff at HMRC and DWP can see them, and moves your tax affairs to its Public Department 1. Tell your employer at the same time, because it must update your payroll records.

If you changed your name but not your legal gender, GOV.UK says you can write to HMRC’s Special Section D about the name change. You can also write to say you do not want your records restricted. Include your National Insurance number. Our trans name change guide covers other records.

Use the free name change organiser to track HMRC, your employer, banks and other selected records. Mark an item complete after confirming it has actually changed. It stores no tax reference or name, and optional progress saving stays in your own browser.

If you still need evidence linking your names, first check the document chooser. A certificate may fit your circumstances. An unenrolled deed poll can be prepared with our free template, or you can choose optional personalised PDF preparation for £14.99. Document preparation does not include notifying HMRC.