What Is a Deed Poll?

A deed poll contains three declarations: that you renounce your former name, that you adopt your new name for all purposes, and that you require everyone to address you by the new name. The wording is settled by long usage and by the government model wording — our documents reproduce it character-for-character. There is no prescribed paper, seal, crest or issuer: what makes it a deed is the correct wording plus proper execution.

Execution. You sign the document in wet ink, once in your old name and once in your new name, in front of two independent adult witnesses who watch you sign and then add their own names, addresses and signatures. From that moment your name change is legally effective. Electronic signatures are not accepted — HM Passport Office and the DVLA require the original ink-signed document. See how to change your name in the UK for the full process.

It proves your new name for every UK organisation: passports, driving licences, HMRC, banks, the NHS, employers and schools. It cannot alter your birth certificate, your marital status, or records of past events, and it does not remove legal obligations attached to your old identity (debts, court orders, licences). It also cannot give you a title such as Dr — and misleading or offensive names may be refused; see name restrictions.

An unenrolled deed poll — the kind you print and sign at home — is fully valid and is what 98–99% of people use. Enrolment at the Royal Courts of Justice (£53.05, two to three weeks) adds a permanent public record in The Gazette, including your old name, new name and address; it adds no extra legal validity. The full comparison is at enrolled vs unenrolled deed polls.