Changing Your Legal Name

Overview

Changing your name is very simple. All you need to do is fill out a simple statutory declaration form from the Births, Deaths, and Marriages office, sign in front of the clerk, and pay a fee ($92 a few years ago). After a few days processing time, they will issue you with a Birth Certificate showing your new name. If you do not live near an office, you can sign in front of anyone authorised to take a statutory declaration and post it in.

Unfortunately, the layout of the Birth Certificate leaves much to be desired. Your new name will appear at the bottom of your details under the heading "Name Changes", and your original name remains at the top of the form. This can be very confusing, and people not familiar with name changes may be reluctant to accept that the name at the top is not your current legal name. The certificate also shows the sex designation recorded at your birth.

If you are considering changing your surname, bear in mind that your birth certificate shows your parents' names, and people are likely to be curious as to why your name is different from theirs. I would suggest not changing your surname until after (not the same time as) correcting your sex designation.

External Links

• Births, Deaths, and Marriages - the government department responsible for recording name and sex designation.