How to use the name change checklist in 5 steps

1. 1

   Choose where you live. Pick your state. Your driver's license and car papers follow it, and so does any state deadline.

2. 2

   Say what you're doing with your name. Take your partner's last name, hyphenate, combine your names, move your last name to your middle name, or keep yours. The list fits your choice.

3. 3

   Add your honeymoon dates. Optional. The passport step waits until you're home, and the checklist tells you which name to book your flights in.

4. 4

   Work down the list. Order certified copies first, then Social Security, then your driver's license. Mark each step sent, waiting or done.

5. 5

   Print it or keep it. Print the checklist, or sign in to keep it and share it with your partner. Nothing is filed for you, and we never ask for a Social Security number.

Why the order matters

Every office wants proof of your marriage, so certified copies of your marriage certificate come first. Social Security comes next: other agencies check your name with it, and your tax return must match it. Your driver's license follows. Some states won't change it until Social Security has updated, and some give you a deadline, so your state's page says which.

Your passport comes after your honeymoon if you're flying. Voter registration, your employer, banks and cards come last.

Do it out of order and you can end up waiting on one office that is waiting on another. The checklist keeps the steps in order for your state, and holds back any step that has to wait.

The honeymoon rule

Book your flights in the name on the passport you'll carry. Until you apply for a new passport, your current one works, so carry your marriage certificate. Once you apply, your current passport goes in with the form, and you can't travel on it until the new one arrives. If you're flying soon after the wedding, change your passport after you're home.

TSA PreCheck and Global Entry have their own rules. Your airline booking must match the name on your PreCheck application exactly, and a name change there can take up to 45 days. The passport guide has both.

Not going abroad? Book in the name on the ID you'll show at the airport. If your new license arrives before you fly, book in the new name.

Certified copies of your marriage certificate

Social Security, the passport office and your license office all want a certified copy, not a photocopy. Some steps send your certificate away, and it comes back weeks later, so a few copies let steps run side by side. The checklist counts how many to order.

Copies come from the county clerk or the state vital records office where you married. The CDC's list links to every state's office, and your state's page says who issues them there and what they cost.

Choosing your name on the marriage license

Some states put your new name on the marriage license application, and it's hard to change once the license is issued. If you're not sure yet, decide before you apply.

On our state pages, these states let you choose your married name on the marriage license application: California, Georgia, Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, North Dakota, Oklahoma and Oregon. Each page says what that state allows.

A new last name made from both of yours, or your last name moved to your middle name, isn't covered by the certificate everywhere. Where it isn't, the usual route is a court order: USA.gov says you file a petition with your local court.

Keeping your name

Nothing to change at Social Security or the DMV. A few things still help:

• Book travel in the name on your ID.
• The IRS suggests giving your employer a new Form W-4 within 10 days of the wedding, as marriage can change the tax you owe. Its Tax Withholding Estimator helps you fill it in. Official page
• Getting married lets you join or change a Marketplace plan within 60 days. Covered through work? Ask your employer what your plan allows. Official page

Using your current name at work

You can keep using your current name at work while you change it legally. Your tax return must match your Social Security record, so change Social Security first. Social Security's page says to tell your employer too, once it's done.

Married in another state, or abroad

Your certified copies come from where you married. Your driver's license and car papers follow the state where you live. Choose both in the checklist: where you married is optional, and blank means the state where you live. If you move during the change, use your new state's rules.

Married abroad? Order certified copies from the office that issued your certificate. The checklist's list of places is US states only, so leave where you married blank. Agencies want certified copies, and some also want a certified English translation if the document isn't in English (Texas says so on its page), so check each office's page.

Not a U.S. citizen

Green-card holders ask USCIS for a corrected card on Form I-90. Naturalized citizens can use Form N-565 for a corrected certificate. This checklist doesn't cover those forms, so USCIS's pages have the final word. Social Security's online route is for U.S. citizens; otherwise you book an appointment at an office.

Changing your name years later

Your marriage certificate still works. If you married more than two years ago, Social Security also wants an ID in your old name (an expired one is fine). Going back to a birth name after a divorce is a different process, and this checklist doesn't cover it.

Name change rules by state

Each page has that state's fee, deadline, documents and certified copies, checked against the official pages. The checklist above works for every state.

• Alabama
• Arkansas
• California
• Colorado
• Connecticut
• Delaware
• District of Columbia
• Georgia
• Hawaii
• Idaho
• Indiana
• Kansas
• Louisiana
• Maine
• Massachusetts
• Michigan
• Mississippi
• Missouri
• Nevada
• New Hampshire
• New Jersey
• New York
• North Carolina
• North Dakota
• Oklahoma
• Oregon
• Pennsylvania
• South Dakota
• Tennessee
• Texas
• Vermont
• Virginia
• Washington
• West Virginia
• Wisconsin

Passport and Social Security guides

Passport name change guideSocial Security name change guide (SS-5)

Frequently asked questions

How long after marriage should you change your name?

There's no single deadline. Social Security and the passport office don't give one on the pages we checked. The one to watch is your state's license office: on our state pages, 13 of 35 states write a deadline down, from 10 days (North Dakota and Oklahoma) to 60 days (Georgia and North Carolina). The rest don't give one on the pages we read. Order your certified copies in the first week or two, then work down the list over one to three months.

What documents do I need to change my name after marriage?

Start with your marriage certificate as a certified copy from the office that issued your license: a photocopy isn't enough. Social Security also wants your driver's license, state ID or U.S. passport and, if you married more than two years ago, an ID in your old name too (an expired one is fine). A passport renewal wants your most recent passport, a certified copy of your marriage certificate and a new passport photo. Your state's license office lists its own documents: pick your state in the checklist to see them.

Is it illegal not to change your name after marriage?

No. Changing your name is your choice, and nothing on the pages we checked makes you. If you keep your name, there's nothing to change at Social Security or the DMV: your records stay as they are, and you book travel in the name on your ID. Name rules are set state by state, so your state's official page has the final word.

In what order should I change my name?

Certified copies of your marriage certificate first, because every office wants one. Then Social Security, because other agencies check your name with it and your tax return must match it. Then your driver's license: 19 of the 35 states we've checked want Social Security updated first, and your state's page says whether yours does. Then your passport, after your honeymoon if you're flying. Then the rest: voter registration, your employer, banks and cards.

Can I travel on my old passport after the wedding?

Yes, until you send it off. Book your flights in the name on the passport you'll carry, and carry your marriage certificate. Once you apply for a new passport, your old one goes in with the form, so you can't travel on it until the new one arrives. That's why the checklist holds the passport step until you're home.

Do I have to change my name after marriage?

No. You can take your partner's last name, hyphenate, combine your names into a new one, move your last name to your middle name, or keep your name. The checklist fits each choice, and you can leave it on "Not sure yet" for now. One thing to know before the wedding: some states put your new name on the marriage license, and it's hard to change once it's issued.

Do I need a court order to combine our names or move my last name to my middle name?

Whether a marriage certificate covers a combined last name, or your last name moved to your middle name, depends on your state. Where it doesn't, the usual route is a court order: USA.gov says you file a petition with your local court. On our state pages, these states let you choose your name on the marriage license: California, Georgia, Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, North Dakota, Oklahoma and Oregon.

General information, not legal advice. Rules change, and the official page has the final word. Checked October 16, 2026.