Changing the name on your passport after marriage
You can keep travelling on your current passport after the wedding, or get one in your new name before it. Either way, book your flights in the name on the passport you'll carry.
General information, not legal advice. Rules change, and the official page has the final word. Checked 16 October 2026.
After the wedding
Apply for a passport in your new name, online or by post. You get a new 10-year passport, and the time left on your current one isn't added. Until you send it off you can keep travelling on your current passport: carry your marriage certificate, and check the rules of the country you're visiting.
- Cost: £102 online or £115.50 by post.
- Usually 3 weeks.
- Fast Track (1 week, £192) can be used for a name change; the 1-day Premium service can't.
- Your new passport has a new number: don't book travel with it until you have it.
- Visas in your old passport may stop being valid when you change your name: check with the country that issued them.
What to send
- Your marriage or civil partnership certificate
- Your current passport
Official page · Checked 16 October 2026
Before the wedding: the post-dated passport (PD2)
Up to 3 months before the ceremony you can apply for a passport in your new name, on form PD2 signed by the registrar or minister who'll marry you. It can't be used until the wedding day, and your current passport is cancelled when the new one is issued: no trips abroad in between, and your honeymoon flights must be booked in your new name. Some countries won't issue a visa on a post-dated passport.
- Cost: £115.50, the adult passport fee by post.
- If the wedding is postponed or cancelled, the registrar or minister tells HM Passport Office, and you send the new passport back within 2 weeks.
Form: Passports for newly weds and civil partners (PD2).
Official page · Checked 16 October 2026
Travelling on your old passport
Until you send it off you can keep travelling on your current passport: carry your marriage certificate, and check the rules of the country you're visiting. Once it's with HM Passport Office you can't use it, so send it after your honeymoon if you're flying. If your new passport arrives before you fly, book in the new name.
Flying to the US: ESTA
A new passport, or a new name, needs a new ESTA. Apply on the official ESTA site, run by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
If your new surname isn't your partner's, or a hyphen or a space
A surname made by merging both into one word needs more than your marriage certificate: HM Passport Office asks for a change of name deed (a deed poll). You can make one yourself, using GOV.UK's wording and signed in front of 2 witnesses aged 18 or over, or enrol one at the High Court, which can take several months. Some organisations only accept an enrolled one.
HM Passport Office treats keeping your current surname as a middle name as a change of name, and doesn't accept the marriage certificate alone for it: it asks for a statutory declaration or a deed poll as well.
Official page · Checked 16 October 2026
Official page · Checked 16 October 2026
Married abroad
If your marriage certificate isn't in English or Welsh, check GOV.UK's page on changing your passport for what to send before you post anything.
How to change the name on your UK passport in 4 steps
Order official copies of your marriage certificate. You send your marriage certificate with your passport, and some offices keep it for weeks. A few copies let other steps run side by side.
Choose when to apply. After the wedding, apply online or by post. Or apply up to 3 months before the ceremony on form PD2 for a passport that can't be used until the wedding day.
Send your current passport and your certificate. Online costs £102 and by post £115.50. Usually 3 weeks.
Book travel in the right name. Book in the name on the passport you'll carry. If your new passport arrives before you fly, book in the new name, and remember it has a new number.
Frequently asked questions
- How do I change the name on my passport after marriage?
- Apply for a passport in your new name, online or by post. You get a new 10-year passport, and the time left on your current one isn't added. Until you send it off you can keep travelling on your current passport: carry your marriage certificate, and check the rules of the country you're visiting. You send your marriage certificate with it.
- How much does it cost to change the name on a UK passport?
- £102 online or £115.50 by post for an adult passport. Fast Track (1 week, £192) can be used for a name change; the 1-day Premium service can't.
- How long does it take?
- Usually 3 weeks. Your new passport has a new number, so don't book travel with it until you have it.
- Can I travel on my old passport after the wedding?
- Yes. You can keep travelling on your current passport after the wedding: carry your marriage certificate and check the rules of the country you're visiting. Once you send it off for a new one, you can't use it until the new one arrives.
- Can I get a passport in my married name before the wedding?
- Yes. Up to 3 months before the ceremony you can apply for a passport in your new name, on form PD2 signed by the registrar or minister who'll marry you. It can't be used until the wedding day, and your current passport is cancelled when the new one is issued: no trips abroad in between, and your honeymoon flights must be booked in your new name. Some countries won't issue a visa on a post-dated passport. If the wedding is postponed or cancelled, the registrar or minister tells HM Passport Office, and you send the new passport back within 2 weeks.
- Do I need a new ESTA after changing my passport?
- If you're flying to the US, yes. A new passport, or a new name, needs a new ESTA. Apply through the official ESTA site run by U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and check the fee there.
- Do I need a deed poll to change my name on my passport?
- Not to take your partner's surname, or to double-barrel with a space or a hyphen: your marriage certificate is enough. A surname merged into one word needs a deed poll (£53.05 to enrol one at the High Court), and keeping your current surname as a middle name needs a statutory declaration or a deed poll as well.