Is It Worth It to Change Your Name After You Get Married?

You have planned your perfect day, got all of your RVSPs, and are getting ready to walk down the aisle to profess your love to your special someone. During the past several weeks, it seems like everything has been hectic, with all the last minute confirmations, verifications, and preparation. Now that the big day is here, did you remember to talk about whether you are going to change your name to match your new spouse’s last name or keep your existing one?

Taking the last name of your spouse is entirely up to you. It is something most couples will discuss around the time they are getting their marriage license. There can be pros and cons of changing your last name. One of the biggest cons, is, of course, the time and money required to change everything to your new name. However, when you get married, it is one of the easiest times to change your name on your birth certificate and other documents. Plus, you do not need a court order or an attorney to change your name.

How Much Will It Cost to Change Your Name?

In order to make an informed decision, you need to know how much to budget for your name changes.

1. Marriage License – You will need several certified copies of your marriage license to supply to other agencies to enable the name change process. Marriage license fees typically cost around $100, plus the costs for each certified copy.
2. Birth Certificate – You will need to submit a certified copy of your marriage license with the application to your county’s register’s office. There can be a “processing fee” charged to update the name, and it will vary, so budget around $100, to be safe.
3. Driver’s License – You will need to make a trip to the DMV and bring along a certified copy of your marriage license. The costs vary but are never more than $50.
4. Social Security Card – All you need to do is fill out an application and provide the proper documentation to get a new social security card. If you do it directly through the Social Security Administration, there is no cost.
5. Passport – Name changes can cost just as much as renewing or getting a passport, so you should budget $150. The only exception is if it has been issued within the last year; then there is no cost to get a new passport issued unless you want to pay for expedited processing.
   

The following items typically do not have any fees for changing your name, although you do have to budget time to do these so that everything is in order, to avoid problems down the road.

• Bank/Credit Union Accounts 
• Credit Cards
• Payroll
• Insurance
• Mortgage/Lease
• Utilities
• Auto-Pay Accounts
• Social Media Accounts
• Email Addresses
• Rewards Programs
  

As you can see, changing your name is an involved and time-consuming process. If you do decide to change your name, after everything has been updated to your married name, it is a good idea to get a new copy of your birth certificate, which you can order online from FastBirthCertificates.com, or leave us a message at (415) 549-8691 if you have further questions.