Name change checklist after marriage or divorce: what comes first?
A free checklist in the order the offices require, with each office's own page. Nothing you tick is sent.
Start with what changed your name
Pick marriage, divorce or court order, tick what still has your old name on it, and your steps line up here in order.
Your name change checklist
Solid line: required first. An official page says so.
Dashed line: usually done first. A habit, not a rule.
Documents to gather
Your situation
Some states call a divorce a dissolution of marriage. A court order means the signed order that changed your name, usually after a petition.
A certified copy comes from the office that issued the document and carries its certification. Social Security says it can't accept photocopies or notarized copies.
Look for a line that restores your former name, with that name written out. Passport rules accept a decree that specifically declares the return to a former name.
Tick everything that still shows your old name. Each tick adds one step; you can mark any step not for you later.
Social Security is always on your list. Tick the rest.
Government
Everyday
Your state changes one step on this list: the license or ID, plus the car title where its page covers it. The other steps read the same in every state.
Choose your state to see its office's own rule, or pick I'd rather not say.
The state rows didn't load, so the license step shows USAGov's list of state offices.
Your passport's age narrows the route. The State Department also checks its condition and proof of the name change.
Tick this if you've booked travel in the name on your current ID. It adds a note to the passport and license steps.
That starts with a petition to a court in your state. This checklist begins once you hold the signed order.
A family law attorney can explain your state's process. Our family law directory lists them by city.
What you tick here stays in this browser tab. It isn't sent or saved, and it's gone when you close the tab.
This is general information, not legal advice. Ticking a box here changes nothing on any record.
How the name change checklist works
You have one document that proves the change, and a dozen places that still know you by the old name. A few of them care what order you come in. Most don't, and the hard part is telling which is which.
Every link between two steps on your list carries one of two labels. Required first means an official page says so. Either a motor vehicle agency's own page says Social Security has to come first, or it says the agency checks Social Security's record and turns you away when the two don't match. California's DMV is blunt about it: the first thing it does is verify your information with Social Security, and an application that doesn't match is denied. Usually after means the order only makes things easier, and the step says why.
Your state changes one step, the license or ID, plus the car title line where the agency's page covers it. That step draws on a table of 51 motor vehicle agencies, one for each state and DC, each built from the agency's own page. If the page states a rule, you see its sentence, a link to the page and the day it was checked. If it's silent about Social Security, the step tells you so. And if the page couldn't be opened at the last check, you get the agency's name and its link, with no rule made up to fill the gap.
A rule checked more than four months ago drops back to a plain link instead of posing as current. The order comes from these rules alone, worked out in your browser, with nothing guessed or generated.
Then print it, write the dates and reference numbers in by hand, and take it with you to the counter.
Who this is for
You've just married, or your divorce decree gives you a former name back, or a judge has signed your name change order. Now you want to know which office to visit first. The checklist is written for U.S. citizens with a Social Security number, in the 50 states and DC. It leaves out court petitions, minors, gender marker changes and the territories, and it handles immigration documents with a single pointer.
Common questions about changing your name after marriage or divorce
What order should I change my name in after marriage?
Your marriage certificate comes first, the original or a certified copy, then Social Security. Of the 34 state license pages read for this checklist, 22 want Social Security done first, outright or for some ways of applying. Massachusetts counts among the 22 only through advice in its marriage guide; the RMV's own page didn't state the order when rechecked on October 8, 2026. After that, take the passport, your employer and your banks in whatever order suits you. No official page read makes one wait on another.
Can I change my name on my license before Social Security?
In many states, no. California's DMV checks your information with Social Security first and denies an application that doesn't match, and Michigan's page says the same. Federal REAL ID rules also require an SSN check with Social Security or a DHS-approved method. Some state pages don't mention the order at all. Mississippi's page even says your card doesn't have to show the new name at the first visit.
How long after a Social Security name change can you go to the DMV?
That depends on your state, and only some pages give a number. North Carolina asks for at least 24-36 hours, Indiana at least one business day, Nevada at least two business days, Wisconsin 48 hours, and Delaware's page gives both 48-72 hours and 72 hours. Colorado says Social Security takes about 24-48 hours to process the change. If your state's page names a wait, you'll see it on your license step.
Can I change my name with Social Security online?
Sometimes. Social Security says that depending on your situation you may be able to request the change online. If not, you'll need an appointment at a local office. Either way, you'll show proof of who you are, your new legal name and the event that changed it. The card is free, and your number stays the same.
Does a marriage certificate change your name?
It's the document that proves the change. USAGov says your marriage certificate will reflect your new name. Social Security lists a marriage document among the proofs it may accept, and the passport rules recognize it for a name taken at marriage. A new name the certificate doesn't support may need a court order. California's court guide gives a first-name change as one example.
Can I use my divorce decree to change my name back?
Usually, if the decree says so. The passport rules accept a divorce decree that specifically declares a return to a former name. New Jersey's MVC wants one that shows both names and permits you to resume the former one. If yours is silent on it, ask the court that issued it, or a family law attorney, before you stand in line anywhere. It's one more errand, but it beats a wasted morning at the counter.
Do I need to change my name on my passport after marriage?
None of the rules read sets a deadline, but USAGov says to report a name change to the State Department as soon as possible to get an updated passport. A passport isn't amended. You apply for a new one. If yours was issued less than a year ago, the federal rules allow the replacement without the fee when you apply within that year. The State Department's name-change page, opened October 8, 2026, also wants the name change itself to be less than a year old for that route.
Can I travel with a passport in my maiden name?
That's up to the airline and the security checkpoint, so no checklist can promise it for your trip. What does help is booking in the name on the ID you'll carry. And if you apply for a new passport by mail, your current one goes in with the application, so time it around the trip.
Do I need to tell the IRS about a name change?
Not separately. The IRS points you to Social Security: the name on your tax return has to match Social Security's records, so until you've changed it there, you file under your former name. If a W-2 arrives in your old name after Social Security has the new one, the IRS says to ask your employer for a corrected form.
How much does it cost to change your name after marriage?
Social Security charges nothing for the card. A passport issued less than a year ago can be replaced without the fee, and the State Department's page also wants the name change itself to be under a year old for that. Otherwise the usual passport fees apply. License fees vary by state, so your checklist doesn't list them. A certified copy of your marriage certificate costs whatever the issuing office charges.
Who do I notify of a name change?
USAGov's list covers Social Security, your state's motor vehicle office, the IRS through your tax return, the State Department, USCIS for a naturalization certificate, the VA, voter registration, your post office, state benefits, and state and local tax offices. Then come the private ones: payroll, banks, insurance, your landlord or lender, utilities, doctors. Tick the ones that apply to you, and they'll line up in order.
Name change after marriage checklist: the order, office by office
A name change after marriage checklist usually lists a dozen places in one confident order. Only a few of the links between them carry any real weight. Social Security goes first: USAGov says other agencies learn of the change through it, the name on your tax return has to match its records, and most of the state license pages read for this checklist want it done before you come in. The license or state ID comes next, because USAGov says an updated ID makes the rest easier. The passport fits wherever your travel allows, since no official page read ties it to either. Everything after that, payroll and banks and the phone company included, follows each company's own rules. Going back to a former name after a divorce runs in the same order. The difference is the decree: if it doesn't state the name you're going back to, offices may not accept it as proof.
Sources and last checked
Every rule in your checklist comes from the office that applies it. A rule checked more than 120 days before the day you open the page shows as a link only.
- Social Security: its name change page, its FAQ on changing the name on a card (dated November 14, 2024) and Publication 05-10002 (July 2026). Checked October 7, 2026.
- IRS: its FAQ on name changes and Social Security number matching (reviewed September 24, 2026). Checked October 7, 2026.
- USAGov: how to change your name and which agencies to notify (updated September 29, 2026), and its list of state motor vehicle offices. Checked October 7, 2026.
- Federal rules: 22 CFR part 51 (passports) and 6 CFR part 37 (REAL ID), as in force October 1, 2026. Checked October 7, 2026.
- State motor vehicle agencies: 51 rows, version October 7, 2026. 17 pages state a Social Security rule for every way of applying, 5 state it for some, 12 say nothing about it, and 17 couldn't be read and show as links. Massachusetts sits in the first group on the strength of its marriage guide's advice; its RMV page, rechecked October 8, 2026, doesn't state the order.
- Passport form numbers aren't shown. The State Department's name-change page gives the current forms and the conditions for using them.
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