Children who are 16 or above can change their name by Deed Poll in the UK without first obtaining anyone’s consent unless there is a court order in place that overrides this.
A child under the age of 16 can only change their name if everyone with parental responsibility for them gives their consent. A person with parental responsibility can obtain a Deed Poll for such a child, but in order to put the change of name into effect (by updating the child’s passport, for instance), written evidence of the consent of all people with parental responsibility must be sent to HM Passport Office.
If you apply for a Deed Poll for your child, we will not have to see any of your letters of consent from other people or bodies that have parental responsibility for your child – this is a matter for you. Although your child’s Deed Poll will not serve as an identity document, you and your child will need to provide the Deed Poll as evidence of the change of name from time to time. We advise that you always keep your child's Deed Poll with your letters of consent, as these will typically need to be provided together.
It is the responsibility of the adult who is making the application with us for a Deed Poll for a child to ensure that they have the consent of all people and/or bodies with Parental Responsibility before they make the application.
The law of Parental Responsibility is governed by the law of the country where the child is a resident. The law is slightly different in different areas of the UK. In general, the law in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland is set out below.
In general, a person can always apply to the Courts for a Declaration of Parentage if they have a valid personal interest in the outcome. If granted, such a person would then have Parental Responsibility for the purpose of the child's name change.
Other factors that may affect Parental Responsibility are, for instance, where a person becomes a child’s guardian, or obtains a residence order in their favour.
It is the responsibility of the adult who is making the application with us for a Deed Poll for a child to ensure that they have the consent of all people and/or bodies with Parental Responsibility before they make the application.
If there is a court order or agreement of any kind relating to the child (for instance, a Parental Responsibility Order, Adoption Certificate, Residence Order, Parental Responsibility Agreement, Special Guardianship Order or Specific Issue Order) then this could set out exactly who has Parental Responsibility.
If both of the lawfulparents consent to the child’s change of name, and both can sign the deed poll, please tick both mother and father boxes on the application page. In the event both parents cannot sign, then please tick only the box for the parent who can sign the Deed Poll. In this case, you must have a letter of consent from the other parent, as well as from any other person with Parental Responsibility.
We have put together a flowchart (see below) to help you to assess whether the mother has sole parental responsibility, or joint parental responsibility with the father. Of course, other people or bodies may have parental responsibility, if for instance there is a Court Order, or an adoption, as set out above. However, in most circumstances it will be either one or both of the biological parents, who have parental responsibility. For additional information on Parental Responsibility, including a draft covering notification letter for your child’s deed poll, please visit our Parental Responsibility page.
