Change of child's surname after marriage

[Mambear]

Hey,

My 5 year old has my surname as when she was born we were unmarried, and my (now) husband insisted he didn't want to marry. No worries I thought, but she's having my surname in that case. He later changed his tune (haha) and this year we had our beautiful wedding.

I would now like to change my daughter and my name so we all have the same surname. For my daughter, I believe I need to do this by deed poll, but I am confused. The form only seems to recognise an option if you want to change from dad surname to mums surname after a divorce. Apparently it is unusual to have mums name at birth and then change to dads after marriage. I am confused if I am using the right process.

Thank you for reading my query. if anyone has any advice, please let me know.

Many thanks

Easier for your DH to change his name to yours, surely?

Keep the same name for your child then when you divorce you won't have to explain at airports that you are travelling with your child.

Makes sense.

I'm not going to piss on your chips. Congratulations on getting married.

This is something you can sort out at the register office. You apply to re-register the birth. See here www.gov.uk/correct-birth-registration

This is really easy after marriage. We just headed to the register office with the certificates and it was done, the birth is reregistered and you are given a new birth cert as if you were married at the time of birth

Solid advice

Ah amazing, thanks so much! I thought there must be some other way!

solid advice for cases of kidnap

Thanks so much

Thanks so much. We are very happy to be married. The wedding was delayed for years by the pandemic. My husband is great, he just was a bit commitment shy at first!

My surname is rubbish to be fair

And yet you kept it into adulthood and your child has used it for 5 years. 🤷🏻‍♀️

I wouldn’t give up my name anyway (and didn’t) but I absolutely wouldn’t be changing the surname of a child after 5 years.

You’re legally required to re-register the birth. Changing the name of an established person (for what appear to be pretty sexist reasons) is entirely optional.

You definitely need to re-register at the registry office, not via deed poll.

Had to do it for my eldest two children who were born before we got married. You get a completely new replacement birth certificate. Ours took a while to sort as we got married abroad and we’d moved from the borough where they were born but the registry office organised everything, I just provided the paperwork.

*I wouldn’t give up my name anyway (and didn’t) but I absolutely wouldn’t be changing the surname of a child after 5 years.

You’re legally required to re-register the birth. Changing the name of an established person (for what appear to be pretty sexist reasons) is entirely optional.*

Oh bloody bore off. OP is asking for practical advice, not for a sanctimonious lecture from a megafeminist.

OP - congrats on the wedding. You sound really happy and content with your life's choices.

You’re legally required to re-register the birth.

I was about to post that this is nonsense, then something made me stop and check, and you're right. Presumably something to do with old fashioned notions of legitimacy and illegitimacy but there have been no distinctions between children birn in to and out of marriage since the Family Law Reform Act 1987.

Strange.