Applying for a Deed Poll

How to apply

Services available and fees

Video guides

Services available and fees

For quick access, we have listed this article’s contents below.

Sections in this article

1. Types of Deed Poll available and fees
2. Delivery services available
3. Other services available

1. Types of Deed Poll available and fees
The fees below are if you apply online, by post or in person. If you order over the phone, the fees are £4 higher for each Deed Poll ordered.
Adult and Child Deed PollsAdultChild
The fee for one Deed Poll is:£33£35
Deed Polls for other adults and children
The fee for a 2nd Deed Poll is:£23£25
The fee for any additional Deed Polls is (each):£13£15
Examples:
One adult and one child: £33 + £25 = £58
Three children: £35 + £25 + £15 = £75

To qualify for the reduced fees for additional Deed Polls ordered, they must be ordered at the same time and have the same delivery and Deed Poll address.

Family Deed Poll

A Family Deed Poll is for changing the surname of a family (family means at least one parent and one child under 16 years of age). With a family Deed Poll, children under the age of 16 are included on the applicant parent’s Deed Poll document. Note: the applicant parent and spouse (or partner) included on a Family Deed Poll application can also change their first and middle names (and title if required) but any children included who are under 16 can only change their surname to the new family surname. You will need to apply for a separate Child Deed Poll if you wish to change a child’s first and/or middle names. If any of your children are 16 years of age or over, you will need to apply for a separate Adult Deed Poll for them.

Fee for applicant parent’s Deed Poll:£33
For each child (under 16) added to applicant parent’s Deed Poll:£8
Additional Deed Poll for spouse, partner or a son/daughter who is 16 or over:£23
Additional Deed Poll for a child (who is under 16) whose forenames are also
being changed:		£25
Examples:
Parent with two children: £33 + £8 + £8 = £49
Both parents with two children: £33 + £8 + £8 + £23 = £72
One parent with two children under 16 but one child is also having their forenames changed: £33 + £8 + £25 = £66

Family versus separate Child and Adult Deed Polls
If you are undecided as to whether to apply for a Family Deed Poll or for separate Adult and Child Deed Polls, please click here for further information.

2. Delivery services available
You can choose from the following delivery services when you complete your application form. Delivery times given are from receipt of your application and payment (and letter of consent if required for changing a child’s name). Working days are Monday to Friday excluding bank holidays.

The fees shown are per order. For example, if you order two Deed Polls using our UK Priority service, the total additional delivery fee will be £4 and not £4 for each Deed Poll

UK StandardWe aim to post your Deed Poll documentation by 1st class mail in four working days of receiving your application. The fee for this service is £2.
UK PriorityWe will post your Deed Poll documentation by 1st class mail the same working day we receive your application (if by 3.30pm Monday to Friday). The fee for this service is £4.
UK ExpressWe will post your Deed Poll documentation the same working day we receive your application (if by 3.30pm Monday to Friday) for guaranteed delivery by 1pm next working day. The fee for this service is £14.
UK Express
(Saturday)		We will post your Deed Poll documentation for guaranteed delivery by 1pm Saturday if your application is received between 3.30pm Thursday and 3.30pm Friday. The fee for this service is £18.
UK Express PlusWe will post your Deed Poll documentation the same working day we receive your application (if by 3.30pm Monday to Friday) for guaranteed delivery by 9am next working day. The fee for this service is £32.
UK Express Plus
(Saturday)		We will post your Deed Poll documentation for guaranteed delivery by 9am Saturday if your application is received between 3.30pm Thursday and 3.30pm Friday. The fee for this service is £36.
UK Premium One-hourThis service is for callers to our offices. We aim to issue your Deed Poll documentation within one hour. The fee for this service is £25 and is available between 9am and 4pm Monday to Friday (closed weekends and bank holidays). Appointment necessary.
Overseas StandardWe aim to post your Deed Poll documentation using Royal Mail’s International Tracked or Signed service, which is an accelerated airmail service, within four working days of receiving your application. The fee for this service is £20.
Overseas ExpressWe will post your Deed Poll documentation using Royal Mail’s International Tracked or Signed service, which is an accelerated airmail service, the same working day we receive your application (if by 3.30pm Monday to Friday). The fee for this service is £25.
Overseas Express CourierWe will post your Deed Poll documentation using DHL’s International Express service (if received by 1pm Monday to Friday) for delivery within two to three working days. The fee for this service is £60.

Please note, if you pay by cheque, we must allow five working days for your cheque to clear before we can post your Deed Poll documentation.

3. Other services available
You can order the following services on the application forms.
 
Legal Copy & Archive ServiceWhen you notify record holders (i.e. government departments, companies and organisations that hold your records), of your name change, organisations such as the passport office, the DVLA and the financial institutions will not accept seeing a photocopy of your Deed Poll document. Our legal copies (also known as certified copies) will be accepted by these organisations instead of your original Deed Poll, thus avoiding your original Deed Poll document being folded and creased or even lost in the post.
As part of this service, we lodge a digital image of your signed Deed Poll document in our archives so you can order further legal copies in the future should you lose or mislay your Deed Poll. If you do not order this service and you lose your Deed Poll, you will have to pay again for a new Deed Poll.
The fee for our Legal Copy and Archive Service is £13 plus £1 for each legal copy ordered (two legal copies minimum). If your delivery address is outside the UK, a further £10 will be charged for return overseas postage of your Deed Poll and legal copies.
Declaration for a change of titleIf you wish to change your title e.g. from Mrs to Miss, we can incorporate a change of title declaration on your Deed Poll document, for which a £4 fee is payable.
If you do not wish to incur the £4 fee, please enter on your application form the same title as your current title and your new title. We will only include your title on your Deed Poll if you are changing it. Therefore, by not entering a change of title on your application form, we will issue your Deed Poll with only your name change shown.
Professionally-known-as nameIf you require a professionally-known-as name on your Deed Poll, an additional fee of £8 is payable.
Additional addressIf you have another address that appears on some of your documents and records, we can also include this address on your Deed Poll, for which an additional fee of £2 is payable.
Declaration for a past name change

If you are applying for an Adult Deed Poll to replace a lost Deed Poll, or you require a Deed Poll to provide you with documentary evidence of a past name change (for example, your name was changed by usage several years ago, we can modify your Deed Poll to include a declaration that states you have been using your current name for all purposes since a particular date. This declaration will explain to everyone you show your Deed Poll to that it is not for a new name change.
If you would like this modification made, for which an additional £4 fee is payable, please complete the appropriate section on the application form.

Modifications to your Deed PollIf you require your Deed Poll to be modified to include an also-known-as name, a registered-at-birth name or a formerly-known-as name, an £8 fee is payable for each modification made. If you require a modification, please use the comments box on the application form. Other modifications that are required to your Deed Poll such as including the details of a court order or a DNA paterity test will incur a modification fee, which will usually not exceed £6.
Legalisation ServiceIf you require your Deed Poll to be legalised with an Apostille by the UK government’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, we can arrange this on your behalf for which a £70 fee is payable. If you live outside the UK, we will need to create a certified copy of your Deed Poll (which is the document that will be legalised) for which an additional fee of £20 is payable plus £10 postage for returning your original Deed Poll and legalised certified copy using Royal Mail’s International Signed-For service (this £20 plus £10 fee is reduced to £25 if you also order our Legal Copy and Archive Service).
If your Deed Poll needs to be legalised with an Apostille, please request our legalisation service using the comments box on the application form. Full instructions will be enclosed with your Deed Poll documentation.

To start the application process, please click on the link for your preferred method of applying:

Last updated: 3 June 2024