The topic of changing your surname after marriage is a juicy one. A highly, highly personal juicy one.
Open up this subject at a party and you’ll get a whole range of reasons why changing your name is a lovely tradition/inherently anti-feminist. And if you’ve got time to heat up a bowl of popcorn, we’ve tackled reasons for and against changing your surname after marriage here.
If you have decided to change your surname, we’re sorry to say but there’s a tiny Everest of unsurprisingly dull life admin that follows. This isn’t shared to deter you at all, rather to prep you for smashing it out as efficiently as you can. And there’s nothing like a good ol’ checklist to make sure you’re registering your new name in all the right places.
Below you’ll find a marriage name change checklist. Some of the items or institution require evidence (all the formal ones that you’d expect), while others like changing your name on your email don’t.
Our tip? Get a whole bunch of copies of your official* marriage certificate printed and signed by a Justice of the Peace so you can send them out like hotcakes when and where needed.
(*Remember the marriage certificate you signed on your wedding day? That was just for show. Your real certificate will be coming in the post once that your celebrant has registered your marriage. Along with some additional points of identification, it will provide most of the evidence you need to change your surname).
Note, this list is by no means exhaustive. You’ll probably be forever be finding personal accounts that are still sitting under your previous name (loyalty programs, email accounts, online subscriptions etc.). But it’s a very solid start.
If you’re all about convenience the folks at ‘Easy Name Change’ are your best bet – check them out here. They offer a number of packages and can provide all the paperwork needed.
A Marriage Name Change Checklist
- Drivers Licence
- Passport
- Bank accounts
- Medicare
- Car registration
- Insurance policies (car, health, home and contents, life, income, etc)
- Phone and internet
- Centrelink (if applicable)
- Australian Taxation Office
- Australian Electoral Commission
- Doctor/dentist/health specialists
- Rates and services: water/gas/electricity/solar
- Real Estate and Bond Authority (if you are renting a property)
- Local Council (if you own a property and pay rates)
- Employer
- Road toll accounts
- Will/lawyer
- Accountant
- Australian Organ Register
- Any investments and shares
- Children’s school (if applicable)
- Memberships (e.g. gym, library)
- Digital subscriptions if you wish (e.g. Spotify, Netflix)
- Superannuation (hot tip: check out Super Fierce while you’re at it. They provide a free comparison report to make recommendations on the best superfund for your unique situation. We’re not affiliated, just big fans of this female-founded business)
- Personal email if you wish
- Social media if you wish
An FYI, marriage in both Australia and the USA (in most states) immediately revokes any prior will. When updating or creating a will ensure that it is legally binding, especially if you are in a same-sex marriage and made a will before same-sex marriage was legalised.
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NEXT: an extensive series of honeymoon recommendations
PLANNING: give yourself the gift of a stress-free wedding with We Do Crew
GIFTING: have you checked out Gravy yet? It removes the awks of asking for cash as a wedding gift.
