If you got married overseas your marriage is legally recognised in Australia, however, you can’t use a foreign marriage certificate to change names. You could find it’s accepted by some companies but it won’t be enough to get your Australian passport, most bank accounts or super funds changed over.
If you want to take your spouse’s surname after marriage then you will need to legally change names. Apply with Births, Deaths and Marriages and receive an amended birth certificate listing your birth and new names. If you were born overseas apply with BDM in the state where you currently reside. You will need to provide documents that prove you have lived in the state for the past 12 months (except NSW where you need to prove residency over 3 years). If successful you will receive a legal name change certificate.
How can Easy Name Change help?
Changing names requires separate notification to each organisation where you have an account. Newlyweds have an average of 26 separate places to notify and each one has a unique process! Our service saves you 8 hours of pain – no need to contact each company, wait on hold, complete forms or write letters. We take care of all this for you! Simply choose the companies you need to notify and we instantly send all your completed paperwork and researched instructions! Attach your legal name change certificate and send! You need the name change application form too! So when you are in our company database, choose the legal name change listing for your state.
For more information, including costs and turnaround times, read our section on legal name change.
