The name your child is commonly called and known by

Your child’s legal name is simply the name they’re commonly called and known by — especially for official purposes.

So you need to confirm that your child’s “current name” is the name they’re known by on most of their official documents and records.

(It may be more difficult to say what your child’s legal name is if they’re known by more than one name — see below.)

If you haven’t updated any of your child’s official records to be in their new name

If you haven’t updated any of your child’s official records to be in their new name, it would mean that — legally speaking — their name hasn’t changed yet, or that they’re currently just “also known as” their new name.  In that case, we should (probably) do a new deed poll for you (proving a new change of name).

(A replacement deed poll would declare that your child has been known by their new name for all purposes since a specified date — which, after all, wouldn’t really be the case.)

If you need to prove an earlier (or more than one) change of name

If you’ve changed your child’s name more than once, we’ll need to prepare a replacement deed poll / statutory declaration proving every change of name that’s been made, up till the present.

So you’ll need to provide details of every change of name, going back to the change of name that you really need to prove — including any change of name by court order, deed poll, or otherwise.

There’s no extra charge for doing the document like this — the fee you pay is per person.

For example — suppose you needed to prove your child’s change of name from Alex SMITH to Billy SMITH — but their name has since been changed from Billy SMITH to Charlie SMITH.  In that case you should —

• fill in their “former name” as Billy SMITH
• fill in their “current name” as Charlie SMITH
• then include the details of their change of name from Alex SMITH to Billy SMITH in the “additional comments” section of the form (remember to include the date, to the best of your knowledge)

If your child is known by more than one name

Your child’s current legal name is simply the name they’re generally called and known by.  However, sometimes it isn’t completely clear what someone’s legal name is, because they’re known by more than one name on different documents.

Where there is doubt, or where many names are (or have been) used, names that have been used for formal, solemn, and official purposes — over a substantial period of time — have been preferred by the courts over names that are used for temporary, social or day-to-day purposes.

Examples of formal, solemn, and official purposes would be —

• formal identification documents such as passport / national identity card
• baptism and confirmation (as to forenames only — as baptism is not concerned with surnames)
• birth registration