Changing one's name, adding initials, or even just one letter is regular in India, more so than in many parts of the world. We believe in Vaastu, numerology, and it's' common for women from many communities to change their first and last names after marriage.
Given how common this is, you would expect your name change application procedure to be reasonably quick. But it is, in fact, pretty lengthy, with name change forms to be filled out and even requiring a newspaper advertisement.
There are three mandatory things, which are needed to be done for authorizing the name change:
1. Affidavit Submission: An affidavit needs to be prepared for the name change.
2. Ad Publication: An announcement should be published in the newspaper.
3. Gazette Notification: A notification should be published in the Gazette of India regarding the name change.
NOTE: Gazette meaning – Gazette means any form of a journal or newspaper published officially.
The first step in the legal procedure is affidavit submission. You need to contact a notary to do the needful. The following steps would make the process simpler and more apparent:
1. Approach your local Notary and mention your request.
2. The Notary will suggest the stamp paper of the required value on which the affidavit for the name change is made.
3. Once you have the paper, you need to provide the following details:
a. Name and New name
b. Current address
c. Reason for the name change (Astrology, numerology, marriage, etc.)
4. Once the affidavit is printed on plain stamp paper; it needs to be signed by two witnesses. The legal procedure is to get it signed by two persons of gazetted officer rank. Ensure that you have their signature, along with their stamp (rubber stamp).
5. The procedure for a name change, in the case of a central government employee, needs to be done instead of the Ministry of Home Affairs O.M. No. – 190016/1/87-Estt. They are dated 12.03.1987. Ask the Notary for advice or read the guidelines.
6. Married women, who would like to change their surname or add their husband's name as initials, are required to provide the following details:
a. Old name with the father's name and address;
b. A new name with husband's name and address;
c. Marriage date.
The affidavit reflects both your old and new names. Depositions can be used for changing the full name, surname or just a few letters.
Keep a copy of the affidavit. This is a crucial document and comes in handy for any future legal formalities.
If you have made the affidavit, the next step is to publish an advertisement/notification in the local newspaper that you have changed your name. For this, you need to select two newspapers, one published in the state's official language and the other, an English daily.
For instance, if you reside in Madhya Pradesh, you can opt for Dainik Bhaskar and Times of India/Hindustan Times. If you are from Tamil Nadu, you can opt for Dinakaran/Dina Thanthi and The Hindu/Indian Express.
The requirement is to pick two popular daily and send a request to them, stating the following details:
a. Your new name
b. Your old name
c. Date of Birth
d. Address
The newspapers allot a column for these notifications and will be able to guide you on this. Can have the format from any newspaper. Here is a simple example. Let's assume XYZ is changing his name to ABC.
I, XYZ, residing at, have changed my name to ABC and will be known as ABC from here on in. I have submitted an affidavit to this effect, which was signed by on.
Married women, who would like to change their surname after marriage, should add their husbands' names and addresses in the notification.
We are well at the end now, with just the Name Change Gazette Procedure remaining. Once your gazette notification is published, your name change will be legally complete.
The name change gazette notification is mandatory for those in employment with the Government and optional for others. However, it is substantial proof of your name change. Since it involves sending a few documents for Publication, it may make sense to go through with it.
Here is what you need to do to submit the Gazette notification:
However, before sending in the following details, call the Controller's office of Publication to get a detailed account of what needs to be sent and note it down. Also, put the above documents in an A4 sized envelope before sending them to the below-mentioned address.
The office of the Controller of Publication will send information, with the necessary copies of the Gazette on which the Advertisement/Notification has appeared. Keep this safe for future reference.
Now your part of the work in the name change process in India is over. Let us get into the gazette name change online fees. The Government will print the change of your name in the Gazette. The amount charged for Gazette notifications varies –- either Rs. 700 or Rs. 900 –- depending on whether you want a public notice or not.
You can pay the money either in cash or by a demand draft/postal order drawn in favour of the Controller of Publication, Department of Publication, Civil Lines, Delhi – 110054''. This is the address you need to visit in case you will be submitting it in person (office hours are between 10 AM and 1 PM and 2 PM to 3 PM on any working day), or you can courier/speed post the envelope with all details to the address mentioned above. Check the website of the Department of Publication (Government of India) for further information.
Although your work for legalizing your name change is over, it is essential to save all the documents and use them for officially changing your name in the bank records, certificates, and any other necessary documents.
The name change documents might come as crucial ones when you apply or renew a passport or other future transactions.
Also, in several cases, the affidavit process is over, and the Newspaper advertisements for a name change are over, but the Gazette notification is still pending. Although, as stated earlier, the government employees have the mandatory clause for Gazette notifications, the banks might ask for Gazette notification before changing your name in the account.
Click here to know who can change the name in India.
Now, let us get into the procedure on how to change a name in India. Marriage is a life-changing decision. And for many women, although much fewer than before, it involves the change of a character (or surname). If you're getting married or recently married and need to know how to change your name, you've come to the right place. In this article, we'll' cover all there is to know about changing your name. It doesn't' matter whether it's' a name change in Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore or Chennai. The name change procedure is the same.
Click here to know more about the procedure for name change after marriage.