Do you issue family Deed Polls?

From time to time we get enquiries from people asking if we will issue a single Deed Poll for a number of members of their family (usually a parent and children relationship). The purpose of this article is to explain why the UK Name Change Services does not issue family Deed Polls.

What is a family Deed Poll?

A family Deed Poll can be used to change the surname of a family. For example, if a mother wanted to change both her surname and the surname of her two children, the legal paperwork needed could be drawn up on a single document which would usually be less expensive than applying for individual Deed Polls for the family.

Although the total cost of changing your family’s name will probably be less expensive than applying for individual documents, there are a number of problems that you may encounter:

• Only one parent can be listed on a family Deed Poll. If another parent wishes to change their surname they would have to apply for a separate adult Deed Poll
• Children over the age of 16 cannot be listed on a Family Deed Poll and will therefore need to have their own adult Deed Poll in order to change their surname
• When your children leave home, they will not have their own document to take with them and produce (along with their birth certificate) when they need to prove their name (i.e. when applying for their first passport, opening a bank account, getting a new job, etc.) and therefore may have difficulties in proving their new name

Due to the reasons listed above the UK Name Change Service does not issue family Deed Polls. People applying for multiple Deed Polls should call our helpline or contact us via our live chat service as we are often able to offer substantial discounts on mutliple applications.