Bank name change
Changing your name at the bank is straightforward, especially once your photo ID is updated. Here is how to do it across your accounts and cards, and what proof your bank will ask for.
Get StartedUpdate each bank you hold accounts with. Only a handful of Australian banks can change a legal name in the app. Most need a branch visit, a signed form, or in one case a witnessed statutory declaration, with your proof of name change. New cards in your name are then issued. It is easiest once your driver licence or passport already shows your new name.
Step by step
Change your driver licence or passport before your bank, so you have current ID in your new name that the bank can verify against.
For most banks this means a branch, because they want to sight your proof in person. A few take a signed form by post or email instead, and a small number do it in the app. The table below shows which is which for your bank.
Supply your marriage certificate or change of name certificate, and sometimes meet 100 points of identification, depending on the bank.
Your accounts are updated and new cards in your name are issued, usually keeping the same account numbers.
Bank by bank
Every bank handles this differently, and most do not say so clearly on their website. Most need a branch visit. Several need a signed form by post or email, one is phone only, one needs a witnessed statutory declaration, and a couple can do it entirely in the app. Here is every bank your plan covers.
| Bank | How you do it | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|
| Up Bank | In the app | The easiest of the lot. Message the team through "Talk to Us" and attach a photo of your certificate. Handled entirely in-app. |
| ANZ | App, if ANZ Plus only | Only if ANZ Plus is your only ANZ account, under Profile then Legal Name, and you must upload Australian photo ID already showing your new name. Anything else is a branch visit. |
| AMP Bank | Online (My AMP) | Update your name in My AMP or send a secure message with a certified copy attached. No branch needed. |
| Ubank | Phone only | No branches and it cannot be done in the app. Call 13 30 80. |
| Commonwealth Bank | Branch, no appointment | NetBank and the app only let you nickname accounts, not change your legal name. Any branch, walk in. |
| Westpac | Branch | Bring an original Births, Deaths and Marriages document. A ceremonial certificate from your wedding day is not accepted. |
| NAB | Branch | NAB recommend updating your driver licence first, so you arrive with photo ID already in your new name. |
| St.George / BankSA / Bank of Melbourne | Branch | All part of the Westpac Group, so the same branch process. Take your registry-issued certificate and photo ID. |
| Bank of Queensland | Branch, usually no form | Update your licence or passport first and everyday accounts need no form at all. Credit cards are handled separately. |
| Suncorp Bank | Branch | ANZ bought the business in 2024 but branches still operate as Suncorp Bank. |
| Bendigo Bank | Branch | Ask them to update your name on all linked accounts while you are there, not just the one you mention. |
| Bank Australia | Branch (or form) | A branch visit updates everything at once; there is a form if you would rather not go in. |
| Beyond Bank | Branch | Certificate plus photo ID. |
| IMB Bank | Branch | Certificate plus photo ID. |
| Newcastle Permanent / Greater Bank | Branch | The two have merged, so either branch can do it. |
| Bankwest | Form, by post | Fully digital with no branches, so post is the only way. Change of Name Statement plus certified copies no older than three months. |
| ING | Form, by email or post | No branches. ING's own form nominates an email address, so you can scan and send it rather than queue at the post office. |
| ME Bank | Form, by post | No branches. Your certificate must be Australian-issued: overseas certificates are not accepted at all. |
| Great Southern Bank | Form (SC25) | Print the Change of Name form and either take it into a branch or post it with certified copies. |
| Macquarie Bank | Statutory declaration | The unusual one. Macquarie need a witnessed statutory declaration stating your old and new name, signed with both your old and new signatures. |
| HSBC Australia | Branch or form | A branch visit works, or post their Change of Customer Details form with certified copies and skip the trip. |
| Virgin Money | Phone or app message | Everyday accounts by phone or a secure message in the app. Credit cards are separate: their Change of Name form, lodged at Australia Post. |
| People First Bank | Phone or branch | Formerly Heritage and People's Choice. Call and they post the paperwork to you, or any branch does the lot in one visit. |
| Police Bank | Form, by email | Their form has two signature boxes: your previous signature in one, your new one in the other. |
| Defence Bank | Form (F472) | Branch or post. Worth knowing most branches are on defence bases, so post is often easier. |
| Teachers Mutual Bank | Form | Almost no branches, so the form is the usual route. It asks for two forms of ID already in your new name, so do your licence first. Same for UniBank, Firefighters Mutual and Health Professionals Bank. |
| P&N Bank | Form | WA only. Hand the Change Account Name form in at a branch, or call, secure-message or post it. |
| Qudos Bank | Form, by post | Post only: they do not accept faxed or emailed copies. Qudos merged into Bank Australia in July 2025, so you may be redirected there. |
| BankVic | Two forms | VIC only. A Signature Card and a Certification form, both needed, by email, post or branch. |
Compiled from each bank's own published guidance, and kept in the same registry our plans run on. Banks do change their processes, so confirm with yours before you travel to a branch. Surname Switch is not affiliated with any bank.
Update banks after your foundation ID. With your new-name licence or passport in hand, banks accept the change quickly, so your plan schedules money updates in the second phase.
Your bank is just one of around 55 updates. Enter your details once and Surname Switch prefills your official forms, drafts every email, and gives you one ordered checklist of your actual companies, so nothing is forgotten. See the full checklist.
bank account name change questions
Straight answers to what people actually ask about changing their name on their bank account.
Most banks let you update your name in their app, in online banking, or in a branch, with your marriage certificate or change of name certificate as proof. New cards in your new name are then issued, usually keeping the same account numbers.
Yes, it is worth keeping your bank details current so your name matches your ID and incoming payments. It also keeps your cards and statements consistent with everything else.
Usually not. Up Bank does it entirely in the app, ANZ can if ANZ Plus is your only ANZ account, and AMP does it through My AMP. For most Australian banks a legal name change means a branch visit or a signed form, because they need to sight your proof. Nicknaming an account in online banking is not the same thing.
Generally no. Your name is updated on the existing account, so your account and BSB numbers usually stay the same, and you receive new cards in your new name.
Your official marriage certificate or change of name certificate, and sometimes additional identity documents to meet 100 points of identification, depending on the bank.
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