Passport name change
Changing your name on your Australian passport is treated as a new passport application. Here is exactly how it works, when it is free, what proof you need, and how it fits with the rest of your name change.
Get StartedIt is a new passport application. The Australian Passport Office does not amend an existing passport, so you apply for a new one in your new name. There is no separate change of name form: it is the standard application, filled in online and lodged in person. If your surname is changing because of marriage, divorce or reverting to a former name, and your current passport still has two or more years to run, the replacement is free and keeps the same expiry date.
Step by step
Have your official marriage certificate, or your change of name certificate from Births, Deaths and Marriages, ready. The decorative ceremonial marriage certificate is not accepted.
There is no change of name form. Fill in the standard application online at passports.gov.au, the same one you would use for a renewal.
Lodge it in person at a participating Australia Post outlet. Walk in during opening hours, no appointment needed. Bring your ORIGINAL certificate, not a copy, your current passport and compliant photos.
Free if your surname is changing through marriage, divorce or reverting, and two or more years of validity remain: you get a replacement with the same expiry date. Otherwise, including a deed poll change or under two years left, the normal fee applies.
Do your passport early in your switch, especially if you have travel booked, because your passport name should match your tickets. It is fine to update it before or after your licence and Medicare.
Your passport 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.
passport name change questions
Straight answers to what people actually ask about changing their name on their passport.
You apply for a new passport in your new name. A passport cannot be amended, and there is no separate change of name form: you fill in the standard application online at passports.gov.au and then lodge it in person at a participating Australia Post outlet, walk in, no appointment. Bring your original certificate, your current passport and compliant photos.
Often yes, and for more people than expect it. If your surname is changing because of marriage, divorce or reverting to a former name, and your current passport still has two or more years of validity left, you get a free replacement carrying the same expiry date. Bring evidence of the marriage or divorce. If it has under two years to run, or you are changing your name by deed poll, the normal application fee applies. Current fees are on passports.gov.au.
A new passport is typically issued within about three weeks of a complete application, with a faster priority service available for an extra fee. Apply well before any travel.
Your passport name should match your travel bookings, so if you have changed your name and have trips coming up, update your passport early or book travel in your current passport name until it is done.
The ORIGINAL certificate, not a copy: your official Births, Deaths and Marriages issued marriage certificate, or your change of name certificate. The ceremonial certificate from your wedding day is not accepted. One catch worth knowing: if you are changing a GIVEN name rather than just your surname, you need a change of name certificate from Births, Deaths and Marriages, even if you married.
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