Name Change? Is this right?

I don't see the article, but are you talking about the Buzzfeed one? I read it yesterday and it confused me too...

http://www.buzzfeed.com/estherwerdiger/i-changed-my-name-when-i-got-married-and-immediately-regrett#.vx5Pl26N6

Oh, it didn't paste! Yeah, that's the one. Thanks!

Your name does not change when you apply for a marriage license. I read the article and was extremely baffled by it. I held my maiden name for two years after my first wedding before I changed it. There was a (very simple) process I eventually went through when I was ready to change it.

You sign what your new name will be on the marriage license. After that, you can use the marriage license to change your name on all your legal documents. I guess it depends on what you mean by when your name changes. From the government's perspective, your name doesn't change until you change it on your Social Security card or driver's license. From your employer's perspective, your name doesn't change until you officially tell them. Socially, people will probably start calling you by your new last name once that marriage license is signed. And not when you apply -- when the ceremony is performed. You can't take a copy of the marriage license application to the SS office and expect them to change your name for you.

You have to wait for a certified copy of your marriage license to be returned to you to change your name on any legal documents. I don't know if there's an official time limit on how long after the wedding you can change your name. We have one in Nebraska but I think it's like two years or something.

ETA: I think the article is confusing signing the marriage license APPLICATION with signing the marriage LICENSE. They're two different things. And now that I think about it, I didn't even indicate what my new last name would be on the application. So in Michigan at least the application has zero to do with changing your last name.

Okay, so if I put his name on the license, but don't change it with the government, my maiden name is okay for my passport?

Changing your name somewhat depends on your state. In CT you can't change it on you marriage license. After you get your marriage certificate, you take that to the social security office to change your name. After social security you have to wait for it to be processed then you can go to the dmv to get a new drivers license. After that you have to change it with everything else, utilities, banks, passport, work, etc. You can't change your passport until you have your new social security card. And keep in mind your passport must match your ticket, so if you will be traveling immediately after your wedding before you change your name, your passport and tickets should stay in your maiden name so everything matches.

I'm guessing you're asking about traveling for your honeymoon? If you are changing your last name, but won't be able to get all the documents before your honeymoon, yes, book all your travel in the name that is currently on your license/passport.

No. It doesn't.

I signed my maiden on the application because that was my name at the time, anything else would be a lie. Your name doesn't change until you walk into the Social Security Office.

@Lori, thats all you need is the marriage license (and this isn't a regional thing). I went there first with the marriage certificate, changed my name and from there did my drivers license.

What does it take to change my name on my passport after the wedding? Are they going to charge me $100+ again?

@Maltese, ugh you're right. I was using the wrong words--meant marriage certificate, not marriage license. People use them so interchangeably I forget they're two different things.

@Ashley -- http://www.dmv.org/passports.php That should have all the info you need!

Once you renew a passport, you have 1 year to change your name on it for free, otherwise they make you pay for a new one.

I think it's that in some states, you need to write your new last name if you are changing it. Massachusetts has a line that says "surname after marriage". I wrote DH's last name on that line when we applied for the license, a month before our marriage, but signed the application with my maiden name because that was my name at the time. I didn't actually change my name until about a year later, but I think I would have had to go through a legal name change ($&dollar instead of just changing it due to marriage if I hadn't written it on the marriage application. I think you can change the name on your passport for free if you have a name change due to marriage and change your name within a year of your wedding. Or you can just not change it. I went to Canada in May with my passport still in my maiden name and it wasn't a problem. My mom checked with the state dept and asked the passport office at the post office before we went, and I talked to a professor who does a lot of work with name changes. They all said it was fine.

Okay, I feel so much better. Thanks, guys!!

freakin' buzzfeed...

Your name doesn't change until you change it on your social security card. Moreover, the DMV, passport office, etc., want a certified version of your marriage certificate before they will change your name. So your last name doesn't change when you apply for your marriage license.

No, that's not accurate lol.

I was required to sign my legal name at the time of marriage on my first marriage license. My name didn't change until I took that certified copy (my first one was jamaican) to SSA and Michigan's SoS.

The second time, I didn't have to sign to apply for my marriage license, nor did I have to sign once I was married (as an aside, maryland is VERY WEIRD in that I didn't have to be in person to get my license nor did I have to sign it once we were legally married lol).

@Janeen..... does that mean that in Maryland someone nefarious could just decided to marry a random person as long as an officiant signs the document...?

* Note to self - never move to Maryland

I think this all depends on the state..

In WA, the clerk asked me if I was going to change my name, but that doesn't mean it actually changed at that moment. I still haven't changed it.

And I signed both the marriage application and license with my legal name, not my new name.

Nattie, I'm still wondering about it, but it seems that way. My husband had my SSN, and I....think....a copy of my ID? I can't remember. But he got the license alone lol. And we never signed it after being married.

You can get your passport changed for free after the name change. I think it's within one year of the wedding.