How to Change Your Last Name in CT: Probate Forms and Hearing

To change your last name in CT, you file a petition with the Probate Court for the town where you live, attend a short hearing, and receive a court decree you then use to update your records. If the change is tied to a marriage or divorce, you can usually skip court entirely and rely on the marriage license or divorce decree as your legal proof.

If You Are Changing Your Name Because of Marriage

Marriage is the simplest route. No court order or probate filing is required. Once you have a certified marriage license, present it directly to the Social Security Administration, the DMV, your bank, and any other institution that needs updated records. The license itself is your legal proof.

If You Are Restoring a Former Name After Divorce

You can ask the court to include the restoration in the divorce decree itself. Connecticut law requires the court to grant the request if either spouse makes it at the time the marriage is dissolved.¹

If you did not ask during the divorce, you can file a motion later with the Superior Court that issued the original decree. The court rules on that motion without a hearing, so you do not need to appear in person again.¹

Filing an Adult Name Change in Probate Court

For any name change unrelated to marriage or divorce, file with the Probate Court that covers your town. Probate Court shares jurisdiction over name changes with the Superior Court, but Probate is the streamlined option most people use.²

You can find the correct court, download the forms, and submit your petition package online through the Connecticut Probate Courts website. Filing in person or by mail is also accepted. Connecticut does not require you to publish your name change in a newspaper.³

Forms and Documents You Need

An adult petition requires two forms and a few supporting documents, all available from the Probate Courts website:³

Petition for Change of Name (PC-901) and the confidential information sheet (PC-901CI). The petition asks for your current name, your proposed new name, and your reason. The confidential sheet collects your Social Security number and is kept separate from the public file. You must also sign a statement that the change is not intended to deceive anyone or to avoid the consequences of a criminal conviction.⁴
Affidavit Re Change of Name (PC-910), a sworn statement supporting your petition.
A certified long-form birth certificate. A short-form or abstract version will not be accepted.
Two forms of identification, at least one with a photo, such as a driver’s license or passport.³

You are not asked to list your criminal history on the petition. The court runs its own checks, including the Sex Offender Registry and the Deadly Weapons Offender Registry, and the judge may conduct a broader background check independently.⁴

What Happens at the Hearing

After you file, the court schedules a hearing and sends notice to the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection so the registry checks are completed before you appear.³ The hearing is usually brief. The judge asks about your reason for the change and confirms the information in your petition. The question the judge needs to answer is whether the change serves a lawful purpose and is not being sought to avoid the consequences of a criminal conviction or to mislead any person or agency.⁴

Anyone on the sex offender registry faces an extra step. Before filing, that person must notify the Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection of their intent to petition, and the Commissioner has standing to oppose the application in court.²

If the judge approves, you receive an official court decree. That decree is what you carry to every agency and institution afterward.

Changing a Child’s Name

A parent or legal guardian files a separate set of forms: PC-900 for the petition, PC-900CI for the confidential sheet, and PC-910A for the minor’s affidavit. File in the Probate Court for the district where the child lives, along with a certified long-form birth certificate.⁵

If both parents do not join the petition, the filing parent must explain why. The non-petitioning parent is a necessary party and must be notified. When parents disagree, the court weighs whether the change serves the child’s best interest, considering factors like the child’s preference, how long they have used their current name, and whether the existing or proposed name causes difficulty or embarrassment.

If You Are Changing Your Name for Safety Reasons

Connecticut runs an Address Confidentiality Program called Safe at Home through the Secretary of the State’s office. It is open to survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking. Participants get a substitute mailing address with no link to their actual location, and the office forwards first-class mail at no cost.⁶

Participants can use the substitute address on state and municipal forms and have their actual residential address suppressed from voter registration lists. Enrolling before you file the name change petition can help keep an abuser from locating you through the public record the case will generate.⁶

Updating Your Records After the Decree

The decree does not update government databases on its own. You contact each agency separately, and order matters, because some institutions want to see that Social Security has already been updated.

Social Security

Start here. Bring your court decree (or marriage license or divorce decree) to your local Social Security office with a current photo ID such as a driver’s license or passport. If your name change happened more than two years ago, you may also need an identity document in your prior name. There is no fee for a new card.⁷

Getting this right also matters at tax time. The IRS matches the name on your return against Social Security records, and a mismatch can delay a refund. File using the name on your current Social Security card.⁸

Connecticut DMV

The DMV needs a legal name change document to update your driver’s license or ID card. You must update the license or ID before you can change the name on your vehicle registration.⁹ For a marriage or divorce, the DMV accepts a certified marriage license or divorce decree directly rather than a separate court order.¹⁰

Voter Registration

Update your registration online, by mail, or in person at your town clerk’s office. Handle this well before any upcoming election.¹¹

Passport

If you hold a U.S. passport, contact the U.S. Department of State to request an updated passport. Submit your court decree with the application.

Property Records

This is the step most people miss. If you own real estate in Connecticut and change your name, you must file a certificate of name change with the town clerk where the property is located within 60 days. The certificate must be acknowledged (notarized) and will be recorded in the land records.¹²

Everything Else

Notify your bank, credit card companies, insurance providers, employer, and any professional licensing boards. Bring a certified copy of the decree to each. If you hold a professional license in Connecticut, check with your licensing authority, since some boards impose strict deadlines for reporting a name change.

1
Justia. Connecticut Code 46b-63 – Restoration of Birth Name or Former Name of Spouse
2
Justia. Connecticut Code 45a-99 – Jurisdiction to Grant Change of Name
3
Connecticut Probate Courts. Name Changes
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Connecticut Probate Courts. PC-901 Petition for Change of Name
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Connecticut Probate Courts. PC-900 Petition for Change of Name of Minor
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CT.gov. Address Confidentiality Program
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Social Security Administration. Learn What Documents You Will Need to Get a Social Security Card
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Internal Revenue Service. Name Changes and Social Security Number Matching Issues
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Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles. Change of Name or Name Correction Request
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CT.gov. Update Your Registration
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USAGov. How to Update or Change Your Voter Registration
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Justia. Connecticut Code 47-12 – Change in Name or Conversion