To fill out California Form NC-130, the Decree Changing Name, you complete the caption at the top and the rows listing each person’s present and proposed new name, then leave the findings paragraph, signature line, printed judge name, and date blank for the judicial officer. It is a one-page Judicial Council form you prepare in advance and bring to the court so the judge can review, complete the judicial sections, and sign it, turning your petition into a binding order.1Judicial Branch of California. Decree Changing Name (NC-130)
What NC-130 Is and When You Prepare It
NC-130 is the final document in the California name change sequence. You don’t start with it. By the time you fill it out, you should already have filed Form NC-100 (Petition for Change of Name), received Form NC-120 (Order to Show Cause) from the clerk with a hearing date on it, and arranged newspaper publication of the Order to Show Cause.2California Courts | Self Help Guide. Change Your Name in California
Download the current version of NC-130 from the California Courts website or pick one up from the clerk’s office at your local superior court.1Judicial Branch of California. Decree Changing Name (NC-130) You draft it yourself and bring it with you so the judge can sign it the day the petition is granted. Treat it as a document you’re preparing for the court’s approval, not a form you complete alone.
The Parts You Fill In
The Caption Block
Start at the top left, in the box labeled “Attorney or Party Without Attorney.” If you’re representing yourself, which most name change petitioners do, put your own name, mailing address, and phone number there.
Below the attorney box, fill in the name of the superior court, the county, and the court’s street address. Use the same court information that appears on your NC-100 petition and your NC-120 order. Any discrepancy between forms slows things down.
On the right side of the caption, write your case number in the “Case Number” box. Copy it exactly from your NC-100 and NC-120. One transposed digit means the clerk cannot match the decree to your file.
The “Petition of” line directly under the caption lists your current legal name as the petitioner. Write it exactly as it appears on your petition.
The Present Name and New Name Rows
In the body of the form you’ll find numbered rows for present names on the left and new names on the right. Row (a) is for the primary petitioner. Rows (b) through (d) are for additional people included in the same petition, such as a spouse or children.3Judicial Council of California. Decree Changing Name
Enter each person’s current legal name on the left and the exact requested new name on the right. Spell everything precisely. Capitalization, hyphens, apostrophes, middle names, suffixes: whatever you want the final name to be, write it that way here. The signed decree becomes the legal record every agency works from, so a typo you leave in NC-130 is a typo you’ll be explaining at the Social Security office, the DMV, and the passport agency.
Only use the rows you need. If your petition covers just you, fill in row (a) and leave the rest blank.
The Parts You Leave Blank
Several sections of NC-130 are reserved for the judge. Filling them in is one of the fastest ways to get your paperwork handed back to you.3Judicial Council of California. Decree Changing Name
Leave the findings paragraph alone. The text stating that “all the allegations in the petition are true and sufficient” is the court’s determination, not yours to assert.
Leave the signature line blank. Leave the printed judge name blank. And leave the date blank. Do not date the form yourself, even in pencil. The date of signing is the date the name change becomes legally effective, and only the judge sets it.
Common Mistakes That Get the Form Bounced
Procedural problems trip up more petitioners than substantive objections do. The ones that most often sink an otherwise fine NC-130:
- Mismatched names between the NC-100 petition and the NC-130 decree. If your petition says “Alexandra” and your decree says “Alexandria,” the court won’t paper over the gap.
- Wrong or missing case number.
- No proof of newspaper publication in the file. California law requires publication of the Order to Show Cause once a week for four consecutive weeks before the hearing, and the court needs to see that it happened. Gender-identity name changes are exempt from publication, so this does not apply if that’s the basis of your petition.4California Legislative Information. California Code of Civil Procedure 12772California Courts | Self Help Guide. Change Your Name in California
- Petitioner’s own signature or date filled in on the judge’s section.
Before your hearing date, lay your NC-100, NC-120, and NC-130 side by side and verify that every name, present and proposed, is spelled identically on all three.
What Happens After You Bring It In
You may not have to appear in court at all. Under California Code of Civil Procedure Section 1278, if no one files a written objection at least two court days before your scheduled hearing, the court can grant the name change without a hearing.5California Legislative Information. California Code of Civil Procedure 1278 In practice, many uncontested petitions are approved this way: the judge reviews the file, signs the NC-130 you submitted, and the clerk processes it. Call the clerk a few days before your hearing to confirm whether you need to show up.
If you do appear, bring your prepared NC-130 and a valid photo ID. The judge may ask why you want the name change and whether you have pending criminal matters or are trying to avoid debts. If satisfied, the judge signs the decree and hands it to the clerk.
Order Certified Copies Right Away
Once the decree is signed and filed, ask the clerk for certified copies. A plain photocopy will not satisfy Social Security, the DMV, the passport agency, or your bank. Each certified copy costs $40.6California Courts | Self Help Guide. Get Your Decree Changing Your Name to Match Your Gender Identity A fee waiver granted on your petition also covers certified copy fees.
Order at least three or four. The Social Security Administration keeps one, and you’ll want extras to update your license, passport, and accounts in parallel instead of waiting for one agency to mail your single copy back.
From petition filing to signed decree, the whole process typically runs two to three months, most of which is the publication period and the gap built into the Order to Show Cause hearing date, which falls between six and twelve weeks after filing.4California Legislative Information. California Code of Civil Procedure 1277 The form itself takes minutes. Getting it right the first time is what saves you another hearing date.