How to Legally Change Your First Name in Florida

To legally change your first name in Florida, you file a verified petition under Florida Statutes section 68.07 in the circuit court of the county where you live, submit fingerprints for a state and federal background check, attend a hearing, and receive a Final Judgment of Change of Name from the judge.¹ The whole process usually runs about four to five months from filing to final order, and you should plan on roughly $490 to $530 in combined court and fingerprinting costs.

Who Can File

Any Florida resident can petition, but you have to file in the county where you actually live.¹ Adults 18 and older file for themselves. For a child, a parent or legal guardian files.

The court will deny the petition if it finds you’re seeking the change for a fraudulent or illegal purpose. You have to swear in the petition that you aren’t trying to dodge creditors, avoid criminal prosecution, or infringe on anyone else’s rights, including trademarks, business goodwill, or privacy.¹ You also have to state whether your civil rights were ever suspended and, if so, confirm they’ve been fully restored. An unresolved felony-related suspension of civil rights is a stopper.

What to Put in the Petition

Use Florida Supreme Court Approved Family Law Form 12.982(a) for an adult petition, available through the Florida Courts website.² You’ll also file a Civil Cover Sheet (Form 1.997), which Florida requires with the first paper in any civil case. The petition is verified, meaning you sign it under oath. Section 68.07(3) requires you to disclose:¹

Proof that you live in and are domiciled in the county where you’re filing.
Your date and place of birth, your father’s name, and your mother’s maiden name, if known.
Every place you’ve lived since birth.
Your spouse’s name if married, and the names, ages, and locations of any children.
The date, place, and court for any previous name change.
Your occupation, employer, and employment history for the past five years, plus business information if you own one.
Any other names you’ve been generally known by, and where.
Whether you’ve ever been declared bankrupt, and if so when and where.
Any arrests, charges, pleas, or findings of guilt, whether or not there was a formal conviction.
Whether you’ve ever been required to register as a sexual predator or sexual offender.
Any money judgments against you: creditor, amount, date, court, and whether satisfied.
A statement that the change is not for an illegal purpose and will not invade anyone’s property rights.
That your civil rights have never been suspended, or have been fully restored.

Do not leave anything out. The background check will surface criminal history, judgments, and prior names on its own, and a nondisclosure looks far worse to a judge than an honest one.

Fingerprints and the Background Check

Before your hearing, you must submit fingerprints for both a state and federal criminal records check.¹ An authorized agency or approved vendor takes them electronically and sends them to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, which runs the state check and forwards the prints to the FBI. Results go directly to the Clerk of the Circuit Court in your county.³

The FDLE and FBI processing fee is $36 as of January 2025 ($24 state plus $12 federal).⁴ The vendor charges its own service fee on top, commonly $50 to $90 depending on the provider. The clerk’s office will hand you a list of authorized fingerprinting locations when you file.¹ Get prints taken as soon as possible after filing, because the hearing can’t happen until results reach the clerk.

Filing Fee and Fee Waivers

The circuit court filing fee for a name-change petition is $401.⁵ That’s standard across Florida, though minor county variations are possible. Combined with fingerprinting, expect to spend roughly $490 to $530 before the hearing.

If you can’t afford the filing fee, apply for a fee waiver by filing an Application for Determination of Civil Indigent Status before your case is opened. You qualify if household income is at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty guidelines. Owning property with more than $2,500 in net equity (not counting your home and one vehicle worth up to $5,000) creates a presumption against eligibility.⁶ A waiver covers the filing fee and summons issuance fee; service fees, copies, and notary fees are still yours.

Filing and the Hearing

File the completed petition, civil cover sheet, and supporting documents with the Clerk of the Circuit Court in your county. You can file electronically through the Florida Courts E-Filing Portal, by mail, or in person.³ The clerk assigns a case number and gives you instructions for scheduling.

At the hearing, the judge reviews the petition, the background check results, and anything you disclosed about criminal history, judgments, or other flags. Bring a photo ID and be ready to explain, in plain terms, why you want the change. If the judge is satisfied the request isn’t for an improper purpose, they’ll sign a Final Judgment of Change of Name. That order is your legal proof. Request several certified copies from the clerk on the spot, because every agency you update will want one.

Restoring a Former Name

Going back to a name you previously held legally is faster and cheaper. Florida law waives fingerprinting and the background check for a former-name restoration, which also means you skip the $36 processing fee and the vendor fee.¹ The hearing can be scheduled without waiting weeks for results. The court filing fee still applies, and the petition must explain why you’re seeking the restoration.

If you’re restoring a maiden name and your divorce case is still open, many Florida judges will handle the restoration inside the divorce itself, saving you a separate petition and filing fee.

Changing a Child’s Name

For a minor, the petition uses Form 12.982(c), not the adult form. Ideally both parents or legal guardians file together as co-petitioners; when both agree and both live in the county of filing, no formal service is needed and a hearing can be set right away.⁷

If only one parent files, the other must be notified. A consenting non-filing parent signs Form 12.982(d). If the other parent won’t consent, you can still proceed, but you must formally serve them. If their whereabouts are genuinely unknown, the court allows constructive service (usually by newspaper publication), which adds time and cost.⁷ Fingerprinting applies to the adult petitioner, not the child, and the petitioner pays for the check.³

If You’re a Registered Sex Offender

Florida doesn’t categorically bar registered sex offenders or sexual predators from changing their names, but it adds scrutiny and post-order duties. Your petition must disclose the registration obligation, and the background check flags that status for the judge, who weighs it in deciding the petition. If the change is granted, the clerk must notify FDLE electronically within two business days rather than the usual five. FDLE forwards the new name to the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, which watches for you to obtain a replacement license or ID within the required window. Failure to update registration records after a court-approved change triggers a law enforcement notification.¹

Updating Your Records After the Order

The court order changes your legal name, but nothing updates automatically. Work through agencies in the right order, because later ones will ask to see proof from earlier ones.

Start with the Social Security Administration. Complete Form SS-5 and bring your court order along with proof of identity and citizenship or immigration status. SSA needs originals or certified copies, not photocopies.⁸ Your Social Security number doesn’t change; only the name attached does. Do this first because most other agencies cross-reference your SSA record.

Next, update your Florida driver’s license or state ID at a DHSMV office with your court order and updated Social Security card. The clerk of court also sends a report to FDLE, which forwards it to DHSMV, but don’t wait for that pipeline.¹ Handle it in person.

Update your Florida voter registration online at RegisterToVoteFlorida.gov, through a tax collector’s office, by mail, or in person. If an election is close, update at least 29 days before election day.⁹

For a U.S. passport, use Form DS-5504 if your current passport was issued less than a year ago, DS-82 for renewal by mail, or DS-11 in person for older passports and first-time applicants. Submit with a certified copy of the court order.

Then move to banks, employers, insurance, professional licenses, and any other account. Nearly all will want a certified copy of the order. Some banks require you to appear at a branch. Notify your HR department so payroll, tax withholding, and benefits records match.

If you were born in Florida, the clerk forwards a name change report to the Florida Department of Health, usually within 30 days of the judgment. The Department attaches the report to your original birth record. The amendment fee is $20 and includes one certified copy of the amended certificate.¹⁰ If you were born in another state, send a certified copy of the order directly to that state’s vital records office with its own application and fee.

1
Online Sunshine. Florida Statutes 68.07 – Change of Name
2
Florida Courts. Petition for Change of Name (Adult)
3
Clerk of the Circuit Court & Comptroller, Palm Beach County. Name Change
4
FDLE. Criminal History Record Check Fee Schedule
5
Broward County Clerk of Courts. Fees and Costs
6
Florida Commission on Human Relations. Indigent Status
7
Florida Courts. Florida Supreme Court Approved Family Law Form 12.982(c)
8
Social Security Administration. How Do I Change or Correct My Name on My Social Security Number Card?
9
Florida Department of State, Division of Elections. Register to Vote or Update Your Information
10
Florida Department of Health. Amendments and Corrections