How to Legally Change Your Name in Virginia: Filing, Fees, and Records

To legally change your name in Virginia, file an Application for Change of Name with the circuit court in the city or county where you live, pay the $41 filing fee, and wait for a judge to sign your order. The whole process is often paper-only, with no hearing, if your application is complete and your situation is uncomplicated. Two shortcuts exist outside the court petition: a marriage certificate is itself proof of a new married name, and a divorce decree can restore a former name at no extra filing cost.¹²

For any other reason, whether personal preference, cultural or religious identity, gender transition, or safety, you need the court petition described below.

Who Can File

You must be at least 18 and a resident of the Virginia city or county where you file. Without a fixed Virginia address, you can apply to any circuit court, but you’ll need to show the judge good cause for that particular court to hear your case.³

The judge will grant the change unless the evidence suggests it’s sought for a fraudulent purpose or would infringe on someone else’s rights. Trying to use a name change to evade creditors or bury a criminal history is what the court screens for, and those get denied.³

Changing a minor’s name is a separate process with its own parental consent and notice rules, and isn’t covered here.

What Goes in the Application

Use Form CC-1411, “Application for Change of Name,” available on the Virginia Judicial System’s website.⁴ The form asks for your current legal name and the new name you want, your residential address, your date and place of birth, both parents’ full names including maiden names, your felony conviction history, whether you’re incarcerated or on probation, whether you’re required to register with the Sex Offender and Crimes Against Minors Registry, any prior name changes, and your reason for requesting this one.

The application is signed under oath, which in practice means having it notarized before you file. Bring a government-issued photo ID (driver’s license, state ID, U.S. passport, or military ID) when you go to the clerk’s office.⁵ Along with the application, submit a typed proposed Order for Change of Name, ready for the judge’s signature.⁶

The Fee and How to Waive It

The filing fee is $41, paid to the circuit court clerk when you submit your paperwork.⁷ Virginia does not require newspaper publication, so there’s no publication cost.

If you can’t afford the fee, file an in forma pauperis request asking a judge to waive it. Eligibility is based on income. The Virginia Judicial System’s self-help site links to a Virginia Legal Aid tool that walks you through qualification and generates the form.⁸

What the Court Does With Your Application

Once you file the application, proposed order, ID, and fee, a judge reviews the packet. If everything is in order and nothing raises a concern, many judges approve the change without a hearing. You may simply get the signed order back in the mail, particularly if you included a self-addressed stamped envelope.⁵

If the judge has questions, or your situation triggers the stricter review discussed next, the court will schedule a hearing where you’ll explain your reasons and answer questions.

When the judge signs your Order for Change of Name, that document is your proof of your new legal name. You’ll typically receive one original, so order certified copies from the clerk. There’s no charge for the first attested copy of a final order sent to a party. Additional certified copies cost $2 for the court seal and certificate plus $0.50 per page.⁹ Three or four certified copies is a reasonable starting number, since multiple agencies will each want one.

If You Have a Conviction, Are on Probation, or Are on the Registry

The process is significantly harder in these situations. The court won’t even accept your application unless it first finds good cause to consider it based on your stated reasons.³

If the court accepts the application, it forwards a copy to the local Commonwealth’s Attorney and to the Commonwealth’s Attorney in any jurisdiction where a relevant conviction occurred. That prosecutor has 30 days to respond and can oppose the change on behalf of the state. For applicants on the sex offender registry, the prosecutor also must make a reasonable effort to notify the victim of the original offense, and the victim or their family may attend the hearing or submit a written statement.

The court then holds a hearing and can approve the change only if it finds the new name would not frustrate a legitimate law-enforcement purpose, is not sought for a fraudulent reason, and would not infringe on anyone’s rights. The order must include written findings.³

Sealing the Record for Safety

Name change records are public by default in Virginia. If putting yours in the public record would create a serious threat to your safety or that of your immediate family, you can ask the chief judge to seal it. The court can direct the clerk not to index the order and can block transmission to the State Registrar of Vital Records and the Central Criminal Records Exchange.³

If you were born in Virginia and your record is sealed, the State Registrar issues new birth certificate copies showing only your new name, without an “amended” label and without revealing the old name. This matters most for survivors of domestic violence or stalking. To request sealing, schedule a hearing with the chief judge before filing the application.⁵

Updating Your Records After the Order

A signed court order updates nothing automatically. You’ll bring certified copies to each agency and institution yourself. The order in which you tackle them matters because some updates check against others.

Social Security First

Start with the Social Security Administration. Many other agencies verify names against SSA records, so updating here first prevents mismatches later. Bring your certified court order (or marriage certificate) and proof of identity. SSA issues a new card with your updated name and the same number, free. Call 800-772-1213 to schedule an appointment or check whether your situation qualifies for online application.¹⁰

Once SSA is updated, your next federal tax return should use the name matching your new card. No separate IRS notification is needed. If you had income under both names in the same tax year, report everything on one return using your current name.¹¹

Virginia DMV

After SSA, visit a Virginia DMV customer service center in person. Surrender your current license or ID, take a new photo, provide a new signature, and present your certified court order, marriage certificate, or divorce decree. You’ll pay the standard licensing fee for a replacement card and get the new one in the mail.¹

U.S. Passport

If your passport was issued within the last year, you can generally get a corrected one at no charge. Otherwise, submit a renewal application with your certified court order or marriage certificate.¹²

Employer and I-9

Give your employer a certified copy so they can update payroll. Federal guidance recommends they also update the name fields in Section 3 (Supplement B) of your Form I-9.¹³

Banks and Credit Bureaus

Contact each bank, credit card company, and financial institution where you hold accounts; most will want to see a certified copy. Then notify Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion directly. Creditors sometimes report the change on their own, but reaching out to each bureau keeps your credit history linked to your new name instead of splitting into a thin file.

Everything Else

A few more places to update:

Voter registration, through your local registrar’s office or Virginia’s online portal.
Health, auto, homeowner’s, and life insurance policies, so a name mismatch doesn’t complicate a future claim.
Property records at your county recorder’s office if you own real estate.

1
Virginia DMV. Transaction: Start Name Change
2
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 20-121.4 – Restoration of Former Name
3
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 8.01-217 – How Name of Person May Be Changed
4
Virginia Judicial System Court Self-Help. Change of Name Forms
5
City of Virginia Beach. Procedures for Civil Actions, Name Changes, Annulment, Divorce and Criminal Cases
6
Supreme Court of Virginia. Application for Change of Name (Adult) Form CC-1411 Instructions
7
Virginia’s Judicial System. Circuit Court Fee Schedule (Appendix C)
8
Virginia Judicial System Court Self-Help. Filing Fees and Waivers
9
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 17.1-275 – Fees Collected by Clerks of Circuit Courts
10
Social Security Administration. Learn What Documents You Will Need to Get a Social Security Card
11
Internal Revenue Service. Name Changes and Social Security Number Matching Issues
12
U.S. Department of State. Name Change for U.S. Passport or Correct a Printing or Data Error
13
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Recording Changes of Name and Other Identity Information for Current Employees