Is a name declaration necessary?

If you got married in Germany

If both spouses wish to use the same surname, they can opt for a joint married name. When you get married in Germany you can declare a married name at the civil wedding itself. The married name is then stated on the marriage certificate. If you got married in Germany and your married name appears on your marriage certificate, you do not need to submit a name declaration through the Embassy or the Consulate General. You can apply directly for a new passport in your married name. If you do not declare a joint married name, each spouse keeps his or her current surname.

If you got married abroad

1.Marriages before 1 May 2025

If you marry abroad, it is often not possible to declare a married name at the time of marriage as that country may not have equivalent legal provisions to Germany, for example in the United Kingdom, and it is not possible to specify a married name on British marriage certificates. This means that, under German law, the German spouse still has the surname he or she was using before the marriage (separate names). This is still the case even if the German spouse is already using the surname of the other spouse in everyday life.
If you got married in the United Kingdom and the German spouse subsequently wishes to change his or her surname, you will have to file a formal „married name declaration“. That is because it is not possible, when getting married in the United Kingdom, to submit a name declaration that is valid under German law.

Example: Jessica Reeds and Anton Fischer got married on 15 January 2025 in the United Kingdom. The marriage certificate contains the pre-marital surnames of the two spouses. Anton Fischer is a German and a British national. The couple wish to take the wife’s surname as their joint married name. The surname Reeds is entered on his British passport, with confirmation that he has adopted a married name under British law. However, to obtain a new German passport bearing the surname Reeds, Anton Fischer first has to submit a married name declaration that is valid for the purposes of German law.

If you declared a married name when marrying abroad (outside of the United Kingdom), please enquire with us first using our Contact form as to whether it is recognised as a married name under German law.

2.Marriages on or after 1 May 2025

One important factor for all Germans habitually resident abroad is the change to private international law. While to date an individual’s surname has been determined by the law of the country of which they are a national, in future a person’s name will be determined by the law of the country in which they have their habitual residence. However, any name already acquired will not change.

If a German habitually resident abroad marries on or after 1 May 2025, their married name will be determined by the law of the country where they reside. If, under the law of that country, a married name already exists, proof of this is required.

What documents can I submit as proof in order to obtain a German identity document bearing the new married name?

• Children’s birth certificates on which you are recorded as a parent under your new married name
• Passport issued by the country in which the new married name is already registered (in the case of dual nationality)

Example: Jessica Reeds and Anton Fischer get married on 5 May 2025 in the United Kingdom. The marriage certificate contains the pre-marital surnames of the two spouses. Anton Fischer is a German and a British national. The surname Fischer Reeds is entered on his British passport, with confirmation that he has adopted a married name under British law.
To obtain a new German passport bearing the married name Fischer Reeds, when making a passport application at the Embassy he submits his British passport by way of proof (in addition to all the other documents required for the passport application). Under the new regulations, it is no longer necessary to submit a declaration of married name.

Note:
Other documents issued by the country of residence such as a driving licence or residence permit do NOT count as adequate proof. In these cases, a name declaration is required for the sake of legal certainty. The declaration can also be filed when registering the marriage.

• Example: Marie Bauer and John Smith marry on 5 May 2025 in the United Kingdom. The marriage certificate contains the pre-marital surnames of the two spouses. Marie Bauer is a German national. The couple do not have any documents proving that Marie Bauer has changed her surname under British law. They can together submit a declaration of married name and specify a married name.

I wish to change my surname following my marriage. Can I file a declaration of married name?

German naming law offers the option to file a declaration, after marriage, specifying the married name you wish to use (e.g. a joint surname). For as long as the marriage exists, this declaration can be filed at any time and is generally irrevocable.
Please also note that, as a rule, any prior divorce abroad has to be recognised before a name declaration can be filed. Further information on this can be found here.

What law should I choose for my declaration of married name?

1.Name declaration where the choice of name is governed by German law

As of 1 May 2025, it is possible under German law to specify a compound surname made up of the surnames of both spouses or parents, both as the married surname and as the surname at birth of any children. However, the surname cannot consist of more than two parts. Compound surnames may be written either with or without a hyphen and are used by both spouses as their joint surname.
As in the past, the surname of just one of the spouses can also be chosen as the joint married name. It is also still possible to add the surname that did not become the married name before or after the married name (with or without a hyphen).

Example: Jessica Reeds and Anton Fischer get married on 15 January 2025 in the United Kingdom. The marriage certificate contains the pre-marital surnames of both spouses. The couple wish to specify a compound surname as their married name. To obtain a new German passport bearing the married name Reeds Fischer, they can now also file a declaration of married name under German law and specify the compound name Reeds Fischer as their joint married name.

Example: Jessica Reeds and Anton Fischer get married on 5 May 2025 in the United Kingdom. On the marriage certificate, both are shown still with their pre-marital surnames. The couple wish to take the wife’s surname as their married name. In addition, Mr Fischer wishes to place his own surname in front of the married name and take the surname Fischer-Reeds. To obtain a new German passport bearing the married name Fischer-Reeds, they can now file a declaration of married name under German law and specify the wife’s surname as their married name. Jessica Reeds, after submitting the declaration, takes the surname Reeds. Anton Fischer takes the surname Fischer-Reeds.

* Please note: These examples have been chosen for illustration purposes only. They may also be applicable in the case of a married couple where one spouse is German and the other is of a different nationality. These arrangements also apply to same-sex married couples.

2.Name declaration where the choice of name is governed by foreign law

If one of the spouses has a nationality other than German, you can also opt for your choice to be based on the law of the country of which the foreign spouse is a citizen. Your married name is then determined in accordance with the law of the country of which the foreign spouse is a citizen, provided the name is permissible under the law of that country.

What documents are required?

If you want to start preparing what you need for your application, please start by reading our information about the process involved here.

Instead of filing a name declaration you can also have your marriage recorded in the marriage register at the competent registry office in Germany and apply for a German marriage certificate. The application form to register the marriage includes the name declaration.

If you only want to file a married name declaration, the following documents are required:

• Cover letter
• Married name declaration form fully and legibly filled in - please write normally (not block capitals) and do not sign the form yet. On page 1 of the form you may only select one naming law option!
• Valid passports or ID cards of both spouses (the ID page of the passports is all that is needed) and, for Germans who do not also possess British citizenship, proof of residential status in the United Kingdom
• Proof of the German nationality of one spouse, e.g. German identity document (German passport or identity card), certificate of naturalisation or certificate of nationality
  Please note: If you do not have proof of this kind, before you apply to file a name declaration please contact our citizenship team using the contact form: Citizenship
• Birth certificates of both spouses – if the German spouse was born in the United Kingdom, it is the long version which includes the names of the parents that is required
• Marriage certificate
• Decree absolute, if you and/or your spouse were divorced at the time of your marriage
  If the German spouse was previously married and the divorce was granted abroad, it is essential you read the information on the recognition of foreign divorces on the following page: Marriage matters
  • In the case of a divorce in an EU country (with the exception of Denmark) after 1 March 2001, you need to submit a certificate pursuant to Art. 39 (Annex I) of Regulation (EC) No. 2201/2003. To obtain the certificate you have to apply to the court that granted the divorce. In the United Kingdom the certificate is also known as Form D180.
  • In the case of a divorce in a third country, i.e. outside of Germany and outside of the European Union, the registry office may, when processing your application, ask for the formal divorce recognition. We advise you to get the divorce recognised before you apply to file the name declaration.
• Death certificate of former spouse, if you and/or your spouse were widowed prior to your marriage
• Birth certificates of any joint children – it is the long version that is needed, which also includes the names of the parents
• Translations of all foreign-language documents (not usually required in the case of international multilingual or English-language birth and marriage certificates)
• Proof of residence in the United Kingdom (e.g. council tax bill or utility bill)
• Certificate of deregistration from Germany or an up-to-date registration certificate from your (last) German place of residence, if applicable
  

How do I submit my application?

PLAIN COPIES (not the originals!) of the documents listed must be sent BY POST to the Embassy in London or the Consulate General in Edinburgh before you book an appointment. Click here for details of what the process involves.

The originals of the documents listed above only need to be presented at your appointment.

Additional documents may be required, depending on the case, and the registry office may ask you for them after you have submitted your application. In particular, you may be asked for German translations of documents (including English-language ones). In addition, apostilles are increasingly being required on foreign documents. Click here for information on applying for apostilles on British documents.

You can find further guidance on name declarations (processing time, fees) here.