Out of state name change?

[Ohaeri]

Hi All,

I'm posting on behalf of my wife in the hopes of taking some of the burden of transition off of her. We're starting the long and arduous process of changing legal documents, which includes name changes (of course). The problem is, we left our previous state a few years ago, before she even came out. We went from Arkansas to New Hampshire. I'm reading the requirements online and they all talk about filing documents in person and showing up to court dates -- which we can't do, because holy cow, that's fifteen hundred miles away and is also a financial impossibility. Does anybody have any advice on how to navigate these waters? I don't want her to have to keep using her deadname, but I don't know how we'll manage this either.

Should be mentioned that we're in very early days of transition yet.


Thanks,

Kat

[Sydney_NYC]

If you've live in NH just file the name change in NH. Most courts only require you to be a resident anywhere from 3 months to a year. The name change court order is good across state lines.

[Ohaeri]

Fantastic, I was hoping that would be the case. Thank you for the quick response. It's a big relief.

[Dena]

On the web you can look at the requirements to change a birth certificate in your birth state. In my case, I was born in Wisconsin but I live in Arizona. I need to get a court order in Arizona then submit it with my surgeons statement to Wisconsin. The forms are all online so it just a matter of tracking them down. Take a look here for starters.

[FTMax]

Name changes as I understand it can only be filed in the state you currently reside in. Same with updating current documentation like state issued ID cards, driver's licenses, etc. You could technically cross state lines to get your SS records updated. Passport offices require additional documentation if you apply in a different state than the one you reside in.

The only record that has to be changed in a particular state is a birth certificate, and that has to be changed in the state you were born in. The caveat to this, is if your birth state requires a court order to amend/update. The court order can originate in any state, but you would still need to submit that court order to your birth state to have the birth certificate updated.