Name change in Utah
These are the steps most people follow for a name change in Utah, in order. Each links to its official source and the date we last checked it. When you're ready, build a personalized checklist that covers every document at once.
This is general information, not legal advice. Requirements change, so always confirm with the official source linked on each step, and talk to a lawyer or legal-aid organization about your specific situation.
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Step 1: Get a court order for your name change
- In Utah, you file the forms for a name change with the district court in the county where you live. You must have lived in that county for at least one year before you file.
Varies by court/clerk.
More detail
- Utah's MyPaperwork website can help you prepare your forms and send them to the court online to start your case. When you file, you are charged a filing fee; if you cannot afford it, you can ask for a fee waiver. You cannot use this process to avoid creditors, fines, or a criminal sentence, to commit fraud, or to choose a name that is bizarre, unduly lengthy, ridiculous, or offensive to common decency, and it is not available if you are currently in the custody of the Department of Corrections or on probation or parole.
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Step 2: Update your Social Security record
- Social Security still changes the legal name on your Social Security record. A valid court order for a name change is one of the events Social Security recognizes as changing your legal name, and you apply with Form SS-5, the Application for a Social Security Card.
More detail
- Social Security's policy manual defines your legal name as your first name and last name — the name you use to sign legal documents. For a person born in the United States, that is generally the name shown on the birth certificate, unless the name changed through an event such as a marriage or a valid court order for a name change. The sex marker on your record is handled separately and under a different rule — see the Social Security sex marker step.
📝 Get the official form: Form SS-5 — Application for a Social Security Card
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Step 3: Update your driver's license or state ID
- To change the name on your Utah driver's license or ID card, you appear in person at the Driver License Division. If your current name doesn't match your ID documents, you bring legal documentation explaining the difference, such as a certified marriage certificate, a divorce decree, an updated passport, a new birth certificate, adoption papers, a citizenship or naturalization certificate, or court papers showing the name change, sealed by the court.
More detail
- Foreign-language documents must be translated into English by a certified translator.
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Step 4: Update your U.S. passport
- To update the name on your U.S. passport, submit a passport application with an original or certified copy of the document that legally changed your name, such as a court order.
More detail
- If your name changed within 1 year of your most recent passport being issued, mail Form DS-5504 with the name-change document — you will not have to submit any fees for this service. If it has been more than a year, renew by mail with Form DS-82 and a certified name-change document, or apply in person with Form DS-11. If you have no legal documentation of the change, you apply in person with Form DS-11 plus Form DS-60, Affidavit Regarding a Change of Name.
📝 Get the official form: Form DS-82 — U.S. Passport Renewal
Sources
- U.S. Department of State — Change or Correct a Passport — We cannot check this source automatically for changes. Check it yourself before you file.
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Where to get help
- Utah Legal Services — Utah's statewide, LSC-funded civil legal aid provider for low-income residents.
- ACLU of Utah — ACLU of Utah's Request Help intake page connects Utah residents to its legal and advocacy work, including on transgender rights.
- Advocates for Trans Equality (A4TE) — Utah identity documents guide — Advocates for Trans Equality (A4TE) keeps a plain-language guide to changing your name and gender marker on Utah documents. Their staff write and update it. Read it alongside this checklist.
- Advocates for Trans Equality (A4TE) — National advocacy organization (formerly the National Center for Transgender Equality) with plain-language guides to updating federal identity documents (Social Security, passport) after a name or gender-marker change.
- Lambda Legal Help Desk — National LGBTQ+ legal organization offering a free legal help desk for questions about discrimination and legal name/gender-marker changes.