Is this right for my situation?
If something has already changed your name and what is left is the paperwork, the kit is for you. If a court still has to approve the change, it is not.
The kit is built for people whose name change has already been authorized and who now face the downstream paperwork. That covers a great many situations:
- You got married, and you are taking, hyphenating or combining a surname.
- You got divorced, and your decree restores a former name to you.
- A court has already approved your name change and signed the order — for any reason at all.
The reason behind a court order makes no difference to us and no difference to the paperwork. We never ask why one was granted, nothing in the interview records it, and no letter or form in your kit mentions it. What each agency asks to see is that agency’s own rule, and your state pages point at where it publishes it.
When we are not the right service
If nothing has authorized your new name yet, the first step is a petition to a court where you live. That is a different process, we do not handle any part of it, and we will not sell you a kit you cannot use. There is an informational page with the official place to start in each state, and no route from it to checkout.
The same applies if your divorce decree does not restore a former name. Ending a marriage does not restore a name on its own — a court has to write the restoration in. If yours does not say so, the route back runs through a court.
Two questions at the start of the interview settle this before any payment. One of the answers means we cannot help, and we would rather tell you that first.
Related questions
- What if I am not sure whether my decree restores my former name?
- Say so. "I am not sure" is one of the answers, it never resolves to yes, and it opens a panel showing where that clause usually sits and what the wording looks like. You read your own document; we never interpret one.
- Do you help with court name change petitions?
- No. We do not prepare, review or file petitions, and we publish no guidance on succeeding at one. The petition page carries the official links for your state and nothing else.
Other questions people ask
When you’re ready to do it
Two questions about your situation first, because there is one answer that means we can’t help — and we would rather tell you that before you pay than after.
One payment. No subscription.