Once you are married and home from the honeymoon and you finally get all those thank you cards out to your guests there is one more important task that needs to be completed. The dreaded name change needs to be tackled. There are steps that need to be taken to ensure that the name change will be done correctly and with as little hassle as possible. Having a plan will make the process go easier for you and will also ensure that you will not neglect an important place where you have to change your name.
- Make sure you get your marriage license.
Once obtained, get a few certified copies so that you can distribute them to the needed agencies. Looking to get certified copies of your marriage after the fact can often lead to delays that you do not need. Making sure that you get the copies early on will help when it is time to finally get your name changed with agencies like the Social Security office and DMV. - Change your Social Security Card.
Your social security number is tied to your name so it is very important that the first thing you do is inform the social security office that you now have a different last name. If you fail to take this step first the rest of what you do will not matter. Once you obtain your marriage license you can contact the Social Security Office to get the paperwork you need to officially change your last name. - Contact the DMV.
I know that going to the DMV can be an awful experience but you need to make an appointment so that you can get your driver’s license updated with your name change. What you will need is your old driver’s license, marriage certificate, and your new social security card. If you have all that documentation in hand you should be done quickly and with as little waiting as possible. - Bank Accounts.
Make an appointment to talk with your banker. You will need to bring in your marriage license so that you can officially change your name on your checking, savings, and any other account that you have with your bank. This way you can get your new checks and debit cards issued for your old accounts or set up your new joint account together.
These first steps will allow you to get everything else changed as you come across them. However, you may want to tackle a few of these earlier so they are completed. After a while, you will run into a few occurrences where you have to get your name changed on an account but you will eventually get everything that is out there taken care of. The rest of these areas should be taken care of in the first few weeks after your honeymoon so that way you can resume your life without having to pull out that new social security card and marriage license everywhere you go. - All the Rest.
This list should take care of any other instances where your name has to be changed for record-keeping purposes. I am sure there are going to be a few special circumstances out there but what follows is a good place to take care of the bulk of them.
- Credit cards, store cards
- Utility bills
- Landlord/mortgage company
- Insurance companies – home, auto, life
- Payroll
- Attorney
- Investments – 401k, Roth, Pension, IRA, Annuities
- Voter registration
- Professional licenses – licenses, registrations, certifications
- Web presence – Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn
- Memberships and clubs
If you miss a few things initially that is all right because you can tackle them as they come across your path. However, just starting here should take care of everything that will make a large impact on your day-to-day life. In the end, changing your name is not as hard as it seems, it just takes some time and planning.