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If
you are a woman and you are changing your name when you get married,
your passport is the one document you can get changed for up to
three months before you get married, to show your married name.
However, your new passport will only be valid from the date of your
wedding since it will be post dated. Please note, if the country
you are visiting requires a visa, check with your travel agent (or
the country's embassy) to ensure that a visa can be stamped in a
post dated passport. If this is not possible, you will need to travel
using your passport in your maiden name.
You should also be aware that some countries will not accept an
unamended passport (i.e. still in your maiden name), even if you
carry your marriage certificate with you. Therefore, you must arrange
to have a post dated passport issued in your married name. Again,
clarify this with your travel agent.
If you are undecided about changing your name when you get married,
please read our article changing
your name upon marriage. You will find it helpful.
 If you decide to change your name, it's important to change your passport too. Some countries might not accept an unamended passport even if you carry your marriage certificate (you can check this with your travel agent or the country’s consulate), so it’s well worth having the name changed on your passport well in advance.
This can be done any time up to three months before the wedding, although you’ll be unable to use your passport until the actual day of your marriage.
You will need to apply for a new standard 10-year passport. If you are already a passport holder this will mean surrendering your present passport. Your new passport will be valid for 10 years and up to a further 9 months depending on the remaining validity on your passport (in whole months, minimum one month, and maximum nine months). Please sign your new name in section 09. Payment for a new passport is £66.
A passport application form and form PD2 are available from post offices and branches of Worldchice travel agents. These 'high street partners' as they are called, also provide a checking service to ensure your application form has been completed correctly and all the appropriate documentation has been enclosed. They will also securely transmit your application form to the appropriate passport office.
The same applies if you change your passport after your wedding, apart from having form PD2 signed. Instead you will simply send off your original marriage certificate and, if this is not your first name change, your original birth certificate.
Address:
Hampton House, 47-53 High Street, Belfast, BT1 2QS.
Opening hours: Monday to Friday 9am to 4.30pm (except public holidays).
All of Northern Ireland.
Address:
3 Northgate, 96 Milton Street, Cowcaddens, Glasgow, G4 0BT.
Opening hours: Monday to Friday 9am to 4.30pm (except public holidays).
All of Scotland and all London
boroughs.
Address:
101 Old Hall Street, Liverpool, L3 9BD.
Opening hours: Monday to Friday 9am to 4.30pm (except public holidays).
Cheshire, Cleveland, Cumbria,
Derbyshire, Durham, Greater Manchester, Tyne and Wear, Humberside,
Lancashire, Merseyside, Northumberland, North Yorkshire, South Yorkshire,
Staffordshire, West Yorkshire, Shropshire.
Address:
Globe House, 89 Eccleston Square, London, SW1V 1PN.
Opening hours: Monday to Friday 8.15am to 4pm (except public holidays).
The London office deals with
personal callers only from any region of the UK however, there is
an additonal charge for this service. Postal applications from residents
of London boroughs should be sent to the Glasgow passport office.
Address:
Olympia House, Upper Dock Street, Newport, Gwent, NP9 1XA.
Opening hours: Monday to Friday 9am to 4.30pm (except public holidays).
Avon, Berkshire, Clwyd, Cornwall,
Devon, Dorset, Dyfed, East Sussex, Gloucestershire, Gwent, Gwynedd,
Hampshire, Hereford, Isle of Wight, Mid Glamorgan, Oxfordshire,
Powys, Somerset, South Glamorgan, Surrey (except London boroughs),
West Glamorgan, West Sussex, Wiltshire.
Address:
Aragon Court, Northminster Road, Peterborough, PE1 1QG.
Opening hours: Monday to Friday 9am to 4.30pm (except public holidays).
Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire,
Cambridgeshire, Essex (except London boroughs), Hertfordshire (except
London boroughs), Kent (except London boroughs), Leicestershire,
Lincolnshire, Norfolk, Northamptonshire, Nottinghamshire, Suffolk,
Warwickshire, West Midlands.
For more information visit http://www.ukpa.gov.uk/
Please note, consulates of some countries cannot grant visas on post-dated or amended passports. Therefore, you should check with the consulate of the country you are honeymooning in before making arrangements to have your passport changed to your new name. Remember, you can always travel on your existing passport in your maiden name and arrange to have your passport changed upon your return to the UK. If you do this, you should take your marriage certificate with you.
You
can visit any of the passport offices in person to apply for your
new passport (or have it amended). Depending upon how busy the office
is, it can take from just an hour or two, but be prepared to spend
much longer there should they be busy.
For postal applications, passport offices take up to two weeks to
turnaround a straight forward passport application but to be safe
you should send your application at least six weeks before your passport
is needed. However, if a visa is required for your honeymoon destination,
you should enquire with the embassy or consulate of the country that
you intend to visit to check how much time should be allowed for processing
your visa application. Please bear in mind that between February and
June most people apply for their passport, so applications can take
several weeks longer to be processed.
If
you are taking children on honeymoon with you it should be remembered
that unless they are included on an existing passport they are now
legally required to have one in their own name. Passports for children
are obtained by completing the standard passport application form.
Children aged 16 and over cannot travel on a parent's passport.
A
passport is still required for travelling to European destinations.
This includes travel by Eurostar and day trips. Some European countries
have abandoned routine passport checks at their land borders but they
still expect visitors to be able to produce either a valid passport
or a national identity card if asked for. As the UK does not issue
national identity cards, you must be in possession of a valid, standard
10 year passport. You will also need to show your passport to immigration
control when you return to the UK.
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