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Name change after divorce

Stamp on divorce papers

Stamp on divorce papers, © picturedesk.com

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You have a name from a former marriage, are divorced by now, and would like to go back to your maiden name or the name you carried before your marriage? In order to change your name, you have to give a name declaration in accordance with German law.

You have a name from a former marriage, are divorced by now, and would like to go back to your maiden name or the name you carried before your marriage?

In order to change your name, you have to give a name declaration in accordance with German law. You can apply for a new passport under the new name only after you have received certificate confirming the change of name.

Please note: If you were divorced outside of Germany, the foreign divorce decree has to be acknowledged by a German court before you give any name declarations. Until then, your divorce is not considered valid according to German law. You can find more information here: Anerkennung einer ausländischen Ehescheidung (Acknowledgment of a foreign divorce decree)

  • Gültige Permanent Resident Card bzw. ein gültiges Visum für Kanada des Antragstellers

Necessary documents:

(each as original)

  • Filled out application form, not signed (if you require an accessible version of the form in English, please contact us by email)
    Formular einseitige Namenserklärung nach Ehescheidung (Deutsch/German only) Barrierefrei PDF / 77 KB
  • Valid German passport
  • Birth certificate (Canadian birth certificates have to include the names of parents, so-called “birth certificate with parental information”)
  • Official marriage certificate (if married in Canada: issued by Vital Statistics; marriage certificates issued by religious institutions or marriage license / proof of solemnization of marriage are not sufficient)
  • Official divorce decree or divorce order
  • Proof of acknowledgment of the divorce by a German court (if divorce order was ruled outside of Germany, the divorce always has to be acknowledged by a German court), find more information here (in German language): Scheidungsanerkennung
  • Valid Permanent Residence card (front and back) or valid visa for Canada
  • If last German passport was issued in Germany: Proof of de-registration (Abmeldebescheinigung)

Translations of foreign – non English – documents have to be submitted in German. Civil status documents originally issued in English are accepted by German civil registry offices in most cases. Please note, that the competent civil registry in Germany may request translations of foreign documents in Germany language.

Hinweis

Die folgenden Hinweise zur Namensführung nach deutschem Recht beziehen sich auf die häufigsten Routinefälle. Aufgrund der Komplexität des deutschen Namensrechts und der Vielfalt an möglichen Sachverhalten sind im Einzelfall Abweichungen möglich. Die Hinweise dienen lediglich zu Ihrer Orientierung und ersetzen nicht die individuelle Beratung. Die Auslandsvertretungen weisen außerdem darauf hin, dass die abschließende Entscheidung über Namenserklärungen im dafür zuständigen deutschen Standesamtes gefällt wird. Sollte Ihr Fall in den folgenden Hinweisen nicht abgedeckt sein, wenden Sie sich bitte an Ihre zuständige Vertretung.

Bitte nehmen Sie zur Kenntnis, dass sämtliche Namenserklärungen sich nur auf den Nachnamen einer Person erstrecken. Die Vornamen einer Person werden bei Registrierung der Geburt in Deutschland oder im Ausland durch die Eltern festgelegt.

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