GOV.UK and replacements

Can I get a replacement Deed Poll from GOV.UK?

No. GOV.UK does not issue Deed Polls or hold copies of them, and an unenrolled deed, which is what nearly everyone has, exists only as the paper you signed. Replacing one means making a new deed: free with GOV.UK’s wording, or £18.50 from us, drafted with the date you first changed your name.

Replace yours – £18.50 What GOV.UK holds

Guaranteed acceptance
Posted today
Your original date kept

A woman frowning into an empty folder beside a government building, while a new Deed Poll floats towards her

There was never a government copy to lose

A Deed Poll is made privately: you sign it in front of witnesses and keep it. No government body files a copy when you do, so there is no office to ask for a duplicate. Your change of name still stands, and anything already in your new name stays exactly as it is.

It depends which kind you have

Who holds a record of your Deed Poll

Only an enrolled deed goes on the public record, and it is easy to recognise: the court sealed it and posted it back, and a notice appeared in The Gazette. The National Archives estimates that fewer than 1 in 100 changes of name by Deed Poll are ever enrolled.

Almost everyone

An unenrolled Deed Poll

Signed in front of witnesses and kept by you, whether you wrote it yourself or a Deed Poll service or solicitor drew it up.

Who holds it: Only you. The National Archives says there may never have been any record of one beyond the document itself.
From GOV.UK: Nothing to request: there is no copy, and no service that reissues one.
Worth one try: A solicitor who drew it up, though The National Archives says a file copy is unlikely to be kept beyond five years.
What to do: Make a new deed, or order a replacement that keeps your original date.

How our replacement works

Enrolled from 2004

Enrolled with the High Court since 2004

Under the process GOV.UK describes today, the Deed Poll Office seals an enrolled deed and posts it back, and sends you a copy of its Gazette notice.

Where to ask: The Royal Courts of Justice, King’s Bench Division, which The National Archives names for enrolments made since the end of 2003.
Also on record: The notice in The Gazette, which anyone can search by name.

Enrolled up to 2003

Enrolled in 2003 or earlier

Older enrolments sit in the enrolment books at The National Archives in Kew.

Where to ask: The National Archives, which keeps the enrolment records and their indexes.
1945 to 2003: Find the Gazette notice first, then ask The National Archives for its free index search and allow 10 working days. If it finds yours, you can pay it for a certified copy.
Before 1945: Traced through the indexes at Kew, in person or with a paid search.

The free route

What GOV.UK’s free wording does, and does not

GOV.UK publishes a form of words for making your own Deed Poll. It is the nearest thing to an official template, and you can use it to make a new deed. It is not a replacement service.

What it gives you

Wording to copy, at no cost. Anyone aged 16 or over may make their own deed with it.
Lines for two witnesses, each aged 18 or over, according to GOV.UK.
Proof from the day you sign. GOV.UK says a signed deed can be used as evidence of your new name straight away.

What it cannot do

Find or reissue your old deed. It is text to copy out, not a lookup and not an online service, and nothing you make with it is sent anywhere.
Keep your original date. It is signed and dated on the day you sign it, and has no line for when you first changed your name.
Cover a child under 16. For a child’s unenrolled deed, GOV.UK points parents to a specialist Deed Poll agency or a solicitor.
Promise it will be accepted. GOV.UK itself warns that some organisations may turn down a deed you made yourself.

What HM Passport Office looks for. Its caseworker guidance on evidence for a change of name says an unenrolled deed has no set format or wording, and that what it is sent must be an original document or a replacement document. A photocopy you make yourself will not do.

GOV.UK’s wording HM Passport Office’s evidence guidance

Our replacement service

£18.50, with the date of your change kept

A replacement from us is a new Deed Poll in your old and new names, dated with the day you first made the change, so it sits comfortably beside the passport, licence and bank records already in your new name.

Apply online
About five minutes: both names, and the closest date you can give for the change. A paralegal emails you before drafting if the date needs narrowing down.
Drafted and checked
A paralegal hand-drafts it on our certificate paper, quality control checks every name and date, and Royal Mail has it the same working day.
Sign it with witnesses
It has space for two, and we recommend using both. Once signed, it is your evidence again, and it is guaranteed to be accepted or your money back.

What you will pay

No account, no subscription and no hidden fees. Everything below is chosen by you at the checkout.

Your Deed Pollhand-drafted, guaranteed to be accepted: £18.50
Royal Mail delivery2nd class, 1st class, tracked or international: from £2.99
Certified copies optionalone for each organisation you need to tell: from £6 for 2, up to £25 for 20
Board-backed envelope optionalkeeps your documents flat in the post: £1.99

A typical order is £23.49, £18.50 plus £4.99 first class. Nothing else to pay.

Adult replacement – £18.50 Child replacement – £18.50

Any original qualifies, whoever drew it up and however long ago. How our replacement service works, or Ask a paralegal.

Questions & answers

GOV.UK, copies and replacements

Does GOV.UK keep a copy of my Deed Poll?

No. GOV.UK publishes guidance and wording, but it does not issue Deed Polls or file them. Only an enrolled deed goes on the public record, through the High Court, and The National Archives estimates that fewer than 1 in 100 changes of name by Deed Poll are ever enrolled.

Is there a free GOV.UK template for a replacement Deed Poll?

GOV.UK gives free wording for an adult to make their own Deed Poll, and you can use it to make a new one. It is signed and dated on the day you sign it, though, and has no place for the date you first changed your name. HM Passport Office’s guidance says an unenrolled deed has no set format or wording. GOV.UK’s wording.

Can I get a replacement Deed Poll online from GOV.UK?

No. The online service on GOV.UK is for enrolling a Deed Poll with the High Court, which costs £53.05, can take several months and publishes your name and address in The Gazette. It does not look up or reissue a deed you have lost. Ordering a replacement from us online takes about five minutes.

How do I get a copy of an enrolled Deed Poll?

For an enrolment made between 1945 and 2003, find its notice in The Gazette, then ask The National Archives for a free search of its indexes, allowing 10 working days; if it finds the deed, you can pay it for a certified copy. For enrolments since the end of 2003, The National Archives says to contact the Royal Courts of Justice, King’s Bench Division. The National Archives’ guide.

Does HM Passport Office accept a replacement Deed Poll?

Yes. HM Passport Office’s caseworker guidance on evidence for a change of name says what it is sent must be an original document or a replacement document. The only certified copies it lists are ones issued by the General Register Office, so send the replacement deed itself. If one of ours is ever refused, we refund you in full.

Can you replace a Deed Poll that was enrolled?

We can draft a new, unenrolled Deed Poll recording the same change of name and its original date, as we do for any original. If you need the enrolment record itself, the sealed deed or its Gazette notice, that comes from The National Archives or the Royal Courts of Justice rather than from us.

How much does a replacement Deed Poll cost?

Nothing, if you make your own with GOV.UK’s wording. Ours is £18.50 for an adult or a child, hand-drafted, checked and posted the same working day, with Royal Mail delivery from £2.99 chosen at the checkout and certified copies optional, from £6 for two up to £25 for twenty.

Something else? Ask a paralegal and we will answer, usually the same working day.

Keep reading

Replace it without waiting on anyone

Apply online in about five minutes. Your replacement is hand-drafted with the date you first changed your name, checked by quality control and posted the same working day.

Apply online – £18.50 Ask a paralegal

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