Applying for a passport in a fun, temporary or trademarked name
The UK Identity and Passport Service (IPS) have introduced a policy for inappropriate and temporary name changes in passports.
Under this policy, IPS will not issue a passport in a name that is temporary or contains:
- A political statement
- A string of words not normally considered to be a name
- A trademarked name
The IPS has other restrictions but our own restrictions on new names mean that a Deed Poll issued by us would not be in breach of these.
However, if you provide IPS with documentary evidence that you are using your new name for all purposes, IPS will issue you a passport (in your current name) with an observation stating "The holder is also known as [new name]".
For this to happen you will need to enclose at least two documents with your passport application that demonstrate you are using your new name for all purposes e.g. your driving licence and a utility bill.
When we send out your Deed Poll documentation we will also enclose an example of a covering letter to send with your passport application in support of your request for a passport in your new name.
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Sections in this article
Click on the links below to view each section of this article.
1. Name restrictions
2. Characters we can print on our Deed Poll documents
3. Title restrictions
4. Fun names
5. Copyright and trade mark protection of names
6. Applying for a passport in a fun or trademarked name
7. Limits on the number of characters in a name
This page was last checked today by Amanda Dawson, Senior Deed Poll Officer.