Change of name evidence: divorce documents

 We do not accept divorce documents on their own, as evidence that the contractor has changed their name. This is because divorce documents issued in England and Wales since 1971, no longer show the link between the current name and the old name.

Marriage certificates are handed to courts as part of the divorce proceedings and are only returned to the contractor if they ask for it. If the contractor does not have their certificate, they will need to provide an official copy, which they can get from the General Register Office (or the registrar of the country they got married in).

You must refer to Names: change of name passport applications guidance when a contractor changes their name because they have divorced (as it tells you what evidence they must provide, depending on what has changed).

Please refer to https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/names-evidence-to-change-a-name/names-evidence-to-change-a-name-accessible  for further details on the types of documentation we can accept.