Name change after marriage in West Virginia

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Marriage certificate

• West Virginia’s Vital Registration Office charges $12 per certified copy, and the fee includes a search that is not refunded.⁶
• The West Virginia Vital Registration Office at 350 Capitol Street in Charleston offers same-day walk-in service.⁶
• West Virginia keeps marriage records confidential for 50 years: until then only the spouses named on the certificate, their adult children and legal representatives may order a copy.⁹
• Online orders for West Virginia certificates go through outside vendors; whatever they charge, the state collects $12 per copy.⁶
• The West Virginia DMV sends people who need a certified marriage certificate to the county courthouse of the county where they married.¹

Driver's license

• The West Virginia DMV takes a certified marriage certificate for each marriage as proof of a name change and rejects souvenir and minister’s copies.¹
• The West Virginia DMV must be able to connect every name on the documents, and the full legal name has to match the one on file with Social Security.¹
• A married West Virginia driver may show the spouse’s last name with the birth first and middle names, or the married last name with the maiden name standing in for the middle name.¹
• West Virginia’s licensing handbook lists $7.50 for a duplicate license and $10.00 more when the duplicate is a REAL ID marked For Federal Identification.²
• For a West Virginia duplicate without REAL ID, a driver whose legal name changed since the last card must add the name change documents.³
• West Virginia prints licenses centrally: a duplicate applicant leaves with a temporary card and gets the permanent one by mail.⁴
• West Virginia drivers aged 50 or older who already hold a license in the name being verified and have renewed at least once may sign a statement instead of producing the marriage certificate.⁵

Voter registration

• West Virginia voters can update their registration online or by mail, or fill out a new application at the county clerk’s office.¹⁰
• West Virginia’s online voter system asks for the name exactly as it appears on the West Virginia driver license or ID card, plus that card’s number, the date of birth and the last four digits of the Social Security number.¹¹
• Online voter applications in West Virginia go to the county clerk, who tells the voter whether the change was accepted or rejected.¹¹
• In West Virginia, voter registration is also offered at the DMV and at marriage license offices, among other places.¹⁰

Social Security

• The Social Security Administration recommends updating your Social Security record before you go to your state motor vehicle office.⁷
• Social Security suggests waiting until the state has recorded the marriage, which takes about 30 days in most cases.⁷
• For proof of identity, Social Security prefers a U.S. driver license and also accepts a state ID card or a U.S. passport.⁷
• Social Security treats a marriage certificate as the ideal proof of both the new legal name and the marriage.⁷
• Social Security accepts only original documents or copies certified by the issuing agency, never photocopies or notarized copies.⁷
• Social Security does not charge for a card with the new name.⁸
• Once Social Security completes the request, the replacement card arrives by mail in 5 to 10 business days.¹²
• People who cannot use Social Security’s online services fill in the paper Form SS-5 and show the required documents.¹³

Passport

• USAGov says to report a name change to the U.S. Department of State as soon as possible to get an updated passport.¹⁴
• Form DS-5504 covers a name change by marriage when the passport was issued less than one year ago and the name changed within that year.¹⁵
• The U.S. Department of State charges no fee for Form DS-5504 unless the applicant asks for expedited service or 1–2 day delivery.¹⁵
• Form DS-82, the mail-in passport renewal, accepts a married name when the applicant sends certified proof such as a certified copy of the marriage certificate.¹⁶
• Renewing with Form DS-82 requires sending the most recent passport, issued when the applicant was at least 16 and less than 15 years ago.¹⁶
• An applicant who cannot document the name change with a certified marriage certificate, divorce decree or court order must apply on Form DS-11 instead.¹⁶
• Form DS-11 is filed in person at a passport acceptance facility, at a passport agency by appointment, or at a U.S. embassy or consulate abroad.¹⁷

Voter registration

• A voter registration can be updated online through vote.gov or by mail with the National Mail Voter Registration Form.¹⁴

Agencies

• USAGov advises telling Social Security early because other agencies learn of name changes through the SSA.¹⁴
• Every name on a federal tax return must match Social Security records.¹⁴

• Form SS-5 filled in from your answersYou print it, sign it and bring it to Social Security with your documents. The form itself is free on ssa.gov.
• The passport application for your case, filled inPicked from your answers about your current passport; the State Department’s fees are paid to the State Department. The application also needs a recent color photo, which the kit doesn’t include: U.S. passport photo rules, and a photo from a selfie.
• The West Virginia checklistThe steps above in order, with the deadline, the fee and the official page for each one.
• Notification lettersFor your bank, employer, insurer and other accounts, with your old and new names.

The kit does not file anything for you and is not legal advice. Government fees, like the license fee and the county copy of your marriage record, are paid directly to each office.