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Queensland Beach Wedding Tips The Name Change Trends

Queensland Beach Wedding Tips The Name Change Trends

Changing Your Name & Current Queensland Beach Wedding Trends

Is it necessary and what is the current trend? Our Queensland Beach Wedding coordinator sheds some light on the subject and provides a check list below!

It’s an exciting time, all the preparations, parties and celebration and honeymoon.  Once all the festivities have settled down you have the opportunity to change your last name.

There are several options available if you want to change your name after you are married.

Many Queensland beach wedding brides often fumble over this question and for some it’s a hard decision to make. Here is some of our advice that we use to guide our beautiful couples.

 

  1. Don’t change any part of your name.   This is the easiest option and you don’t need to do anything and is common among professional women whose qualifications are tied to their maiden name.

 

  1. Take the husband’s surname. This is traditionally what most brides chose to do and is a relatively simple process but you must keep a list of all the organisations you need to contact and supply a copy of your official Standard Marriage Certificate (not the certificate you received at the wedding).  If you were married in Australia a formal Change of Name is not required if you wish to take your spouse’s name.  Some of the documents and places that you will need to contact to change your name are:
  • Drivers Licence
  • Passport
  • Medicare Card
  • Bank accounts and credit cards
  • Employer
  • Superannuation fund/s
  • Insurance policies
  • Landlord
  • Electoral enrolment
  • Australian Taxation Office (ATO)
  • Council (for rates if you own a property)
  • Centrelink (if receiving benefits)
  • Utilities
  • Phone accounts
  • Store accounts (eg Myer card)
  • Doctor
  • Ambulance membership
  • Union membership
  • Gym membership
  • Loyalty programs (eg FlyBuys, Myer One)
  • Your will
  • Accountant
  • Tollway accounts
  1. Hyphenate your surnames (Clarke-Browne).
  2. Double Barrel your names (Clarke Brown).
  3. Turn your maiden name into your middle name and take on your husband’s surname as your own surname.
  4. Make up a new surname that is a combination of your maiden name and married name.
  5. Make up a totally new name.
  6. Some couples are choosing to change to the wife’s surname, this is a personal choice.

Hi, I’m Mrs Jones…

You can start using your new name whenever you like, and you don’t have to change your name on any documentation if you don’t want to, this is called ‘name by association’ and is perfectly legal.  Quite a few new brides take on their husband’s name in this way – they use their married name in social circles but keep their maiden name on their official ID documentation.  This can get confusing though, which is why most newlyweds choose to change their name on your driver’s license, passport, bank accounts etc, and go about their name change in a more official way.

The only documentation you need as evidence of your new name is your marriage certificate; consequently, you will need to obtain at least one official copy. Bank, road authorities and the passport office require your full certificate from the Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages (RBDM) since it entails certain security features that might not be present on the certificate you received on your wedding day. A full copy can be requested by email or in person at the RBDM in your state

Take Me On, Take On Me

Taking on your husband’s name is a very simple process.  A Marriage Certificate issued by your state or territory’s Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages is sufficient evidence that you have just married, and you do not need to go through any application process to change your name.  While this will not change your name on your birth certificate / birth record, it will allow you to legally change your name on all your identification documents.  You can start officially changing your name as soon as you are married and have received your Marriage Certificate.

Time Frame’s are Key

Set yourself a time limit to achieve all the changes, if you don’t change them all in a reasonable period you can end up with different ID’s or accounts in different names.  This can be very inconvenient and the longer you leave it the harder it may become.

 

Have questions or queries about your Queensland Beach Wedding? Get in contact with the team at An Island Hideaway by clicking here.