Alabama Name Change Forms: Every Form and Where to File It
There is no single Alabama name change form. There are four or five, they come from three different places, and this page links each one directly.
Official link
Download Form SS-5 (free, ssa.gov)Every form you need in Alabama
A name change in Alabama runs through federal forms and Alabama agencies at the same time. Here is the whole set, and where each one actually comes from.
- Certified marriage certificate or divorce decree. Not a form you fill in, but the document everything else depends on. Order certified copies from the Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH), Center for Health Statistics. Get two or three, since several agencies each want to see one.
- Form SS-5 (Social Security card). One national form, identical in every state, and always free. Download it straight from the SSA (PDF), or see it filled out field by field.
- Your Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA) - Driver License Division license application. This is the Alabama-specific piece. The agency supplies the form, and most locations hand it to you at the counter or post it on their site rather than publishing a standalone name-change form. Start from the official Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA) - Driver License Division page.
- A passport form, if you hold a passport: DS-5504 (free, passport under a year old), DS-82 (renew by mail), or DS-11 (in person). Which one is yours is a short test: compare all three.
- Voter registration update. Free, and often handled for you at the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA) - Driver License Division. Details on the Alabama voter registration page.
Watch for sites charging a fee to "provide" the SS-5 or the passport forms. Every one of them is a free download from the government, linked above.
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Documents the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA) - Driver License Division asks for
Filling in the form is half of it. Alabama also wants supporting documents at the counter:
- Certified marriage certificate (original or certified copy)
- Updated Social Security card (proof SSA record already reflects new name; 24-hour waiting period after SSA visit)
- Current Alabama driver license or state ID
- Proof of residency document (for REAL ID compliance)
- Payment for duplicate license fee ($36.25)
REAL ID note: Must wait 24 hours after updating your name with the Social Security Administration before ALEA can process the name change on your license; bring proof of SSA update along with certified marriage certificate.
Good to know for Alabama: Order online/by phone via VitalChek (1-888-279-9888), by mail to Center for Health Statistics, P.O. Box 5625, Montgomery, AL 36103-5625, or in person at any county health department. Search/certified copy fee is $15.00; additional copies same order $6.00 each; $15.00 expedite fee.
Many Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA) - Driver License Division locations let you skip the line by booking ahead: book a Alabama appointment.
Where to send each form
Two of these go in the mail, and they do not go to the same place.
Form SS-5. Take or mail it to a local Social Security office. There is no central address for the SS-5, so use the SSA office locator to find the one that serves you.
Passport forms. This is where Alabama matters, because routine DS-82 service is split by state. Alabama is routed to the Pennsylvania processing center.
DS-82, routine service from Alabama
National Passport Processing Center
PO Box 90155
Philadelphia, PA 19190-0155
Routine service (no fee)
National Passport Processing Center
Post Office Box 90107
Philadelphia, PA 19190-0107
Expedited service uses different addresses again and costs extra, and the instructions ask you to write "Expedite" on the outside of the envelope. Use a trackable mailing service: that envelope holds your passport and your certified certificate.
What these forms cost in Alabama
- Certified marriage certificate (3 copies): $30–$90
- Social Security card (Form SS-5): Free
- Driver's license update (Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA) - Driver License Division): about $36.25 (confirm with the agency)
- Passport (only if you update it): Free–$165
- Voter registration: Free
Most people spend roughly $66–$291 in Alabama: on the low end if you skip the passport, on the high end with a full passport renewal and extra certificate copies.
The forms themselves cost nothing. What you pay for is certified copies, the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA) - Driver License Division fee, and a passport renewal if you need one. Passport pricing changes independently of anything Alabama does, so check the current State Department fee schedule on the day you file.
Alabama FAQs
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