How to Change Your Name After Marriage in Georgia

The winning sequence in Georgia is: certified marriage certificate → Social Security (free, first) → wait 24–48 hours → Georgia Department of Driver Services (DDS) → passport → notify everyone. Each step verifies against the one before it, so order matters.

Order 3–5 certified copies from the Georgia Department of Public Health, State Office of Vital Records. Photocopies aren't accepted.

Good to know for Georgia: Statewide marriage records covered are from June 9, 1952 to present. Process is primarily mail-in (complete and mail the Request for Search of Marriage form or Marriage Verification Request form); $10 search fee plus $5 per additional copy. For marriages before June 1952 or for faster/in-person same-day service, contact the Probate Court in the county where the marriage license was issued.

File the free SS-5 with Social Security first, wait 24–48 hours, then update your license at the Georgia Department of Driver Services (DDS) (typically free (confirm with the agency)). Bring:

• Certified marriage certificate (name-change document)
• Current Georgia driver's license or ID card
• Updated Social Security card showing new name (update SSA first, then wait 24-48 hours before visiting DDS)
• Two proofs of Georgia residency (for REAL ID compliance)
• For hyphenated surnames: certified copy of the marriage license application showing the hyphenated name selection

Mind the clock: Georgia asks you to update your license within 60 days of your legal name change, so don't park this step for later. Source: Georgia DDS: license FAQs.

Update your passport, then your Georgia voter registration (The Georgia Secretary of State gives the 5th Monday before the election as the last day to register, which works out to 29 days before a Tuesday election. Its page states no separate cutoff for a name change on an existing registration, so update well before then.), and finally your bank, employer, and insurers.