Kentucky Name Change Forms: Every Form and Where to File It

A name change in Kentucky runs through federal forms and Kentucky 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 Kentucky Office of Vital Statistics, Cabinet for Health and Family Services. 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 Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, Division of Driver Licensing (DRIVE) license application. This is the Kentucky-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 Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, Division of Driver Licensing (DRIVE) 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 Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, Division of Driver Licensing (DRIVE). Details on the Kentucky 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.

Filling in the form is half of it. Kentucky also wants supporting documents at the counter:

• Certified Kentucky marriage certificate
• Social Security card updated with new name (SSA update must be done first, then wait 24-48 hours for KYTC to verify against SSA records)
• Current/expired Kentucky driver's license or ID card
• Proof of Kentucky residency (e.g., utility bill, especially if updating to REAL ID)
• Completed application (TC 94-192 renewal/replacement form, if applicable)

REAL ID note: If upgrading to or renewing a REAL ID-compliant credential at the same time, proof of Kentucky residency (e.g., utility bill) is also required in addition to the name-change documents.

Good to know for Kentucky: Marriage records from June 1958 to present are held by the state Office of Vital Statistics; records can be ordered by mail (check/money order to Kentucky State Treasurer) or online/expedited via the state's linked VitalChek ordering option. For marriages before June 1958, the county clerk where the license was issued is the only source.

Many Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, Division of Driver Licensing (DRIVE) locations let you skip the line by booking ahead: book a Kentucky appointment.

Two of these go in the mail, and they do not go to the same place.

Form SS-5. Kentucky is one of the states where the SSA supports a fully online marriage name change, so you may not need to mail anything at all. Start at my Social Security. If you would rather use paper, take or mail the SS-5 to a local office: find your nearest one.

Passport forms. This is where Kentucky matters, because routine DS-82 service is split by state. Kentucky is routed to the Pennsylvania processing center.

DS-82, routine service from Kentucky
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.

• Certified marriage certificate (3 copies): $30–$90
• Social Security card (Form SS-5): Free
• Driver's license update (Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, Division of Driver Licensing (DRIVE)): about $15 (confirm with the agency)
• Passport (only if you update it): Free–$165
• Voter registration: Free

Most people spend roughly $45–$270 in Kentucky: 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 Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, Division of Driver Licensing (DRIVE) fee, and a passport renewal if you need one. Passport pricing changes independently of anything Kentucky does, so check the current State Department fee schedule on the day you file.