Maine Name Change Forms: Every Form and Where to File It
There is no single Maine 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 Maine
A name change in Maine runs through federal forms and Maine 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 Data, Research and Vital Statistics (DRVS), Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Maine CDC). 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 Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV), Department of the Secretary of State license application. This is the Maine-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 Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV), Department of the Secretary of State 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 Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV), Department of the Secretary of State. Details on the Maine 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 Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV), Department of the Secretary of State asks for
Filling in the form is half of it. Maine also wants supporting documents at the counter:
- Certified marriage certificate (or divorce decree/court order showing name change)
- Current Maine driver's license or state ID
- Completed BMV application/request for duplicate license with new name and signature
- Proof of Maine residency (required for REAL ID)
- Social Security card updated with new name (recommended to update first, per SSA)
REAL ID note: Maine law (29-A M.R.S.A. Sec. 1407) requires notifying the BMV of a name change within 30 days. Acceptable proof includes a marriage license, divorce decree, or court order, with a clear document trail from prior legal name to current name. Any first-time REAL ID issuance/upgrade must be done in person at a BMV branch or mobile unit.
Where to send each form
Two of these go in the mail, and they do not go to the same place.
Form SS-5. Maine 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 Maine matters, because routine DS-82 service is split by state. Maine is routed to the Pennsylvania processing center.
DS-82, routine service from Maine
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 Maine
- Certified marriage certificate (3 copies): $30–$90
- Social Security card (Form SS-5): Free
- Driver's license update (Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV), Department of the Secretary of State): $5–$55 (varies; confirm with the agency)
- Passport (only if you update it): Free–$165
- Voter registration: Free
Most people spend roughly $35–$310 in Maine: 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 Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV), Department of the Secretary of State fee, and a passport renewal if you need one. Passport pricing changes independently of anything Maine does, so check the current State Department fee schedule on the day you file.
Maine FAQs
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