When getting married, using a double surname is a long-standing tradition that was actively practiced in the pre-revolutionary period. During the Soviet Union, the dynamics of the use of this form decreased, but in the 21st century, the interest of citizens has grown again. According to statistics, about 75% of girls take their spouse’s surname when getting married, 17% leave their maiden name, and only 8% prefer the couple format.
However, if such a desire arises, citizens need to know the nuances of undergoing such a procedure, as well as possible difficulties.
Legislative norms
The procedure for completing the procedure for changing a personal form is defined in the legislation of the Russian Federation. The IC of Russia (article) establishes the right of a husband and wife to choose a surname, including a married name. The procedure is simple and consists of submitting an application for marriage, in which the bride and groom indicate their desire to join the family. The registry office staff will make notes in the relevant papers.
Article 32 of the Family Code of the Russian Federation “The right of spouses to choose a surname”
The right of spouses to choose a surname
How can I change it some time after registering a marriage?
Often a change of surname occurs when registering a barracks.
In this regard, the newlyweds are given their first and main family document in the registration hall - a marriage certificate. It contains all the data of the spouses and, of course, the data that the husband and wife will carry in the future. Sometimes it happens that for some reason one of the persons wishing to legalize the marriage relationship refuses to change the data during the marriage and remains with his own.
But some time after the wedding, he still decides to change his last name. In this case, you need to go through a certain legal procedure.
The legislation of the Russian Federation allows you to change your personal data regardless of status and position. But the very fact of the change must be recorded by the registry office employees.
You need to collect some documents:
- passport;
- birth certificate;
- certificate of marriage or divorce.
In this case, a statement is written indicating the reason for the change in personal data, as well as the previous and new surname.
This application will be reviewed by the Civil Registry Office staff within thirty days, after which either personal data is changed or a justified refusal to carry out this action is issued. A refusal can always be appealed in court.
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Registration procedure
The process of drawing up an application involves entering additional lines into a special form.
This applies to both women and men. In the future, this information will be carried out by civil registry office employees during registration. The required columns in the application are those that involve changing personal information, i.e. personal data.
In other words, future spouses must register the chosen option when entering into marriage:
- keeping maiden;
- choice in favor of the future spouse;
- pair form.
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A simple way to obtain a complex form of origin is to send a statement from each party. The award of official status occurs on the basis of expression of will. In the absence of consent from one of the participants, personal information will not be adjusted. That is, only the data of the person who confirmed the choice can be changed.
In addition to restrictions on the use of a premarital couple's surname for one of the participants, there are also regulatory documents in certain regions of Russia. In other words, if restrictions on such a procedure are introduced in the region, citizens will not be able to register a union in the registry office of this subject. Typically, this happens due to national, religious or cultural rules. Therefore, before getting married, you should clarify this possibility.
Article 32 of the RF IC. The right of spouses to choose a surname (current version)
1. On the issue regarding changing a surname, see Article 19 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. According to this article, a citizen acquires and exercises rights and obligations under his own name, including the surname and first name, as well as patronymic, unless otherwise follows from the law or national custom. In cases and in the manner provided by law, a citizen may use a pseudonym (fictitious name).
Acquiring rights and obligations under the name of another person is not permitted. In this case, the name of an individual or his pseudonym may be used with the consent of this person by other persons in their creative activities, entrepreneurial or other economic activities in ways that preclude misleading third parties regarding the identity of citizens, as well as precluding abuse of rights in other forms.
The right to choose a surname, referred to in paragraph 1 of the commented article, is one of the personal non-property rights that is subject to more or less detailed regulation. It lies in the fact that upon marriage, spouses can choose the surname of one of them at will or keep their premarital surnames. This right is exercised only at the time of marriage registration. A common surname formed by combining the surnames of spouses can also be indicated as a common surname. The combination of surnames is not allowed if the premarital surname of at least one of the spouses is double.
It should be noted that changing a surname upon marriage is a right, not an obligation, of persons entering into marriage. The solution to this issue depends solely on the free desire of the future spouses. A person entering into marriage has no legal grounds to demand that his chosen one change his surname.
It should be noted that persons wishing to register a marriage have the right to change only their last names. The simultaneous change of name and (or) patronymic during state registration of marriage is not provided for by current legislation. A person who wishes to change his name and (or) patronymic must go through the usual procedure for state registration of a name change, regulated by Art. Art. 58 - 63 of the Federal Law “On Acts of Civil Status”.
2. Situations are possible when, after marriage, one of the spouses changes his last name. A change of surname by one spouse does not automatically change the surname of the other spouse. If the marriage is dissolved, the spouse who changed his last name upon marriage has the right to retain this last name after the divorce or return his old last name upon state registration of the divorce.
3. Upon divorce, each spouse has the right to either return his premarital surname or retain a common one. In the latter case, the spouses have such a right even if one of the spouses objects to this.
Comment source:
“ARTICLE-BY-ARTICLE COMMENTARY TO THE FAMILY CODE OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION” UPDATED
S.P. Grishaev, 2017
How to take a double surname some time after marriage
Situations often occur when a woman, upon marriage, decides to take her husband’s lineage. However, after a while it leans towards the tandem look. In accordance with Russian laws, a citizen has the right to change personal data at any time. However, such actions must be carried out in the prescribed manner - by submitting an application to the registry office.
Sample application for change of surname
Additionally, you must provide the following documents:
- birth certificate;
- marriage and divorce certificate;
- passport.
The application states the reason and indicates the new origin. In a number of situations, registry office employees may refuse to change. Such decisions are unlawful and must be appealed through supervisory authorities or the court.
Note: the final version of the surname must have a hyphen separating the maiden and husband. Mandatory - no spaces, both are written with a capital letter, and the ending is used in the nominative case.
Grounds for registering a double surname
One of the mandatory formalities that newlyweds must complete when submitting an application to the registry office is the indication of the future surname of the spouses. The law allows for various options for choosing a family name, including a double surname.
When applying for marriage registration, a man and a woman will have to fill out several mandatory lines and sections. Mandatory points of the application also include an indication of the future surname of the married couple. The law allows the following choices:
- preservation of premarital surnames for each spouse;
- establishing the premarital surname of one of the applicants for both spouses;
- choosing a double surname.
The most obvious option for establishing a double (compound) surname would be to choose it when filling out a joint application. You can get advice about the nuances of such a choice from the experts of the “Everything step by step” website.
The procedure for forming a double surname for spouses is determined by the RF IC:
- a double surname is formed by joining the premarital surnames of the husband and wife;
- a double surname is written in official documents with a hyphen.
This choice requires the free will of both newlyweds. The lack of consent of at least one of the citizens does not give rise to legal consequences and changes in the personal data of citizens.
The law also defines situations when you cannot choose a double surname:
- it is unacceptable to combine the premarital names of husband and wife if at least one of them was already a double name;
- By regulations of individual constituent entities of the Russian Federation, the formation of double surnames may be prohibited or limited due to national, cultural, religious or other traditions.
Find out more Consultation with a lawyer on drawing up a marriage contract
If there are no restrictions on choosing a double surname, when registering with the registry office, this fact will be reflected in the register book and marriage certificate.
The easiest option is to choose a double surname when registering your marriage
List of documents to be replaced after marriage
Often, future husband and wife wonder whether it is possible to take double surnames after marriage. When changing your surname, whether both spouses will use the paired form or only the wife, you must provide a passport as proof of identity.
Accordingly, after making changes to the document certifying a citizen, other papers will need to be replaced. Often this moment causes difficulty for newlyweds, because it is necessary to spend time visiting government agencies.
Thus, after using tandem origin and changing the passport, you will need to replace:
- international passport;
- driver license;
- compulsory medical insurance policy;
- debit bank cards;
- individual taxpayer number (TIN);
- student ID and other documents related to education (diploma and certificates confirming completion of studies are not subject to change);
- vehicle passport.
Documents that can be replaced at the MFC
Accordingly, it takes a lot of time to change documentation. Only government officials can tell you the exact timing of replacement. In addition, there is a state fee for such a procedure.
If the passport is not replaced in time, the citizen will be subject to sanctions in the amount of 2,000 to 5,000 rubles. (depending on your region of residence).
Assigning a double surname to children - nuances
Since during the marriage the spouses have common minor children, they may also need to change their surname. To do this, you need to take into account the nuances specified in Art. 59 RF IC:
- Before a child turns 10 years old, a joint decision on choosing a surname is made by legal representatives (parents, guardians, trustees);
- starting from the age of 10 years, children are required to give consent to each fact of changing their personal data;
- Until the child is 14 years old, a joint request from parents to establish his surname is accepted only with the permission of the guardianship authorities.
Thus, in addition to the standard list of documents, to establish a new surname for a child, you need to perform the following steps:
- for a child under 10 years of age - obtain permission from the local guardianship authority;
- at the age of a minor citizen from 10 to 14 years old - obtain his consent and permission from the guardianship authority;
- When children reach the age of 14, obtain only their consent.
Registration of a change of surname for a child will be carried out according to general rules. Based on the results of assigning a new surname, you need to reissue documents for the children: birth certificate and passport (if the child is 14 years old).
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Double surname for a child
In Russia, it is legally prohibited to assign children dual origin if one of the parents does not have such a type. Therefore, if a husband and wife want to write down such a surname for a child, then one of the spouses will need to make changes to their personal data.
For example, a mother has the right to submit an application to the registry office for the return of maiden origin, and then undergo registration for the assignment of a dual format. In addition, the procedure can be carried out if people have officially registered the relationship. However, it is permissible to marry after the birth of a child and settle the matter later.
Experts recommend not delaying the procedure, because after children turn 14, the choice of surname remains with the child - the wishes of the mother and father are not taken into account. When receiving a passport, the child must express his will.
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According to the provisions of the IC of Russia (Article), the following procedure is provided:
- up to 10 years of age, the decision to assign a paired surname to a child is made by the father and/or mother;
- 10-14 years old - parents or guardianship authorities;
- from 14 years old - only a child.
The rules for completing the registration procedure for making adjustments to a child’s personal data are similar to the standard procedure for persons over 18 years of age.
Article 59 of the Family Code of the Russian Federation “Changing the child’s first and last name”
How a double surname is passed on to children
The child's surname is determined by his parents by mutual consent. If one of the spouses has a double surname, it can also be passed on to the baby.
Information about the surname is indicated on the birth certificate. In this regard, parents must submit an application to the registry office, indicating which surname at birth should be assigned to the child. For unmarried spouses, information about the newborn is indicated by the mother if paternity has not been established. Otherwise, the petition is submitted by the spouses jointly.
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Possible difficulties
This procedure has positive and negative aspects.
For example, newlyweds who have accepted this format of origin invariably raise the question of children. If the name form is simple for both, then legally it is forbidden to give children both. If they wish to make such changes, parents must act according to the established regulations. Note: during a divorce, people have the right to keep the form that was there during the marriage or return the old one.
An additional problem that newlyweds may face is disagreement. Thus, one of the parties may refuse to accept a complex form of origin, while the other, on the contrary, has such a desire. Russian laws allow one of the spouses to undergo the procedure, while the other does not make changes.
In addition, the regulations of individual regions of the Russian Federation should be taken into account. In a number of regions, authorities may hinder such a procedure due to cultural or religious views. To obtain information, you must contact the registry office. Refusal to register an application must be sent with an indication of valid reasons.
Paired descent is not passed on from husband to wife. If the husband is Petrov-Sidorov, then the wife by law cannot take her, because the format will already be triple. The problem is solved this way - the wife remains with a maiden origin or accepts the husband’s family in the form of Petrov-Sidorov.
