A change of name is a procedure that allows you to legally change the name that is recorded in your act of birth.

Your name is composed of two parts:

• your surname (family name, last name);
  
• your given names (first names).

You may ask to change:

• only your surname;
  
• only your given names;
  
• both your surname and your given names.

It depends on who is making the request and the reason for the name change. In the case where one’s request concerns changing the name of one’s child because the family tie (filiation) has been changed, for example, if the child has been abandoned by his or her mother or father or where one of the parents has been deprived of his or her parental authority, it is the court that has the power to authorize the name change.

In all other cases, it is the Registrar of Civil Status that has the authority to change a person’s name. In Quebec, the Registrar of Civil Status is the body responsible for the Register of Civil Status, which contains information relating to births, marriages, civil unions and deaths.

You may apply for a change of name if you meet the following criteria:

• you are of full age (18 years or older). If you are a minor over 14, you may apply for a change of name but you must notify your parents or tutor;
  
• you are a Canadian citizen;
  
• you have been living in Quebec for at least one year.

The Registrar of Civil Status accepts only legitimate and serious reasons for changing a name. The law mentions a few such reasons:

• you use and are called by a name other than the one that appears on your act of birth (i.e., you go by the name Elaine, but the name Eleanor appears on your act of birth);
  
• your name is difficult to pronounce or spell;
  
• you endure ridicule because of your name;
  
• your name has become infamous or has a negative connotation (i.e., your surname is Hitler);
  
• you want your child to have a name different from the one on his or her act of birth;
  
• keeping your own name, rather than adopting your husband's surname, may conflict with your religious beliefs and cause you to suffer psychologically;
  
• you would like to use the name that you were given at birth, which you were prevented from using due to a particular context (war, refugee status, forced adoption, religious persecution, etc.).

However, a person named Julie cannot request a name change because she likes the name Fantasia better, because "it's more original". She also cannot change her name just because she finds it inconvenient to have a common name: for example, if she often receives the mail of another Julie Tremblay who lives in her neighbourhood.

Do you want to change your name for one of the reasons mentioned above? You must take the following steps:

• First, you must obtain a change of name form. In order to do so, you may either telephone one of the call centres of the Registrar of Civil Status or you may send your request by mail to the Registrar of Civil Status office in Quebec;
  
  
• You must complete the form and attest under oath, by solemnly declaring in the presence of a person authorized by law to receive oaths, that the information contained in the form is accurate;
  
  
• You must publish two notices in the Gazette officielle du Québec and two notices in a local newspaper;
  
  
• You must include any required supporting documents, proof of publication of your notices, and your payment, a cheque or money order payable to the Registrar of Civil Status;
  
  
• You must send the entire package to the address indicated on the form.

Once your request is received, the Registrar of Civil Status will evaluate it and render a decision. You will receive a written decision by mail from the Registrar explaining the reasons for its acceptance or refusal, as the case may be. Please note that this process may take a few months.

If you are not satisfied by the Registrar’s decision, you have thirty days from the date you receive it by mail to ask the court to review the decision. Following the expiry of the thirty-day period for review, if the authorization was granted for the change, the Registrar of Civil Status must inform the public by publishing two notices in the Gazette officielle du Québec and two notices in a newspaper. You will then receive a change of name certificate.

A request to change your name: $125.

Notifying the public of your change of name incurs two additional costs:

• Two notices in the Gazette officielle du Québec: about $ 100;
  
  
• Two notices in a newspaper: varying costs.

A change of name in no way modifies your rights and obligations. As such, documents that you signed using your former name remain valid even after your name change. For example, if you signed a contract under the name Paul Dubé-Lessard, you must abide by the terms of this contract even though you may have changed your name to Paul Dubé.

However, upon providing your change of name certificate, either you or the other party to the contract may require that the contract be modified so as to include your new name.

If you want to obtain a name change for your child, and he is 14 or older, you must first get his consent.

Otherwise, your request for a name change may be refused, unless you have a compelling (very serious) reason for it. For example, a serious reason might be that his security is threatened or his current name opens him up to rejection and ridicule, and is therefore not in his best interest.

If your request for a name change is for a child under 14 years of age, you do not have to get his permission for it.

No, a name change is intended to change what is written on your act of birth.

In order to use any of the names written on your act of birth, you simply have to…use it! This is true even if you haven’t gone by the name in the past.

For example, let’s say that your name is Ethan Louis Thomas and that you’ve gone by the name Ethan Thomas almost your whole life.

Later on, if you would rather go by the name Ethan Louis Thomas, or even Louis Thomas, you simply have to make such a request with the following organisations and associations: Régie de l'assurance-maladie, your bank, employer, landlord, school, municipality, Société de l'assurance-automobile du Québec, etc.

Of course, they will probably ask you for proof (generally a copy of your act of birth) that the name you now want to use is in fact one of your legal names.

The procedure and any applicable fees can vary. To find out more, you should contact the organisation or institution concerned. Keep in mind, the name change won’t rid you of any obligations (debts, contracts, etc.) that you had under your “old” name!

If your name change doesn’t affect any organisations or institutions, you do not have to take any steps. For example, you would not have to notify anyone if you simply wanted to start going by the first name Ethan in social situations because people seem to have trouble remembering "Ethan Louis".