When you marry across two faiths, your surname can carry real cultural and family weight - so it is worth knowing your options before you decide. An interfaith couple in the UK can keep their own names, one partner can take the other’s surname, you can combine both, or you can create an entirely new shared surname. Taking your spouse’s surname (or simple double-barrelling) is usually free on your marriage certificate, but blending two names into one, or any change that does not match the certificate exactly, needs a deed poll. This guide walks through each path respectfully and tells you precisely when the marriage certificate is enough and when a deed poll is required.
Two naming traditions, one decision
Interfaith marriages often bring together very different attitudes to surnames. In some traditions a wife traditionally takes her husband’s family name; in others, women keep their birth name for life, surnames pass differently, or the family name carries strong religious or ancestral meaning. There is no single “right” answer - UK law lets either spouse, or both, change their name or keep it. Your choice is personal, and it can honour both families at once.
The practical question is simply which mechanism makes your chosen name official: your marriage certificate, or a deed poll. The rest of this guide breaks that down option by option.
Option 1: Keep your own names
Doing nothing is a perfectly valid choice, and a common one where one or both faith traditions favour keeping the birth name. If you both keep your existing surnames, there is no paperwork at all - your names have not changed, so no deed poll and no record updates are needed. Your marriage is fully recognised regardless of whether either of you changes a surname.
A small but useful point: a title such as Mr, Mrs, Ms or Mx is not legally part of your name. If you keep your surname but want to be addressed as “Mrs” or “Ms”, you can simply ask organisations to update your title - no deed poll is required for that.
Option 2: One partner takes the other’s surname
If one of you adopts the other’s surname, this is the most straightforward route. Your marriage certificate is your evidence: HM Passport Office, the DVLA, HMRC, your bank, the NHS and your employer will all accept a certified marriage certificate to update your records to your spouse’s name. You do not need a deed poll for a standard surname swap based on marriage.
This applies equally whichever partner changes - there is nothing in UK law that says the wife must take the husband’s name, and either spouse can adopt the other’s surname. For the full step-by-step on documents, order of updates and timing, see our detailed guide on how to change your surname after marriage in the UK.
Option 3: Combine both surnames (double-barrelling)
Joining both family names - for example, Cohen and Smith becoming Cohen-Smith, or Patel and Ellis becoming Patel Ellis - is a popular way to honour both heritages equally. In many cases a double-barrelled name can be set up on the strength of your marriage certificate, particularly when you simply combine the two existing surnames with a hyphen.
However, acceptance can be inconsistent. Some banks and government bodies are happy to register a hyphenated name from the marriage certificate; others want the order or spelling to match exactly, and a few hesitate with longer or more complex combinations. If you want zero friction - or if your double-barrelled name does not line up perfectly with what is printed on the certificate - a deed poll for your married name removes all doubt and is accepted everywhere. It is the cleanest way to lock in a combined name that both families recognise.
Option 4: Create a brand-new surname (meshing or a fresh name)
Some interfaith couples blend their surnames into a single new word - “meshing” - so Patel and Ellis might become “Patellis”. Others choose an entirely new surname with meaning to both of them. This is a beautiful, neutral solution that does not privilege one tradition over the other.
Here the rule is clear: a marriage certificate cannot create a name that does not appear on it. A meshed or invented surname is a genuine new name, so it must be evidenced by a deed poll. The good news is that this is simple and inexpensive. A deed poll is the standard legal document for adopting any name you choose, and it is exactly what passports, the DVLA, banks and the rest will ask for. You can read more about the wider principle in our overview of changing your name for religious reasons.
When you definitely need a deed poll
To summarise the trigger points for interfaith couples, you will need a deed poll - rather than relying on the marriage certificate - if you want to:
- Mesh or blend two surnames into a single new word.
- Adopt a completely new surname that is on neither birth certificate.
- Change your first or middle name, or add a name from your spouse’s tradition.
- Reorder or restructure your name in a way the certificate does not show.
- Use a double-barrelled name that an organisation has refused to accept from the certificate alone.
An unenrolled deed poll is legally valid and accepted by HM Passport Office, the DVLA, HMRC, banks, the NHS, employers and schools - around 98% of UK name changes are done this way. From UK Name Change, a professionally printed unenrolled deed poll starts at £14.49, with same-day dispatch if you order before 3pm and free Royal Mail Tracked delivery. A solicitor would charge £150-£300+ for the very same document, which is unnecessary.
Enrolling your deed poll at the Royal Courts of Justice is entirely optional. It costs £53.05, publishes your new name publicly in the London Gazette and takes 2-3 weeks - but it adds no legal validity over the unenrolled version, so most people skip it.
Updating your records once you’ve decided
Whichever option you choose, the admin is the same and most of it is free. Updating your DVLA driving licence is free, and so are changes to your bank, HMRC, the NHS, your employer and your utilities. The main paid item is a new passport: £102 online or £115.50 by post, with a 1-week Fast Track at £192 and a 1-day Premium service at £239.50 if you are travelling soon.
A couple of practical notes that catch interfaith couples out: HM Passport Office, the DVLA and banks need the original wet-ink signed deed poll, not a photocopy - so order genuine copies if you both need them. And your deed poll must be witnessed by an independent adult (18+) who is not a relative, your partner or anyone living at your address. If you are both changing your names, you cannot witness each other’s documents.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do we need a deed poll if we just want to double-barrel both surnames?
Often not - many banks and government departments will register a hyphenated married name straight from your marriage certificate. But acceptance varies, and if any organisation refuses or the name does not match the certificate exactly, a deed poll guarantees it is accepted everywhere.
Can we blend our two surnames into one new name?
Yes. “Meshing” two surnames into a single new word is completely legal, but because the resulting name is not printed on your marriage certificate, you must evidence it with a deed poll rather than the certificate.
Does either spouse have to take the other’s name?
No. UK law places no obligation on either partner. You can both keep your birth names, one of you can change, or you can both adopt a shared name - whatever respects your two traditions best.
Can my partner and I witness each other’s deed polls?
No. The witness must be an independent adult aged 18 or over who is not a relative, your partner or anyone living at your address. Ask a colleague, friend or neighbour instead.
Do we need to enrol our deed polls for the marriage to be respected?
No. An unenrolled deed poll is fully legally valid and accepted by all UK authorities. Enrolment at the Royal Courts of Justice (£53.05) is optional and adds no extra legal weight.
Make your chosen name official
However you decide to honour both families - keeping, combining or creating a surname - UK Name Change makes the legal step simple. Order your professionally printed deed poll from £14.49 with same-day dispatch and free tracked delivery, trusted by 160,000+ customers. Start your adult deed poll today and step into married life with the name that is right for both of you.
