Resources for Residents

Name change

The law in Manitoba does not require a person to change their last name when they get married. Both spouses have the right to use: their own last name; their spouse's last name; a combination of both last names, hyphenated or not, in any order they choose; their spouse's last name, with their own last name as a given or middle name. In general, anyone 18 years of age or over who has lived in Manitoba for at least three months may apply to the director of Vital Statistics to change his or her name. Once the prescribed fee has been paid and an application accepted, the Vital Statistics Agency will issue a change of name certificate, amend birth and marriage records to reflect the new name and publish notice of the change in the Manitoba Gazette. The Vital Statistics Agency will forward this information to another province if the person was born or married there, but the person will be responsible for any costs to change birth or marriage records in that province. The person changing their name must make arrangements to change their name on other documents and records - such as a driver's licence and credit cards.