United States
Miami, FLHouston, TXDallas–Fort Worth, TXAtlanta, GABoston, MASeattle, WALos Angeles, CASan Diego, CAWashington, DC
Name Change Apostille for Your Federal Court Petition
Retrieved, apostilled, delivered.
A name change apostille makes the Petition for Name Change granted at your naturalization (Form N-662) legally recognized abroad. We order a new certified copy from the U.S. District Court that holds it, and the court’s clerk apostilles it on issue.
- No original needed — the court issues a fresh certified copy
- Apostilled by the clerk of the court, the only authority that can
- Expedited Service in 5–7 business days, or Standard Service in 8–12 weeks
Name changed by a state court or by marriage? That is a state record with a different route — see the options below.
What is a name change apostille?
When you naturalized, the judge at your oath ceremony could grant you a new legal name at the same time. That order is a record of the federal court, not of USCIS, and it is kept by the district court that granted it. It is the document offices abroad ask for when they need to know why the name on your U.S. passport differs from the one on your birth certificate.
Because it is a federal court record, no state office can apostille it. The authority is the clerk of that court — and the apostille has to sit on a certified copy issued for the purpose, which is why the first step is always retrieving a new one.
Who needs a name change apostille?
- Updating records in your country of birth
- A consulate or civil registry that still holds you under your birth name needs proof of when, where and by whom the name was changed before it will issue a passport or ID in the new one.
- Marriage or civil registration abroad
- Registrars compare every document in the file. When your birth certificate shows one name and your passport another, the court's petition is the bridge between them.
- Property, inheritance and bank accounts
- Deeds, wills and accounts opened under a former name abroad are usually updated only on an apostilled court record of the change.
- Residency and long-stay visas
- Immigration offices reject applications where the name on the passport and the name on supporting records disagree, unless the change itself is documented.
- Pensions and benefits paid abroad
- Foreign pension funds and social-security offices ask for the court order when the beneficiary's name differs from the one on file.
A record from the wrong office is a refusal.
Offices abroad check two things: that the apostille comes from the authority entitled to issue it, and that it sits on a properly certified copy. A petition sent to a state office comes back untouched. A photocopy of the ceremony paperwork cannot be apostilled at all.
And a court is not a counter you can walk up to.
Each district court has its own records office, request form and fee, and older petitions may first have to be recalled from storage. A request filed with the wrong court, or missing the case details, loses weeks before anyone tells you.
Why a name change apostille costs more than a State Department apostille
| State Department apostille (e.g. FBI check) | Name change apostille | |
|---|---|---|
| Who issues it | One office — the Office of Authentications in Washington, DC | The clerk of whichever of the 94 U.S. district courts granted your name change |
| The document | You already hold it and send it in | A new certified copy has to be retrieved from the court's records |
| Intake | One standard process for every request | Each court sets its own request form, fee, records office and schedule |
| Coordination | A single submission | The district court clerk — and the Department of Justice where a court's certification has to pass through it |
| Older records | Not applicable | Petitions from decades ago may sit in a federal records center and have to be recalled first |
| Our price | $179 flat | $1,200 or $1,800, by speed |
Who issues it
State Department apostille (e.g. FBI check)
One office — the Office of Authentications in Washington, DC
Name change apostille
The clerk of whichever of the 94 U.S. district courts granted your name change
The document
State Department apostille (e.g. FBI check)
You already hold it and send it in
Name change apostille
A new certified copy has to be retrieved from the court's records
Intake
State Department apostille (e.g. FBI check)
One standard process for every request
Name change apostille
Each court sets its own request form, fee, records office and schedule
Coordination
State Department apostille (e.g. FBI check)
A single submission
Name change apostille
The district court clerk — and the Department of Justice where a court's certification has to pass through it
Older records
State Department apostille (e.g. FBI check)
Not applicable
Name change apostille
Petitions from decades ago may sit in a federal records center and have to be recalled first
Our price
State Department apostille (e.g. FBI check)
$179 flat
Name change apostille
$1,200 or $1,800, by speed
One is a single counter. The other is ninety-four of them, and the document has to be fetched before it can be apostilled.
How our name change apostille service works
You tell us the court and the case
Send us the district court that granted your name change and the case number, or simply a photo of your old copy or your Certificate of Naturalization — we can work out the court from it. We also confirm that your destination country is a member of the Hague Apostille Convention before anything is ordered.
We order a new certified copy from the court
We request a freshly certified copy of your Petition for Name Change from the court's records office, with the clerk's certification and the court's seal. An old photocopy, or a copy certified years ago, cannot be used — the apostille is attached to the certification itself.
The clerk apostilles it at issue
The apostille is issued by the clerk of the U.S. District Court on the same certified copy. We follow the request with the court until it is done, and you get one point of contact the whole way.
Scan first, original by tracked courier
As soon as the apostilled copy is in hand we email you a high-quality scan, then ship the original with tracking, domestic or international.
Pick your speed
Three steps from here
- Request your quote
- Pick a speed and tell us the court, or send a photo of what you have. It takes two minutes and there is nothing to pay yet.
- Approve and pay
- We confirm the court, the destination country and your price by email. You pay only once you approve it.
- Receive your apostille
- Expedited in 5–7 business days, Standard in 8–12 weeks — scan by email, original by tracked courier.
When you need something other than the court's apostille
- Notarized true copy — $179, 3–5 business days
- If the office abroad accepts a notarized copy, a notary certifies a copy of the petition you already hold and the state apostilles the notary's signature. Faster and far cheaper — but it is not the court's own certification, and some offices refuse it. Ask yours before choosing it.
- Name changed by a state court or by marriage
- A county or state court order, or a marriage certificate, is a state record. It is apostilled by the Secretary of State of the state that issued it, and we quote it separately.
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See our reviews on Trustpilot →Common mistakes with a name change apostille
- Sending it to a Secretary of State
- A petition granted by a federal court is a federal record. A state office has no authority over it and will return it without an apostille.
- Asking the court where you live now
- The record is held by the district court that granted the change — usually where you took the oath — not the one nearest your current address.
- Using the copy you were handed at the ceremony
- That copy was not certified for use abroad. The apostille can only go on a newly issued certified copy.
- Confusing it with a state court name change
- A name changed by a county or state court, or by marriage, is a state record with a different authority and a different route — see below.
- Assuming every country takes an apostille
- Only Hague Convention members accept one. A non-member country needs embassy legalization instead, which we quote separately.
About Federal Apostille™
- One point of contact
- You deal with us from the first question to the tracking number. We handle the court, so you do not have to find its records office.
- A price you approve first
- Two published speeds, confirmed in writing before you pay. No charge to ask.
- The right authority, the first time
- Federal records to the federal court, state records to the state. Getting that wrong is the most common reason an apostille is refused abroad.
Frequently asked questions
What is a name change apostille?
It is the apostille certificate attached to a certified copy of the court record of your name change, so that the change is legally recognized in other Hague Convention countries. For a name change granted at naturalization, that record is the Petition for Name Change (Form N-662) held by the U.S. District Court.
Who issues the apostille on a federal Petition for Name Change?
The clerk of the U.S. District Court that granted it. Federal court clerks are designated U.S. competent authorities under the Hague Apostille Convention for documents their own courts issue. A Secretary of State cannot apostille it.
How much does a name change apostille cost?
Expedited Service is $1,800 with a 5–7 business days turnaround. Standard Service is $1,200 with a 8–12 weeks turnaround. Both include retrieving a new certified copy from the court and the clerk's apostille. If your destination accepts a notarized copy instead, the true copy route is $179.
Why does it cost more than an FBI background check apostille?
An FBI report is apostilled by one office in Washington, DC, from a document you already hold. A name change petition has to be retrieved fresh from whichever of 94 district courts granted it, each with its own forms, fees and schedule, and coordinated with the court clerk — and the Department of Justice where the court's certification goes through it — until the apostille is issued.
Do I need my original petition?
No. We order a new certified copy directly from the court, so you do not need to send us anything original. A photo of your old copy or of your Certificate of Naturalization helps us identify the court and the case faster.
I don't know my case number. Can you still find the record?
Usually, yes. The court, the approximate date of your oath ceremony and the name you had before are often enough to locate it. We confirm before you pay.
My name was changed by a state court or by marriage. Is this the right service?
No — those are state records, apostilled by the Secretary of State of the state that issued them, and we quote them separately. Request a quote and choose the document you have.
Can you apostille a notarized copy instead?
Yes, through our true copy route for $179: a notary certifies a copy of the petition you hold and the state apostilles the notary's signature. It is faster and cheaper, but some offices abroad insist on the court's own certification — check with yours first.
Is a name change apostille accepted in every country?
In every member of the Hague Apostille Convention. A country outside it needs embassy legalization instead, which is a different process that we quote per destination.
Do I also need a translation?
Often, if the destination's official language is not English. The translation is normally done after the apostille so that it covers the apostille too. Tell us when you request your quote.
Buy with confidence
Nothing to pay until you approve
Your quote names the court, the speed and the price. You pay only once you have read it and said yes.
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Get your name change apostille
Other documents that come up with a name change
- U.S. court documents apostilleJudgments, orders and other federal court records
- Certificate of NaturalizationWhat can and cannot be done with it abroad
- Marriage certificate apostilleWhen your name changed by marriage
- Divorce decree apostilleReturning to a former name
- Hague member countriesCheck that your destination takes an apostille
- Apostille vs. authenticationFor countries outside the Hague Convention
Federal Apostille™ is a private, independent document-processing service. We are not affiliated with the U.S. District Courts, the U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Department of State, USCIS, or any government agency. We do not provide legal advice.