Changing your surname after divorce – what is the procedure?

Act No. 300/1993 Coll. on Name and Surname allows one of the spouses to change their surname after a divorce, specifically within 3 months from the final and effective court decision on the divorce, at the registry office (matrika) where the marriage was concluded and registered. The surname can be changed to the previous one (it does not strictly have to be a change back to the maiden/birth name). From the moment the previous surname is recorded in the registry book, the divorced spouse is obliged to use only their previous surname. If you request the surname change at the relevant registry office within three months, no permission is required, and such an act is exempt from administrative fees. If you do not request the change within the three-month deadline at the relevant registry office, you must apply for the change at the District Office (okresný úrad) at your place of permanent residence, where it will also be necessary to pay an administrative fee.

Only the spouse who changed their surname upon entering into the marriage and took the surname of the former spouse can request a surname change. It is not possible for a husband to demand that his wife change her surname against her will. In the event that one of the spouses accepted a common surname but simultaneously retained their previous one, they may request the registry office within three months of the final divorce decision to drop the common surname and keep only the previous surname.

A surname change after divorce does not affect the surname of common children from the marriage. If you still wish to change it and no agreement is reached between the divorced spouses, a court can decide on this matter. In the case of an agreement between the spouses regarding the change of the child’s surname, it is sufficient to submit an application to the District Office at the child’s place of permanent residence. If the minor child is over 15 years old, it is necessary to also attach their certified consent to the surname change.

You can submit the application for the change in written form, but also orally into the record at the relevant registry office. To change the surname after a divorce, it is not necessary for the former spouse to consent to the change, nor can they influence this change in any way.

At the registry office, to change the surname, it is necessary to attach the final and effective divorce decision, marriage certificate, birth certificate, and an identity document. After filling out the form, the registry office will execute the change of the entry regarding your surname in the registry book within 30 days.

Application for permission to change a name or surname

In the sense of Section 9 of Act No. 300/1993 Coll. on Name and Surname, as amended (hereinafter referred to as the “Act on Name and Surname”): “The District Office competent to permit a name change or a surname change is the one determined by the permanent or potentially the last permanent residence of the citizen of the Slovak Republic in the territory of the Slovak Republic; if the citizen of the Slovak Republic did not have such a residence, the District Office Bratislava has jurisdiction to permit the name change or surname change.”

In the sense of Section 6 (1) of the Act on Name and Surname: “A name change or a surname change may be permitted, in particular, if it is a derogatory name and surname or if there are reasons worthy of special consideration for it.”

In this case, it will be a reason worthy of special consideration, which means that the application should contain a justification.

To permit a change of name and surname, the following is submitted:

• Application for a name or surname change – in written form

• Identity document

• Document on civil status

• Birth certificate

• A fee of 140 euros (Note: The original text mentions 300 euros; however, according to Item 2 letter a/ of the Schedule of Administrative Fees attached to Act No. 145/1995 Coll., as amended, the administrative fee for permitting a surname change back to a previous surname after the 3-month deadline is 140 euros).

Divorce abroad

In the event that you want to return to your birth name after a divorce abroad, you likewise have the above-mentioned three-month deadline from the entry into legal force of the judgment to change your surname at the registry office. However, the divorce must first be recognized in Slovakia. If you miss this deadline, you must submit an application for a surname change to the relevant District Office.