California Name Change Laws: Court Process, Fees, and the New Confidentiality Option

California runs the most thoroughly codified name-change system of any state covered in this guide. Adult and minor petitions go through Code of Civil Procedure Sections 1275 to 1279.6 in superior court, divorce-related name restoration has its own dedicated statute, and marriage-based name changes are written directly into the Family Code. California also changed the confidentiality rules for gender-related name and gender-marker cases as of July 1, 2026.

This guide walks through each of those pieces separately: the standard adult petition, the minor process, divorce restoration, the codified marriage-based pathway, publication and its exceptions, the confidentiality rules for gender-related petitions, and the restrictions that apply to registered sex offenders.

Information last verified on 2026-08-11. This article has not yet been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

Adult Petition Process

Adults file a Petition for Change of Name, form NC-100, in the superior court of the county where they live, under Code of Civil Procedure Section 1276. The court then issues an order to show cause, and, absent an exception, that order must be published under Government Code Section 6064 in a newspaper of general circulation, where four weekly publications are sufficient.

Most petitioners never see the inside of a courtroom. Section 1277(a)(1) requires the order to show cause to state that if no written objection is timely filed, the court may grant the petition without a hearing, and Section 1278(a)(2) says that if no objection is filed at least two court days before the date set for hearing, the court may enter the order granting the change without a hearing.

Under Section 1276(a)(2), the petition itself has to state the petitioner's place of birth and residence, their present name, the name proposed, and the reason for the change. A person who wants to oppose the change files a written objection showing good cause against it, within the window the court's order sets.

If an objection is filed, the matter is heard on the date the court designated, and under Section 1278(a)(1) the judge may examine the petitioners, the objectors, or other people under oath before making an order changing the name or dismissing the petition. Either way, the signed Decree Changing Name (form NC-120) becomes the petitioner's proof of the new legal name for the Social Security Administration, the DMV, and other agencies.

Petitioners changing their name specifically in connection with their gender identity have used a related but separate form, NC-200, Petition for Change of Name and Gender, which lets a petitioner request a gender-marker change alongside the name change in a single case. The statute that created that separate track, Code of Civil Procedure Section 1277.5, is on its way off the books: subdivision (d) provides that the section became inoperative on July 1, 2026 and is repealed as of January 1, 2027. California's own courts self-help guidance still states that a name change made to match gender identity, or one filed with a request for gender-change recognition, does not require publication. Because the underlying statute changed on that same date, confirm the current forms and procedure with your county superior court's self-help center.

Filing Fee

California's name-change filing fee typically runs $435 to $450, though it varies by county because of local court surcharges. Petitioners who cannot afford the fee can request a waiver using form FW-001 (Request to Waive Court Fees) along with form FW-003 (Order on Court Fee Waiver).

Minor Name Changes

If the petitioner is under 18, the petition must name the child's parents. A petition filed by a guardian appointed by the juvenile court or the probate court has to be filed in the court that already has jurisdiction over the minor, per Code of Civil Procedure Section 1276(e).

Two best-interest standards govern minor petitions, and neither of them comes from the adult publication statute. Under Section 1278.5, where a petition is filed to change a minor's name and both parents, if living, do not join in consent, the court may deny the petition in whole or in part if it finds that any portion of the proposed change is not in the best interest of the child. Where a guardian petitions on behalf of a minor ward, Section 1278(d) requires the court to first find that the ward is likely to remain in the guardian's care until the age of majority and is not likely to be returned to the custody of the parents, and only then to grant the petition if it finds the proposed change is in the best interest of the child.

Because a minor's petition still goes through the same order-to-show-cause and publication process as an adult petition unless an exception applies, a parent filing on a child's behalf should expect a broadly similar timeline, roughly two to three months from filing to a decision, and the same $435 to $450 range in filing costs, unless a fee waiver applies. As with an adult petition, an uncontested minor petition can be granted without a hearing. Where only one parent is filing, county self-help centers can advise on how notice reaches the other parent in a particular county.

Name Change After Divorce

California treats divorce-related name restoration as a straightforward right rather than something a spouse has to plan for in advance. Family Code Section 2080 requires the court, in a dissolution or nullity proceeding, to restore a party's birth name or a former name at that party's request, and the statute is explicit that this works «regardless of whether a request for restoration of the name was included in the petition,» so a spouse who did not ask for restoration up front can still request it later in the case. See California divorce laws for the broader dissolution process.

Publication and Confidentiality

The default rule is publication: four weekly newspaper notices under Government Code Section 6064, ordered as part of the order-to-show-cause process under CCP Section 1277(a).

California has two separate ways to avoid that public notice, and they cover different people. The older one, CCP Section 1277(b), waives publication entirely for participants in California's Address Confidentiality Program, known as Safe at Home, who are fleeing domestic violence, stalking, sexual assault, or human trafficking. For those petitioners, the court order states that the proposed new name is confidential and on file with the Secretary of State, and the petitioner's current legal name is kept out of the court's public calendars, indexes, and register of actions. This protection applies only to enrolled Safe at Home participants, not to anyone who simply mentions domestic violence in their petition without enrolling in the program.

The newer set of rules, Health and Safety Code Section 103437, applies only to gender-related cases. Subdivision (a) defines its scope as a proceeding for a change of gender and sex identifier under Section 103430, a combined change of the petitioner's name and recognition of a change to their gender and sex identifier under Section 103435, or a change of name to conform the petitioner's name to their gender identity under Title 8 of Part 3 of the Code of Civil Procedure. An ordinary name-change petition, such as an adult adopting a stepparent's surname, falls outside the section entirely.

Within that scope, the protection is automatic rather than something to ask for. Subdivision (c)(1) applies the confidentiality requirements of subdivision (b), which keep the index, the register of actions, and other case information available through public electronic access systems confidential, to any covered petition filed on or after July 1, 2026, with no request and no motion needed. The fee-free ex parte request in subdivision (c)(2) is the route for petitioners whose petitions were filed before July 1, 2026. Subdivision (d) is a backstop for either group: a petitioner who discovers the court is not actually keeping the records confidential may apply ex parte, again without paying a filing fee, and the court shall enter the order.

Restrictions

Opposition to a name change happens before the court rules, not afterward. A person who wants to stop a change files a written objection showing good cause against it, and under CCP Section 1278(a)(2) it has to be on file at least two court days before the date set for hearing. Title 8 does not create any post-judgment window for a prosecutor, a victim, or anyone else to reopen a name change the court has already granted.

Registered sex offenders face a substantially stricter rule. Under CCP Section 1279.5(e), the court shall deny a petition filed by a person required to register under Penal Code Section 290 unless it finds that granting the change is in the best interest of justice and will not adversely affect public safety. Subsection (f) requires the court to check the petitioner's registration status through CLETS or CJIS, or to contact local law enforcement if that is unavailable, and each applicant must declare under penalty of perjury whether they are a required registrant. That declaration is the only penalty-of-perjury statement Title 8 imposes on a name-change petitioner. If the court does grant the change, the person must notify local police or the sheriff within five working days.

Marriage-Based Name Change

California directly codifies this pathway. Family Code Section 306.5 lets either or both spouses elect to change their middle or last name as part of getting married, using the marriage license and certificate process itself. A certified copy of the marriage certificate showing the new name is legal proof that the name is lawfully in use; no separate superior court petition is required for a marriage-based change specifically. See name change after marriage for the general steps of updating IDs and accounts afterward.

Domestic Violence and Safety Considerations

California's two confidentiality options, described above, reach different petitioners. The Address Confidentiality Program-linked publication waiver under CCP Section 1277(b) is the one available in an ordinary name-change case, and it requires actual enrollment in Safe at Home; simply describing domestic violence in a petition does not by itself trigger it. The Health and Safety Code Section 103437 record-confidentiality rules are automatic for covered petitions filed on or after July 1, 2026, but they reach only gender-related petitions: a gender and sex identifier change, a combined name and gender change, or a name change made to conform to the petitioner's gender identity.

Even with either of these state-level protections, a sealed or confidential California court record does not automatically make a new name confidential with the Social Security Administration or the U.S. State Department. Those agencies apply their own separate rules for what they will and will not disclose.

Related California Records

See California marriage and divorce records for obtaining certified copies your petition may require, and California court records for how name-change case files fit into the state's broader court-records rules. If your name change is tied to an adopted child's records rather than an adult petition, see California adoption records for how an amended birth certificate works after an adoption.

For the general nationwide process, see how to legally change your name, what it costs to change your name, name change after divorce, and the post-name-change checklist.

Disclaimer

This article provides general information about California name-change law. It is not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. California's rules for gender-related petitions changed on July 1, 2026, when Health and Safety Code Section 103437 took effect and Code of Civil Procedure Section 1277.5 became inoperative, and procedures for both may still be settling at individual courthouses. Verify current details with your county superior court's self-help center or a licensed California attorney before relying on anything here for a specific situation.

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Last updated: 2026-08-11. Fees and forms reflect their published status as of August 2026.