Idaho Petition for Name Change

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An Idaho petition for name change is a legal form used to request that a person’s name be changed by court order. Before the court grants the change, the person will be required to file several forms, publish notice of the name change hearing, and attend the court hearing. Upon approval, the court order allows the person’s name to be updated wherever it’s registered.

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Idaho Petition for Name Change

Last updated November 6th, 2025

An Idaho petition for name change is a legal form used to request that a person’s name be changed by court order. Before the court grants the change, the person will be required to file several forms, publish notice of the name change hearing, and attend the court hearing. Upon approval, the court order allows the person’s name to be updated wherever it’s registered.

Eligibility Requirements

  • Be an Idaho resident
  • Be an adult (18 years of age) or emancipated minor
  • If a minor, have the signed permission of one parent/guardian
  • Cannot be done to avoid registration as a convicted sexual offender

How to Legally Change a Name in Idaho

Step 1 – Fill Out Court Forms

The following forms must be prepared when applying for a name change:

The petitioner will be required to select and enter the name of a newspaper with local circulation from this list, where notice will be published after they receive a hearing date.

Step 2 – Make Copies

The petitioner must make one copy of the completed Petition for Name Change and two copies of the completed Notice of Hearing, placing the copies under their respective original forms for filing.

Step 3 – File Forms

All completed forms will need to be brought to the petitioner’s local district court and filed with the court clerk, along with payment of the filing fee.[1]

After receiving payment, the clerk will provide the hearing date on the Notice of Hearing, which should be at least six weeks after the filing date. The petitioner will be given two copies of the notice, one for them and one for publication.

The filing fee may be waived on request by submitting a Motion and Affidavit for Fee Waiver (FW 1-9) and Order Re: Fee Waiver (FW 1-10).

Step 4 – Publish Notice of Hearing

Notice of the name change must be published in a local newspaper for four consecutive weeks.[2] To accomplish this, the petitioner must submit the Letter Requesting Publication of Notice and Notice of Hearing to their selected newspaper.

After the publication requirement has been fulfilled, the newspaper will provide the petitioner with an Affidavit of Publication, which they must file with the district court before the hearing.

Step 5 – Attend Hearing

The petitioner is legally required to attend their hearing and must bring their previously prepared Judgment for Name Change form, along with as many copies as they will need to have certified.[3] If there are no objections, the judge will likely sign the Judgment without testimony.

Certified copies of the Judgment can be purchased from the court clerk’s office for use when updating social security, ID, and other accounts and registrations.

Marriage and Divorce

Name changes resulting from a marriage or divorce should be made through the court process for either action. The person will need to request the name change in their marriage license application or Petition for Divorce.

Following the marriage or divorce, the marriage license or Divorce Decree can be used as proof of the person’s new name when updating it where necessary.

Sources

    1. §§ 7-801, 7-802
    2. § 7-803
    3. § 7-804