Annotate Legal Minnesota Name Change Forms For Free

Follow-up Steps Required by Law: § 259.11(a) states that name change applicants must file a certified copy of the order with the County Recorder of each county where they, their spouse/domestic partner, or minor children claim an interest in land.

Name change actions can take anywhere from a day to six (6) months (sometimes even longer). The time it takes for such action to be ordered/decreed varies not only from county to county, but sometimes from courthouse to courthouse as well.

Luckily, the process for amending vital records in Minnesota is simple. Assuming you're at least 18 years old, all you need to do is submit an application to amend your birth record, along with a certified copy of your name change order and the appropriate fee, to the Office of Vital Records.

After the Order is signed, you can obtain certified copies of the Order from the Court Administrator's office for a fee of $14 each. Certified copies of this order will be needed to change your personal records (see the document entitled Notice to Persons Who Have Had Their Name Changed for more information).

Visit the court administration counter at the courthouse in the county where the case is located. Most requests can be completed on the same day. However, due to space limitations and other storage consideration, many counties keep some court records off-site.

The requirements for applying for a legal name change in Minnesota are easily met by most people: you must have lived in Minnesota for at least six months, and be a resident of the county in which you apply. You must have two adult witnesses at your name change hearing, and they can be relatives.