Changes to the Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration Act 1996

From 31 August 2022, changing your name in the Northern Territory (NT) will be different.

This is part of changes to the Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration Act 1996.

What these changes mean

To change your name in the NT, you must be born here.

If you were born interstate, contact that state or territory.

If you were born outside Australia, you must be a resident in the NT for at least 12 consecutive months.

You can only change your name:

• once in a 12-month period in the NT
• up to 3 times in your lifetime.

If you need to change your name more times than listed above, the registrar will review your request.

The registrar may approve your name change if it's:

• to protect you and your children from domestic violence as defined in section 5 of the Domestic and Family Violence Act 2007
• because of marriage or divorce
• ordered by a court or tribunal.

More information

For more information, read the Act and the change of name policy.

Change of name policy PDF (312.2 KB)
Change of name policy DOCX (652.0 KB)

If you have any questions about these new changes, contact the Births, Deaths and Marriages office by calling 08 8999 6090 or emailing agd.registrargeneral@nt.gov.au.