surnames question

supersheeps

Hi, hopefully someone here has already had experience of this! When we got married, I kept my own surname. I'm happy for my children to have their Dad's surname day to day, as mine is quite long & a double barrel surname of both our names would be a bit of a mouthful! However, I'd like to have my surname on their birth cert so that they have the option of legally using it when they get older.
I know that if we hyphenate the surnames on the birthcert (ie Jolie-Pitt...I can dream!) that that'll be their permanent surname. Is it true that if we don't hyphenate (Jolie Pitt) but put both names in the surname section, that we can use that for passports, etc, but it doesn't HAVE to be used day to day? Not keen on giving all our children my surname as a middle name, my aunt did that & it ended up a bit "clunky", not suiting their first names.
Thanks, have another few months to go hopefully before our daughter arrives, but good to know in case she decides to put in an early appearance!

lazygal

Names in Ireland are based on common usage. Our children have hyphenated surnames but there's nothing stopping them using whatever combination they prefer in the future. So have whatever suits you on the birth cert.

Chattastrophe!

My understanding is similar to yours - both names can be included on the birth cert, but as long as they're not hyphenated, either (or both) can be used - both for day-to-day use, and on official documents such as passport etc. And you can choose to just use one and never use the other, if that's what you want.

In the end, my own surname was the only one we put on the birth cert. (We're not married.) Just for the sake of simplicity, really. If my partner had felt very strongly about having his surname there too, I'd have had no problem with it.

Sligo1

Myself and OH are married. Have put both our surnames on birth certs and passports for both our kids. I don't want to take his surname... (Dont really like it tbh!). We haven't hyphenated the surnames for the kids. They can take which surname they choose when they're older

eviltwin

Our kids have both names on their birth certs, no hyphens. We did this so they would have the choice to drop one and use the one they like best themselves if they so choose. The eldest dropped one a few years ago and now uses one and its never been an issue.

Wooha

Afaik if you don't hyphenate, then they can use both names, or just one. What ever they want really. Thats what we did when we got married and also our son.

January

My understanding was that if it's hyphenated you have to use both on legal documents but in day to day usage it's fine but when not hyphenated that you can use either or both, even on legal documents.

lazygal

January wrote: »

My understanding was that if it's hyphenated you have to use both on legal documents but in day to day usage it's fine but when not hyphenated that you can use either or both, even on legal documents.

This is not correct, but it is a common misconception. When registering the birth we opted to hyphenate both our our surnames, so our children now and while we are in charge of their names for school, passports as children and anything official will be known as Mylastname-Husbandslastname. If in the future they decide to drop one or both or change it entirely they are free to do so and through common usage.

There is no legal impediment to anyone changing his or her first or last or middle name in Ireland. Like when women who get married and chose to change their surname, they just start calling themselves by their new surname, no legal procedure is required. Companies may look for 'proof' of this new identity via a marriage cert, but IME from friends who've changed their names they tend to be taken at their word.

As I said above, Ireland operates a common usage system of legal recognition of names. I could start calling myself Princess Conseula-Bananahammock tomorrow and henceforth be known as such for passports, name on bills and other uses.

Big Bag of Chips

For official use though you have to prove that is the name you use. I changed my bank account to my married name, and had to produce my marriage cert. Otherwise sure, people could be opening up multiple false bank accounts all over the place.

Same for a passport. You can use any name you like through common usage, but to put it on your passport you have to show proof of usage for a number of years before it will be allowed... Otherwise we could all be getting any number of false passports etc.

So yes, while any of us can use any name we wish, we can't just decide tomorrow we want to use a different name and get all official papers changed there and then. It's not quite that quick!