Can I Change My Signature? Passport, Bank and Marriage

Short answer: yes. Your signature is not registered anywhere as a fixed pattern, and no law in England and Wales says you must keep the one you had at 18. What matters is that you use the new one consistently and that the places that hold a copy of the old one know about it. This guide covers the practical side: banks, driving licence, passport, a new surname, and how to design a signature you will actually keep.

Are you allowed to change your signature?

Yes. In English law a signature is any mark you make to show that you intend to authenticate a document. It does not have to be your full name, legible or identical every time. Courts have accepted initials, a cross and even a typed name when the intention was clear, which is also why the Law Commission treats the intention to sign as the core of the matter¹.

That has two practical consequences:

• Nothing legal happens when you switch. You do not need a deed poll, a solicitor or any form just to sign differently.
• Organisations that compare signatures can be confused. A bank, for example, may hold a specimen signature and flag cheques or forms that look very different.

So the rule of thumb is: change it whenever you like, but tell the few places that keep a copy, and do not change it halfway through a signing process (for example between signing a mortgage offer and the completion documents).

Who holds a copy of your signature?

Your bank

Most banks no longer check every signature by eye, but many still keep a specimen from when you opened the account, and branches use it for cheques, large withdrawals and paper forms. If your signature has changed a lot, ask your bank how to update the specimen. Some will do it in branch with photo ID, others by form. Policies differ, so ask yours.

Your driving licence

The signature on a photocard driving licence is part of the licence. GOV.UK describes changing the photo on a licence as a paid renewal: £14 online or £17 by post, with no fee if you are over 70 or have a medical short period licence². If you are renewing the card anyway, that is the time to give DVLA your new signature. The page does not set out a separate, free signature-only change, so do not assume there is one, and check the current DVLA instructions before you apply.

Your passport

HM Passport Office says your passport carries a digital image of your photo and signature, taken from your application³. For a first application or a renewal, the guidance asks you to sign within the box provided and to stay inside its borders³. The practical advice is to sign the application the way you now sign everywhere else. Your signature does not have to match the old passport, but it helps if it is close to what you use day to day, because border staff, banks and landlords will compare it with other documents.

Check the current instructions on GOV.UK before applying, because the signing steps for online and paper applications have changed over the years and differ for children.

Employers, solicitors and anyone with a specimen

Employers (payroll and HR forms), solicitors, pension providers and building societies may also hold your signature. You rarely need to notify them proactively, but if a form is rejected because the signature does not match, ask what they need.

Why people change their signature

Most changes are not dramatic. The usual reasons are:

• A new surname after marriage, divorce or a deed poll.
• A signature that has drifted into an unreadable scrawl and now looks different every time, which is the type that gets questioned at a bank.
• Security. A very simple signature, such as one initial and a line, is easy to copy. A slightly more individual one is harder.
• A professional image when starting a new role, a business or self-employment.
• Injury or age. A tremor, arthritis or a change of writing hand can make the old signature impossible to repeat, and a simpler new one is the sensible fix.

None of these needs anyone's permission. What they share is that the new signature has to be repeatable, because a signature you cannot reproduce is the one that causes trouble later.

Changing your signature after marriage or a name change

A new surname is the most common reason for a new signature. The paperwork is separate from the signature itself:

• Marriage or civil partnership: you do not need a deed poll to take your spouse's or civil partner's surname. You send a copy of the certificate to the organisations that hold your records⁴.
• Any other change: a deed poll is the usual route. GOV.UK describes an unenrolled deed poll as free from age 16 and an enrolled deed poll (a public record) as £53.05 from age 18. Some banks, phone companies and energy providers only accept the enrolled version⁴.
• Your signature: there is no rule that it must change with your name. Many people keep the old signature for years. If you do switch, start on the day the new name becomes official on your documents, so that the signature and the name on the page agree.

GOV.UK also notes that different rules apply in Scotland⁴. If you live there, check the Scottish route first. The full list of who to tell, and how, is on the GOV.UK page on changing your name.

Checklist: changing your signature in 8 steps

1. Decide why. New name, a signature you have outgrown, or one that is easy to forge? The reason shapes the design.
2. Design and practise it until you can write it in about a second without thinking (see below).
3. Pick the date. Ideally a quiet moment, not in the middle of a house purchase or visa application.
4. Update your bank specimen and ask whether other accounts (savings, building society, pension) need the same.
5. Renew your photocard licence with the new signature when the card is next due, or when you change the photo anyway².
6. Use it on your next passport application, within the signature box and in the colour of ink the form asks for³.
7. Create a digital version for PDFs, Word and email so that the new signature is the only one in circulation.
8. Retire the old one. Do not alternate between the two on important documents.

Mistakes to avoid when you switch

• Using two signatures at once. Pick a date, and from then on use only the new one on contracts, forms and cheques.
• Changing in the middle of a transaction. A mortgage offer signed one way and the completion papers signed another invites questions.
• Forgetting the places that keep a copy. The bank specimen is the usual one.
• Making it too elaborate. If it takes five seconds, you will shortcut it within a month and end up with a third version.
• Assuming the signature has to match your printed name. It does not, but the printed name on the document should be your legal one.

How to design a signature you will keep

A signature that survives years of daily use is usually simple. The ones people abandon are either too slow (full cursive with every loop) or too close to a scribble to repeat. A few rules that work:

• Start from your real name, with at least one clear letter so that it is recognisably yours.
• Keep it under about 15 strokes, and make sure you can write it in one movement.
• Choose one feature that makes it yours: a long tail, an underline, a distinctive capital.
• Practise it 50 times on lined paper, then 50 on the surfaces you use (card reader, tablet, a form on a clipboard).

For ideas, our guide to signature ideas shows 40 styles and what they look like with a real name, and signature meaning explains what research does and does not say about handwriting. You can also try free drafts of your own name in the signature generator.

Put the new signature on your devices

Once you have settled on a signature, make a clean digital copy so you stop using the old one by accident. Our guides show how to scan a signature with a transparent background, insert it in Word and add it to your email signature. A digitised signature is a picture of your handwriting. It is not a qualified electronic signature.

Not legal advice. This article describes the general position in England and Wales as of October 2026. For a specific document, ask the person or body that will receive it, or a solicitor.

Frequently asked questions

Can I change my signature whenever I want?

Yes. No law in England and Wales requires you to keep a particular signature. Just be consistent and tell the places that hold a specimen, mainly your bank.

Do I need a new passport if my signature changes?

Not by itself. Your passport carries an image of the signature from your application, and the new one is used when you next renew. Check HM Passport Office guidance if you are unsure.

Does DVLA charge to change the signature on my licence?

GOV.UK lists £14 online or £17 by post for a new photocard when changing the photo, with no fee for over 70s. It does not describe a separate signature-only change, so check before you apply.

Do I need a deed poll to take my husband's or wife's surname?

No. GOV.UK says a marriage or civil partnership certificate is enough to change your name with most record-holders. A deed poll is for other changes.

Will my bank notice if my signature looks different?

It may, especially on cheques and paper forms in branch. Ask your bank how to update your specimen signature so there is no delay.

Sources

1. 1Law Commission: Electronic execution of documents (Law Com No 386, 2019) (lawcom.gov.uk)
2. 2GOV.UK: Change the photo on your driving licence (gov.uk)
3. 3HM Passport Office: passport application form (guidance on signing) (assets.publishing.service.gov.uk)
4. 4GOV.UK: Change your name by deed poll (gov.uk)