New York: Adult Legal Name Change Requirements

Requirements one by one

File a verified petition where you live

New York Civil Rights Law Article 6 lets a state resident file in County Court
or Supreme Court in the county of residence. A New York City resident may use
Supreme Court or any branch of the NYC Civil Court. The statute sets no minimum
months-of-residence requirement. Civil Rights Law § 60(1) supplies that
venue rule.

The verified petition gives the current and requested names, reason, birth and
residence facts, criminal convictions, bankruptcy, judgments and liens, pending
cases, and detailed child- and spousal-support information. A person born in
New York must attach the birth record or the specified official certificate
that none is available. Those requirements are in § 61(1) and § 61(3).

New York uses disclosures, not a fingerprint package

Article 6 and current adult Form UCS-NC1 ask about convictions but do not make
the petitioner submit fingerprints or obtain a state or FBI background check.
The form's criminal section asks for the conviction and court.

For the specified serious-offense track, current incarceration or supervision
triggers added conviction details and notice. That is different from a general
criminal-record check for every petitioner. Civil Rights Law § 61(2)
defines the covered disclosure track.

There is no newspaper publication

The current statute has no newspaper-publication step. It also bars any other
pre-hearing notice outside the two categories named in section 62: minor cases
and the targeted adult criminal-record track. A court cannot require notice to
the listed federal immigration agencies or require another person's consent in
an ordinary adult case.

The targeted adult rule applies only when a listed violent or serious felony is
paired with current incarceration or correctional/probation supervision because
of that conviction. The petitioner serves every prosecuting district attorney
and sentencing court at least 60 days before the noticed hearing, unless the
court orders a shorter period. The notice and consent limits appear in
§ 62(2)-(4).

Safety-based sealing protects the filing while the request is decided

If an open record would jeopardize personal safety, the court must seal the
proceeding on the applicant's request or on its own. The totality-of-the-
circumstances inquiry expressly includes violence or discrimination risk,
transgender status, and status as a domestic-violence survivor. The court
cannot deny sealing solely because there is no specific prior threat.

Once the applicant seeks this relief, the court must immediately safeguard the
current and proposed names, addresses, telephone numbers, and other submitted
information while the request is pending. See § 64-a(1)-(2).

The court applies a truth-and-reasonable-objection standard

Civil Rights Law § 63 directs the court to authorize the name when the petition is true
and there is no reasonable objection. Article 6 does not require a hearing for
every ordinary adult petition; the judge may decide from the submitted papers.
The section 62 criminal-record track, by contrast, is noticed for a hearing.

New York Courts identifies fraud, hiding from law enforcement, and avoiding
support or debts as reasons a judge may deny a request. A conviction alone is
not a categorical lifetime bar under Article 6.

Fees depend on the court

The current court fee is $210 in Supreme or County Court and $65 in NYC
Civil Court. A petitioner unable to pay may request a fee waiver.

Once entered, the order authorizes the new name. The clerk mails listed-felony
orders to the Division of Criminal Justice Services, and support cases carry
their own mailing direction. Section 64 makes the order or other government- or
court-issued name-change documentation sufficient for state, local, and private
records, subject to its archival-record limits. See § 64(1)-(3).

What trips people up

• The $65 fee is not the statewide Supreme/County Court fee. It is the NYC
  Civil Court amount; the other two courts charge $210.
• No publication does not erase the targeted 60-day notice rule. Check the
  exact conviction and current custody or supervision conditions in sections 61
  and 62.
• A sealing request protects information immediately while pending. The
  temporary safeguard is part of section 64-a, not merely a local courtesy.
• The petition asks about obligations, not only identity. Bankruptcy,
  judgments, liens, pending litigation, and support arrears all have express
  disclosure fields.

Common questions

Must I publish the order in a newspaper?

No. Current Article 6 has no newspaper-publication requirement.

Does every adult have to provide fingerprints?

No. Article 6 and current Form UCS-NC1 require criminal-history disclosures,
not a petitioner-supplied fingerprint or state/FBI check package.

Is a hearing always required?

No universal hearing applies to an ordinary adult petition. A judge may decide
from the papers, while the section 62(2) criminal-record track is noticed for a
hearing after required service.

Can the court seal the case without a history of specific threats?

Yes. Section 64-a says the court cannot deny solely because the applicant lacks
specific instances or a personal history of threats.

Statutes and sources

• N.Y. Civ. Rights Law §§ 60-61 — residence, court, verified petition,
  disclosures, and New York birth-record attachment. Official section 60;
  official section 61
  (accessed 2026-07-26).
• N.Y. Civ. Rights Law §§ 62-63 — limited notice, 60-day serious-felony
  track, immigration/consent limits, and grant standard. Official section 62;
  official section 63
  (accessed 2026-07-26).
• N.Y. Civ. Rights Law §§ 64 and 64-a — effect, agency/support mailings,
  record-changing proof, and safety sealing. Official section 64;
  official section 64-a
  (accessed 2026-07-26).
• New York Courts name-change materials — current court fees, fee waiver,
  denial examples, and adult Form UCS-NC1. Official basics;
  official adult form page
  (accessed 2026-07-26).