The Gazette (Gazette of India or State Gazette) is an official government publication that records laws, government notifications, and public notices such as name change notifications. When your name change is printed in the Gazette, it becomes legal proof of name change in India, accepted by banks, passport office, UIDAI (Aadhaar), schools, and other authorities.

A Gazette notification for name change is an official entry published by the government that records your old name and new name. Once this notification appears in the Gazette, your new name becomes publicly verifiable and legally binding across India.

A name change Gazette notification works as final, conclusive legal proof of identity change. It is needed to smoothly update important records like Aadhaar, PAN, passport, bank accounts, property papers, and employment records without dispute.

For many official updates such as Aadhaar, PAN, passport, visas, immigration, and property transactions, a Gazette notification is strongly required or insisted upon. For informal or internal changes (like some office badges or email IDs), sometimes only an affidavit or local documents are accepted, depending on that institution's policy.

Any adult (major) Indian citizen can apply for Gazette name change for personal reasons like spelling correction, numerology, or image change. Minors can apply through parents/guardians, and people changing names after marriage, divorce, adoption, religious conversion, or gender transition are also eligible if they have valid ID and address in India.

A State Government Gazette (like Maharashtra or Maharashtra Gazette) mainly covers residents and matters within that state, often used for state jobs and local records. The Central Government Gazette (Gazette of India / egazette.gov.in) has nationwide recognition, useful for central government jobs, immigration, and situations involving multiple states.

To change your name in the Gazette, you usually: prepare a notarized affidavit, publish two newspaper ads (one English and one regional language), and submit the Gazette application form with ID proofs, address proof, clippings, photos, and fees. This can be done online or offline through egazette.gov.in or relevant state Gazette portals, and professional services/agents can help with registration, document checking, and filing.

Common name change reasons include marriage, divorce, religious conversion, adoption, gender transition, spelling correction, numerology/astrology, or removing a negative or embarrassing association. People also change names to align with stage names, professional identities, or to simplify long or complex names.

Yes, name change after religious conversion is legally allowed in India. Along with the standard affidavit, newspaper ads, and ID/address proof, you may attach a conversion certificate or declaration from the religious institution as supporting document.

Yes, many applicants use Gazette name change to move away from a name linked to negative events, family disputes, or social stigma. Once the new name is published in the Gazette and updated in documents, it creates a fresh, clean public record for future use.

Yes, a minor's name change in the Gazette is allowed. The parent or legal guardian must apply on the child's behalf with a minor-specific affidavit, birth certificate, parents' ID/address proofs, and other required documents.

To change your name in the Gazette, you generally need a notarized name change affidavit, identity proof such as Aadhaar or PAN, address proof, newspaper clippings of your name change ad, and supporting documents like marriage or divorce certificates if relevant.

The basic Gazette name change process is: prepare a notarized affidavit, publish your name change in two newspapers (one English and one local language), then submit the Gazette application form with all documents and fees online or at the designated office and wait for publication.

Name change publication in the Gazette typically takes about 15 to 30 days after submission, depending on the department's workload and whether your documents are complete and correct.

You can change your name more than once, but every change must go through a fresh affidavit, newspaper ads, and a new Gazette notification, and very frequent changes may be examined more closely.

Once issued, a Gazette notification normally remains valid permanently as an official government record of your name change.

If there is any spelling or detail error, you should contact the concerned Gazette or Publication Department quickly and apply for a correction or fresh notice with supporting documents and the prescribed fees.

In most jurisdictions, you must publish your name change in two newspapers (one English and one regional language) as public notice before the Gazette processes your application.

The notarized affidavit is the core document where you declare your old name, new name, reason for change, and that you are doing it voluntarily, and it becomes the primary legal basis for newspaper ads and Gazette notification.

Fees for a Gazette name change vary by Central vs State Gazette, category of change, and notification type, but for individual applicants, they usually fall in the range of about ₹1,100 to ₹3,650, excluding the separate cost of the affidavit and newspaper advertisements.

In Maharashtra, the total name change cost typically includes around ₹100–₹200 for a notarized affidavit, roughly ₹395 to ₹3,000 for two newspaper ads (depending on newspaper and city edition), and about ₹1,100 to ₹3,650 as Gazette publication fees for the actual notification.

Gazette name change fees are usually paid by online payment on the eGazette or state portal, or via bank instruments such as demand drafts or challans in favor of the concerned department, and applicants should always keep the receipt or transaction proof safely for future use.

Gazette publication charges are treated as processing fees and are generally non-refundable, even if the application is rejected, withdrawn, or needs to be filed again with corrected documents.

After your new name appears in the Gazette, use that Gazette copy to systematically update all major records such as Aadhaar, PAN, passport, voter ID, driving license, bank KYC, employment records, education certificates, and property documents so everything matches your updated legal identity.

You can usually download the PDF from the official Central eGazette portal or the relevant state e-Gazette / e-Rajyapatra website using your name, publication date, or notification number, and if needed, you may print hard copies from this PDF for submission to different departments.

A valid Gazette notification is treated as strong legal proof of name change and is generally accepted by government departments, banks, insurers, educational institutions, and many private organizations across India when you apply to update your records.

Yes, NRIs can apply for publication in the Indian Gazette by following the same basic steps as residents, but they may be asked for extra documents such as overseas address proof, OCI/PIO details, and attested passport copies from Indian embassies or consulates.

Yes, the Central Government and many states now offer online name change application through portals like egazette.gov.in or state e-Gazette sites, though a few regions still insist on physical filing, so applicants must check what facility is available for their particular jurisdiction.

If your application is rejected, the department usually mentions the reason such as missing documents, incorrect format, or mismatch in details, and you can fix these issues, prepare a fresh set of documents, and reapply under the same procedure with new processing fees.

Yes, numerology or astrology-based name changes are allowed; your affidavit should clearly state personal, numerological, or astrological reasons, and you must still complete the standard steps of affidavit, newspaper publication, and Gazette notification.

You can use the Gazette to change only the spelling of your name to correct errors or adopt a preferred spelling, and this updated spelling then becomes the reference for all future corrections in your official documents.

If your name is printed with a spelling mistake, the usual solution is to file a correction or re-publication request with a new affidavit, corrected newspaper ad/text file, and applicable fees, and this correction cycle often takes around 25 to 45 days to complete.

There is no fixed upper or lower age limit for Gazette name change, but minors must apply through parents or legal guardians and in some cases may need additional approvals from courts or education boards.

Yes, you can revert to your old name or adopt another new name by repeating the full process—affidavit, newspaper notice, and Gazette publication—so each round creates a new official record in sequence.

There is no single combined requirement to inform every department, but it is strongly advisable to update key authorities such as Income Tax (PAN), Passport Office, UIDAI (Aadhaar), banks, RTO, and Election Commission to avoid mismatched records and future verification issues.

For the Gazette of India, the overall timeline from submitting a complete application to seeing your entry published is typically about 25 to 45 days, depending on scrutiny time and publication schedule.

For Central Gazette, fee slabs for standard adult name change usually start around ₹1,100 and can go higher based on the category and size of matter notified by the Directorate of Printing.