• Adult (18+ years old) name change:Necessary documents for everyone:
  1. Application to Change an Adult’s Name

  https://www.ontario.ca/page/change-name#section-0

  1. Request for non-publication in Ontario Gazette

  https://www.ontario.ca/page/change-name#section-8

  Other documents that may be needed (depending on your personal circumstances):

  iii.  Declaration of Conjugal Relationship

  1. Police Record Check for a Change of Name

        These documents can be discussed at your meeting with volunteer lawyers.

   

  1. Adult gender marker change:

        Necessary documents for everyone:

  1. Application for a Change of Sex Designation on a Birth

  Registration Adult

  https://www.ontario.ca/page/changing-your-sex-designation-your-birth-registration-and-birth-certificate

  1. Statutory Declaration for a Change of Sex Designation on a Birth Registration Adult

  https://forms.mgcs.gov.on.ca/en/dataset/007-11324

   

  iii. A letter signed by a practicing physician or psychologist authorized to practice in Canada

  Please see template by Rainbow Health Ontario: https://www.rainbowhealthontario.ca/TransHealthGuide/pdf/AppendixP.pdf

  1. Request for a new birth certificate form:

  https://forms.mgcs.gov.on.ca/en/dataset/007-11076

Please bring any government issued photo ID that you have to confirm your identify (such as a driver’s license, passport, or Ontario ID card) as well as any and all copies of your Birth Certificate(s) that you have in your possession or control.

Use your current legal name (dead name), unless otherwise stated.

Your answer here can be something simple like “I’m transgender”.

1. So long as you have never personally applied for a Birth Certificate or Certified copy before, check the “first time applying for a birth certificate” box.

You can change your name in Ontario if you’ve lived in Ontario for the past 12 months.

Unfortunately, you cannot apply for a Change of Name until you have lived in Ontario for at least the last 12 months.  We will be happy to help you with your application once you have lived in Ontario for at least the last 12 months.

Please see template by Rainbow Health Ontario:

https://www.rainbowhealthontario.ca/TransHealthGuide/pdf/AppendixP.pdf

Yes, the Change of Name application require a guarantor’s signature.  The guarantor needs to be: (a) someone other than a relative who has known you for at least 5 years and who knows that you have been ordinarily resident in Ontario for at least the past 12 months, or (b) falls under one of the following categories:

1. Provincial judges appointed under the Courts of Justice Act;
2. Justices of the peace appointed under the Justices of the Peace Act;
3. Chiefs of Indian bands that are located in Ontario;
4. Persons authorized under the Marriage Act to solemnize marriages;
5. Legall qualified medical practitioners;
6. Members of the Law Society of Upper Canada;
7. Heads of Municipal Councils in Ontario;
8. Clerks of municipalities in Ontario;
9. Principals of elementary and secondary schools, as defined in the Education Act; or
10. Managers or signing officers of Ontario branches of banks listed in Schedule I or II of the Bank Act (Canada), loans corporations, trust corporations, credit unions and caisses populaires.

Yes, the application to change my gender marker requires a guarantor’s signature.  The guarantor needs to be a Canadian citizen who has known you for at least two years and:

(a) who is currently serving as one of the following:

1. Judge, justice of the peace, municipal police officer, provincial police officer or officer of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, First Nations police officers and constables;
2. Mayor.
3. Member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario.
4. Minister of religion authorized under provincial law to perform marriages.
5. Municipal clerk or treasurer who is a member of the Association of Municipal Managers, Clerks and Treasurers of Ontario.
6. Notary public.
7. Principal or vice-principal of a primary or secondary school.
8. Senior administer or professor in a university or a senior administer in a community college or in a CEGEP in Quebec.
9. Signing officer of a bank, caisse d’économie, caisse Populaire, credit union or trust company.
10. Chief of a band recognized under the Indian Act (Canada).

(b) who are practicing members in good standing of a provincial regulatory body established by law to govern one of the following professions:

1. Chiropractor, dentist, midwife, nurse, optometrist, pharmacist, physician or surgeon, psychologist or veterinarian.
2. Lawyer
3. Professional accountant.
4. Professional engineer.
5. Social worker or social service worker.
6. Teacher in a primary or secondary school.

It’s normally $137 to process the birth certificate forms and $35 to replace your

birth certificate, plus the cost of postage, but our Volunteer Lawyers and HQ are graciously covering this cost.

6-8 weeks to process an application. It’s unclear if things slowed down due to COVID-19.

You must send your original birth certificate. We recommend you photocopy it prior to sending it in the mail.

No, we assist with completing the applications and notarize for free.