The guardian signs, never the child • The Department prints a different charge for a minor • Photographs of both are asked for

Name Change Affidavit for a Minor in Jharkhand

The Department of Publication publishes its own guidelines for change of name for a minor, separate from the adult ones, and almost nobody selling you a template has read them. They ask for an undertaking signed by the Guardian, a proforma in duplicate, a CD that types the guardian's name in place of the signature, and two self attested passport photographs of each applicant and the child. They print the charge for a minor as Rs 1,700 for the financial year 2016 to 2017, against Rs 1,100 for an adult. And the proforma is written in the parent's voice, not the child's, which is why the child never signs anything.

📞 Call 9540005002 WhatsApp 9540005064 What the guidelines ask for

7Papers the minor guidelines list

0Signatures required from the child

Rs 1,700The charge printed for a minor, not Rs 1,100

1 yrNothing in the file may be older

Reviewed by the Jharkhandnamechange.com documentation desk • Updated 20 September 2026

Quick answer

For a child's name change the paper you swear is an undertaking signed by the Guardian, not by the child, and the Department of Publication's own guidelines for change of name for a minor say so in as many words. Those guidelines list seven things: an undertaking duly signed by the Guardian; the original newspaper; the prescribed proforma in duplicate, typed, with the signature of the applicant and two witnesses; a CD carrying the print matter without the witness portion in MS Word, typing the name of the Guardian in place of the signature; two self attested passport size photographs of each applicant and the child; a certificate signed by the applicant that the hard copy and soft copy are the same; and a request letter with the requisite fee. The proforma itself is written in the parent's voice and reads, in its blanks, I, son of or wife of, employed as, in the, residing at, have changed the name of my minor son or daughter, aged, and he or she shall hereafter be known as. Notice what that asks for: the parent's employment and office, and the child's age. Two more things from the same document. The charge is printed as Rs 1,700 for a minor for the financial year 2016 to 2017, which is higher than the Rs 1,100 printed for an adult, so anybody quoting you the adult figure has read the wrong page. And the standing rules apply here as everywhere: the documents must not be older than one year, nothing submitted is returned in any circumstances, and an application is entertained only if submitted personally or sent by post or courier, with no other channel permissible, naming agents and advocates.

The Department's own document

What the Minor Change of Name Guidelines Actually Ask For

Name change affidavit format for a minor in Jharkhand signed by the parents — The Department publishes separate guidelines for a minor, and they differ from the adult ones in ways that matter.

The Department of Publication publishes a guidelines document for each of its categories. Change of Name for Minor is one of them, and it is a different document from the adult one. Here is what it lists.

The seven papers the minor change of name guidelines list and what each one means
The paper	What the guidelines say	What to watch
1. The undertaking	An undertaking duly signed by the Guardian	The word is Guardian, not applicant and not the child. This is the page's central point
2. The newspaper	The original newspaper	The whole paper, not a cutting, and dated within the last year
3. The proforma	The prescribed proforma in duplicate, duly typed, with the signature of the applicant and two witnesses	Two originals. The witnesses give their full names and addresses on both copies
4. The CD	The print matter without the witness portion, in MS Word, typing the name of the Guardian in place of the signature	This is where minor and adult files differ. On an adult file the old name is typed there. Here it is the guardian's name
5. Photographs and identity	Two self attested passport size photographs of each applicant and the child	Photographs of both. Parents routinely bring only the child's and are sent back
6. The certificate	A certificate signed by the applicant that the contents of the hard copy and the soft copy are similar	A small paper that is easy to forget and stops the file if missing
7. The request letter	A request letter along with the requisite fee	Addressed to the Controller of Publication, with a telephone number and an email

The charge is not the adult figure, and this catches people. The minor guidelines print the printing charge for a change of name of a minor as Rs 1,700 with effect from 01.04.2016 to 31.03.2017. The adult guidelines print Rs 1,100 for the same year. So a quotation built on the adult figure is short from the start. As with every category, treat these as the order of the amount rather than today's amount, because what BharatKosh shows on the payment screen the day you pay is the figure that counts.

Three rules that run through every category, including this one. The documents must not be older than one year. Documents once submitted will not be returned in any circumstances, neither original nor Xerox copy, so photocopy everything before you post. And an application is entertained only when submitted personally or sent by post or courier, with no other channel permissible, the guidelines naming agents and advocates. A consultancy prepares and checks your file. You post it.

The central point

Who Signs a Minor's Name Change Affidavit, and Why the Child Signs Nothing

Read the proforma the Department prescribes for a minor and the answer is obvious, because the whole form is written in the parent's voice. Filling in its blanks, it runs:

The minor proforma, blank by blank. I ______, son of or wife of ______, employed as ______ in the ______, residing at ______, have changed the name of my minor son or daughter ______, aged ______, and he or she shall hereafter be known as ______.

Four Things That Sentence Tells You

The parent is the one speaking

It begins with I, and the I is the parent. The child is described in the third person as my minor son or daughter. So the child is not a party to the document at all.

It asks for your employment

Employed as, in the. The same field the adult proforma carries. If a draft in front of you has no employment field, it is not this form.

It asks the child's age

Which is the fact that decides everything. On the day the child turns eighteen this form stops being the right one.

Son of or wife of

The form contemplates a father or a mother signing. It does not require both, though as a practical matter both agreeing is what keeps the file smooth.

Do not have the child sign anything, however old they are. We have seen files where a fifteen year old signed the proforma beside a parent because somebody thought it looked more complete. It does not help and it raises a question about the form that nobody wanted. The guidelines put the Guardian's signature on the undertaking and the guardian's name in place of the signature in the soft copy. Follow the document.

Where a Guardian Is Not a Parent

The guidelines use the word Guardian, and a guardian is not always a parent. Where a grandparent, a relative or an institution is raising the child, or where a court has appointed somebody, the person with that standing is the one who signs, and the paper establishing that standing goes in the file. Where a court has passed any order about the child, read it with an advocate before filing anything, because such orders can decide what any one person may do alone. That caution is set out in full on our child surname change after divorce page, which is the situation where it comes up most.

The question worth asking before anything is typed. How old is the child today, and how old will they be when this file reaches Delhi? If eighteen is within a few months, wait and let them apply in their own name as an adult. It is a simpler file, they sign for themselves, nobody's employment details are needed, and the printed charge is lower.

Clause by clause

What a Minor's Name Change Affidavit Should Say

This is our own drafting, in plain words, for the ordinary case where a parent is changing a child's name and an office has asked for an affidavit without giving a format. Where an office publishes its own format, use theirs. Rs 100 non-judicial stamp paper is our safe default across Jharkhand, with a notary.

The clauses a minor name change affidavit needs and what each one is doing
Clause	What it states	Why it is there
1. Who you are	Your full name, your father's or husband's name, your age, your occupation and office, and your full address with pin code	The prescribed proforma asks for exactly these, employment included, so the affidavit should match it
2. Your standing	That you are the father, mother or guardian of the child named below	This is the clause that entitles you to speak for the child at all
3. The child	The child's existing full name as the records carry it, the date of birth and the age	Age is what makes this a minor file rather than an adult one
4. The new name	The exact full name the child will now be known by, letter by letter, with the spacing you intend	Every record afterwards copies this. A corrigendum later is a fresh file and a fresh charge
5. One and the same child	That the old name and the new name belong to one and the same child, namely yours	This is the sentence most offices are actually reading for
6. Where the old name appears	The records that carry the old name, such as the birth certificate and the school admission register	It tells the reader which records will now need bringing into line
7. Truth and purpose	That the change is being made for the child's benefit and that what is stated is true to the best of your knowledge	The standard closing, with place, date and your signature
8. Witnesses	Two witnesses with signature, full name, address and mobile number	The guidelines ask for two witnesses on the proforma, so keep the affidavit consistent with it

What not to put in, whatever a template says. Do not have the child sign it. Do not write the words hitherto known as, which belong to the adult change of name proforma. Do not copy in the renunciation clauses from a passport style name change affidavit, which describe an adult abandoning their own name of their own accord and make no sense in a parent's mouth. And do not swear to a date of birth that does not match the birth certificate, because the two will be read side by side.

Attach these. Self-attested copies of the child's birth certificate, the school admission form or admit card if the child is in school, and the identity proof of the parent signing. The guidelines themselves ask for two self attested passport photographs of each applicant and the child, so take photographs of both to the notary as well.

Our other affidavit pages cover the different situations: the general name change affidavit, the surname change affidavit, and the affidavit after marriage. None of those wordings fits a child, which is why this page exists.

Side by side

How a Minor's File Differs From an Adult's, Line by Line

Both guidelines documents are published by the same Department and look similar at a glance. The differences are small, specific and expensive to miss.

The published differences between a minor change of name file and an adult one
	Minor	Adult or major
Who signs the undertaking	The Guardian	The applicant, in their own matter
What is typed in place of the signature on the CD	The name of the Guardian	The old name of the applicant
Photographs	Two self attested, of each applicant and the child	Two self attested, of the applicant
Printing charge printed for 2016 to 2017	Rs 1,700	Rs 1,100, and Rs 3,500 for an Indian living abroad
How the proforma opens	The parent speaking: I have changed the name of my minor son or daughter, aged, who shall hereafter be known as	The person speaking for themselves: I hitherto known as, who shall hereafter be known as
Whose age is asked	The child's	Nobody's, though employment is asked on both
Witnesses	Two, on the proforma in duplicate	Two, the same
The standing rules	Identical on both: nothing older than one year, nothing submitted is returned, and no agent, advocate or other channel may submit the application

The mistake that sends a minor's file back. Using the adult proforma because that is the one an agent had on file. It opens with the wrong words, it puts the wrong name in place of the signature on the CD, and it is priced at the wrong figure. The Government charge already paid is not refunded, because BharatKosh payments are non-refundable, and you then have six months to make good a shortcoming the Department points out, after which a fresh application with all new documents is required. With a child's school year running, months lost matter more than the money.

The full list of the Department's twelve categories, and how to tell which one is yours, is on our correction against change of name page. If the child's name was simply written wrongly in a record rather than changed, you are in a different category again and it is cheaper.

In order

The Order to Prepare a Minor's Name Change Affidavit in Jharkhand

Two of these steps come before any paper is bought, and they are the two that decide whether the rest is worth doing at all.

Check the child's age today

And on the day the file will reach Delhi. If eighteen is close, wait and let them apply as an adult. Simpler file, lower printed charge, no employment details needed.

Ask whether this is a change or a correction

If the school admission form always held the name and a later record got it wrong, this is a correction and far cheaper. Check before anything else.

Read any court order first

Where custody or guardianship has been ordered, that order decides what one parent may do alone. Read it with an advocate, not with us.

Settle the child's exact full name

Spelling and spacing, written down once. Every record after this copies it, and a corrigendum later is a fresh file and a fresh charge.

Draft the affidavit in the parent's voice

Your details with your employment, your standing as parent or guardian, the child's name and age, the new name, and one and the same child.

Notarise it, with photographs of both

Rs 100 non-judicial stamp paper as the safe default, two witnesses with full names and addresses, and self attested photographs of the applicant and the child.

Correct the school record

In writing through the head of the institution, and ask for an attested copy of the admission register page afterwards. This is what a board prints from.

Build the gazette file if one is needed

Minor proforma in duplicate, original newspaper, the CD with the guardian's name in place of the signature, the certificate, the request letter and the BharatKosh receipt.

Update the Aadhaar last

After the birth certificate and the school record, never before. Boards match the Aadhaar against the school record at exam registration.

The deadline that decides how hard this will be. The Class 10 certificate. Before the board prints it, a child's name is a school record question. After it is printed, the name on that certificate follows your child for life and changing it becomes a board matter that is slow and sometimes refused. If your child is in Class 8 or 9 and the register does not hold the name you intend, deal with it this year rather than next.

The full process

Central Gazette Process for a Minor's Name Change From Jharkhand, Step by Step

No district in Jharkhand has a gazette counter, so the file goes from Ranchi, Jamshedpur, Dhanbad, Bokaro, Hazaribagh, Deoghar or anywhere else in the state to the Department of Publication, Civil Lines, Delhi 110054, and the notice publishes in Part IV of the Gazette of India. As reported in July 2025 the Finance Department stopped personal name change notifications from the Jharkhand Government Press with immediate effect, so there is no state alternative to fall back on.

The Eight Steps of a Minor's Name Change File Sent From Jharkhand

Settle the final name first

Write it out letter by letter, with the spacing you want, and then use exactly that in every paper. A corrigendum after publication is a second fee and a second wait.

Pick the category, then its proforma

Change of name for a minor, which has its own guidelines and its own Rs 1,700 printed charge, public notice of change of name of minor after divorce, or a public notice where the child's name was simply written wrongly. Twelve categories exist and only one is yours.

Type the proforma in duplicate

Two originals. On a minor's file the Guardian signs, never the child, with two witnesses giving signature, full name, address and mobile number on both copies. The form asks for the parent's employment and the child's age.

Get the affidavit attested at the right level

A notary for the ordinary change of name, and a First Class Magistrate of the concerned area where the different surname guidelines apply. This is the step that catches people out.

Publish and keep the original paper

One of the daily local leading newspapers, carrying the child's old name in full, the new name, the parent's name and the address. The whole original paper goes in the file.

Pay only through BharatKosh

The Non Tax Receipt Portal and nowhere else since October 2018. Select the Department of Publication by name, read the amount the portal shows on the day, pay in your own name and print the e-receipt.

Check every date, then post it yourself

Nothing in the file older than one year. Personally or by post or courier only, never through an agent or advocate. Photocopy everything first, because nothing sent in comes back.

Read the notice, then download it

Check both of the child's names letter by letter the day it publishes, note the page and issue number, and download the e-Gazette copy of that Part IV issue.

The Five Papers in the File, and What Is Checked in Each

The five papers of a Central Gazette minor's name change file and what the Department checks in each
The paper	What is checked in it, clause by clause
1. The proforma, in duplicate	That it is the right category's format; the existing full name exactly as your documents carry it, surname included; the child's new full name exactly as you settled it; the father's or husband's name; the full address with pin code; the signature in the old name; two witnesses complete with signature, full name, address and mobile number
2. The affidavit or undertaking	Signed by the parent applying; the same names and address as the proforma, word for word; attested at the level the category asks for, which is a First Class Magistrate for the adopting a different surname route; on Rs 100 non-judicial stamp paper as our safe default
3. The original newspaper	The original paper, not a cutting; the paper's name and date of publication visible; both of the child's names carried; the same spelling as the proforma; dated within the last year
4. Photographs, identity proof and any category paper	Two self attested passport photographs of each applicant and the child, which the minor guidelines ask for specifically; identity and address proof matching the proforma address; both witnesses' proofs; and whatever the category itself demands, such as a decree or a no objection certificate where the maiden surname requirement applies
5. The CD, its certificate and the BharatKosh receipt	MS Word, without the witness portion, with the name of the Guardian typed in place of the signature, which is where a minor file differs from an adult one; the certificate that the hard copy and the soft copy are the same; the forwarding letter to the Controller of Publication with a telephone number and email; the e-receipt

The proforma is where files are lost, and there are twelve to choose from. A maiden surname file typed on the ordinary change of name form, or a change of name typed on a surname form, comes back. The Government charge already paid is not refunded, because BharatKosh payments are non-refundable. You then have six months to make good a shortcoming the Department points out, after which a fresh application with all new documents is required.

What to select on BharatKosh, field by field. Pay to the Department of Publication under the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, and pick the Ministry, the Pay and Accounts Office and the Drawing and Disbursing Officer by their names in the dropdown, never by a code copied off a website. The codes printed for this office on different websites do not agree with each other, and money paid into the wrong head cannot be traced to your file. Read the amount on the portal on the day you pay, because it is revised each financial year.

How to read the published notice before you rely on it. Open the e-Gazette copy and check five things: that it says Part IV; the date of publication; your old full name exactly as your documents carry it, with the surname spelt as it appears there; the child's new name, letter by letter; and the father's or husband's name and address. Then note the page number and the issue number, because that is what an office will quote back to you at verification.

The posting detail is on the sending the file to Delhi page, the wording on the proforma format page, the charge by category on the fee and undertaking page, the reasons files come back on the rejection reasons page, and the download on the download page.

Cost and time

What a Minor's Name Change Costs in Jharkhand

Cost and time for a minor's name change affidavit and file in Jharkhand
Item	Cost	Time
Where the school register simply needs correcting	The school and board correction fees, plus Rs 10 for an RTI application if the register page has to be obtained that way. No change of name charge at all	A few weeks through the school and the board
Government printing charge	The minor guidelines print Rs 1,700 for a change of name of a minor with effect from 01.04.2016 to 31.03.2017. For comparison the adult guidelines print Rs 1,100 for the same year, and Rs 3,500 for an Indian living abroad. Every category's guidelines add that the charge varies each financial year and from case to case, so treat these as the order of the amount. What BharatKosh shows on the payment screen the day you pay is the figure that counts	Part IV publishes weekly, so allow several weeks from posting
Affidavit	Rs 100 non-judicial stamp paper plus the attestation. A notary is enough for an ordinary marriage affidavit. A First Class Magistrate is only for the adopting a different surname route	Notary the same day; a magistrate needs a planned court visit
Newspaper	Paid to the paper, charged by length	Same week
Post or courier to Delhi	Sent in your own name from any district, and keep the receipt	A few days each way
Updating the records afterwards	Aadhaar charges a fee per attempt with no refund, and the other offices have their own small charges	Several weeks across all of them
Our charge	Quoted on your papers before you pay anything, and confirmed in writing. We print no service price on any page of this site

Do not trust a figure printed on any website, including this one, on the day you pay. The Department's own guidelines say the printing charge varies each financial year and from case to case, so the figures above are what the published guidelines show for 2016 to 2017 and are given so you know the order of the amount, not the amount. What BharatKosh shows when you reach the payment screen is the one that counts. Read it there and pay that.

The honest total, in the rare case a gazette is genuinely needed after a marriage, is the Government charge, the affidavit, the newspaper and the postage, and then several weeks of waiting for Part IV. The cost that surprises people is not any of these. It is the second file, caused by a name settled carelessly at step one, and it is entirely avoidable. Our corrigendum page explains what that second file involves.

Set the record straight

Myths About the Name Change Affidavit for a Minor

Common beliefs about a minor's name change affidavit and what is actually correct
What people are told	What is actually so
The child has to sign the affidavit	The child signs nothing. The Department's minor guidelines put the signature of the Guardian on the undertaking and the guardian's name in place of the signature on the soft copy
The adult affidavit format works for a child	It does not. The adult proforma opens with hitherto known as, spoken by the person themselves. The minor proforma is spoken by the parent: I have changed the name of my minor son or daughter, aged
The Government charge is Rs 1,100	That is the adult figure. The minor guidelines print Rs 1,700 for the financial year 2016 to 2017. Every category adds that the charge varies each financial year and from case to case, so read BharatKosh on the day
Only the child's photographs are needed	The guidelines ask for two self attested passport photographs of each applicant and the child. Parents routinely bring only the child's and are sent back
Better to wait until the child turns eighteen	Usually the opposite, because of the Class 10 certificate. Before it is printed this is a school record question. Afterwards it is a board matter that is slow and sometimes refused
An agent can submit the file at the counter in Delhi	No. The guidelines say an application is entertained only when submitted personally or sent by post or courier, and that no other channel is permissible, naming agents and advocates
The affidavit by itself changes the child's name	It does not. It records what the parent has decided. What moves the records is the school correction and, where genuinely needed, the published notice
Old papers can go in the file if they look fine	The documents must not be older than one year. A stale affidavit, an old newspaper or an outdated identity copy sends the file back on its own

The belief that costs the most. That a downloaded affidavit is safe because it looks official. Most minor templates online are the adult format with the word minor added at the top. Read any draft out loud and ask one question: who is speaking in this sentence? If it is the child, it is the wrong paper. If it is the parent, and it names the child's age, you are in the right place.

Plain meanings

Key Terms in a Minor's Name Change Affidavit

Key terms used in a minor's name change affidavit and gazette file
Term	What it means in practice
Minor	A child under eighteen. The day they turn eighteen, this whole route stops applying and they file as an adult
Guardian	The word the Department's guidelines use for whoever signs. Usually a parent, sometimes a grandparent, a relative or a person a court has appointed
Undertaking	The signed paper the guidelines list first. Signed by the Guardian, never by the child
Proforma	The Department's prescribed form for the category, filed in duplicate, typed, with the applicant's signature and two witnesses
The CD	The soft copy of the print matter in MS Word, without the witness portion, with the guardian's name typed in place of the signature
Affidavit	A sworn statement of fact. On Rs 100 non-judicial stamp paper as our safe default, notarised
One and the same child	The clause joining the old name and the new name to one child. What most offices are reading for
Admission register	The school's record of the child's name. What a board prints on a Class 10 certificate comes from here
Corrigendum	A second published notice fixing a mistake in the first. A fresh file and a fresh charge
Shortcoming	A defect the Department points out. Six months to make it good, after which a fresh application with all new documents is needed
One year rule	Nothing in the file may be older than one year. It applies to every category
Part IV	The part of the Gazette of India that carries personal name notices, including a minor's

Coverage

Minor Affidavit and School Record Help Across Jharkhand

The notary and the school are in your own district. The wording check, the category, the school letter and the file are done on your scans over WhatsApp, for every district in the state, and we will tell you when the answer is an advocate rather than us.

RanchiJamshedpurDhanbadBokaroHazaribaghDeogharGiridihDumkaRamgarhMedininagarChaibasaGumlaKhuntiSimdegaGarhwaKoderma

District pages are linked from the services page.

Send the papers for a minor affidavit check

Photograph the child's birth certificate, the school admission form or admit card, and the identity proof of whichever parent will sign. Tell us the child's exact age today and the full name you want, spelt as you want it printed. The first reply tells you whether an affidavit is needed at all, which category the file goes under, what the guardian has to sign and in whose name, and the total before you pay anything. If the child is close to turning eighteen, say so, because that single fact changes the whole route. Details on the contact page.

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📍Ranchi office: Main Building, Near Shaheed Chowk, Ranchi, Jharkhand 834001
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FAQ

Minor Name Change Affidavit: Frequently Asked Questions

Who signs a name change affidavit for a minor?+

The Guardian, which for most families means a parent. The Department of Publication's guidelines for change of name for a minor ask for an undertaking duly signed by the Guardian, and for the soft copy to carry the name of the Guardian in place of the signature. The child signs nothing, whatever their age, and adding a child's signature beside a parent's does not help.

Can I use the ordinary adult affidavit format for my child?+

No, and this is the commonest reason a minor's file comes back. The adult proforma is spoken by the person themselves and opens with hitherto known as. The minor proforma is spoken by the parent and reads, in its blanks, I, son of or wife of, employed as, in the, residing at, have changed the name of my minor son or daughter, aged, and he or she shall hereafter be known as. Different voice, different form, different charge.

What does the Government charge for a minor's name change?+

The minor guidelines print Rs 1,700 with effect from 01.04.2016 to 31.03.2017. The adult guidelines print Rs 1,100 for the same year, and Rs 3,500 for an Indian living abroad. Every category's guidelines add that the charge varies each financial year and from case to case, so treat these as the order of the amount. What BharatKosh shows on the payment screen the day you pay is the figure that counts. Anybody quoting you Rs 1,100 for a child has read the wrong page.

Which documents does the Department actually list for a minor?+

Seven. An undertaking signed by the Guardian; the original newspaper; the prescribed proforma in duplicate, typed, with the signature of the applicant and two witnesses; a CD with the print matter without the witness portion in MS Word, typing the guardian's name in place of the signature; two self attested passport size photographs of each applicant and the child; a certificate that the hard copy and soft copy are the same; and a request letter with the requisite fee.

Do I need photographs of myself as well as my child?+

Yes. The guidelines say two self attested passport size photographs of each applicant and the child. Parents very often carry only the child's photographs and are turned back. Take two of the parent signing and two of the child, all self attested, and carry them to the notary as well.

Should I wait until my child turns eighteen?+

It depends on one thing, the Class 10 certificate. Before the board prints it, this is a school record question and it is comparatively easy. Once it is printed, the name on it follows your child for life and changing it becomes a board matter that is slow and sometimes refused. If eighteen is only a few months away and the board certificate is already printed, waiting is often sensible, because they then apply as an adult, sign for themselves, and the printed charge is lower.

Do both parents have to sign?+

The proforma says son of or wife of, so it contemplates one parent signing, and the guidelines speak of the Guardian in the singular. As a practical matter, both parents agreeing is what keeps a file smooth, and where a court has passed orders about the child, what one parent may do alone can be limited. Read any such order with your advocate before filing.

What if the guardian is not a parent?+

The guidelines use the word Guardian rather than parent, so where a grandparent, another relative or a person appointed by a court is raising the child, that person signs and the paper establishing their standing goes into the file. This is not a case to improvise on. Ask the office in writing what proof of guardianship it expects before assembling anything.

Is this a change of name or a correction?+

Ask what the school admission form says. If it always carried the name you want and a later record got it wrong, this is a correction, which is cheaper, faster and publishes nothing. If the admission form carries the old name too, the name is genuinely changing and a gazette category applies. Getting this backwards is the single most expensive mistake on this subject.

What stamp paper value should the affidavit be on?+

Rs 100 non-judicial stamp paper is our safe default across Jharkhand and is accepted everywhere we have filed. It is a working practice rather than a stated rule. Where an office names a different value, follow the office. What matters far more than the value is the wording on the paper, whose voice it is written in, and whether the notary has stamped, signed and entered it in the register.

Can somebody submit the file for me in Delhi?+

No. The guidelines say an application is entertained only when submitted personally or sent by post or courier, and that no other channel is permissible, naming agents and advocates. That is why we prepare, check and correct your file and then you post it in your own name. Anybody promising to hand it in at the counter is describing something the guidelines do not allow.

When should the child's Aadhaar be updated?+

Last, after the birth certificate and the school record. Boards match the Aadhaar against the school record at exam registration, and a mismatch discovered then arrives with a form deadline running. Settle the school register, then the Aadhaar, and the two will agree when it actually matters.

Who wrote and checked this page

Written and maintained by the Jharkhandnamechange.com documentation desk, led by founder Vipin Chauhan, B.Tech LL.B, with 5+ years filing with the Department of Publication. Everything on this page about what a minor's file must contain is taken from the Department's own guidelines for change of name for a minor, linked below, which is a different document from the adult guidelines: the undertaking duly signed by the Guardian; the original newspaper; the prescribed proforma in duplicate, typed, with the signature of the applicant and two witnesses; the CD carrying the print matter without the witness portion in MS Word, typing the name of the Guardian in place of the signature; two self attested passport size photographs of each applicant and the child; the certificate that hard copy and soft copy are similar; and the request letter with the requisite fee. The proforma wording quoted on this page, in the parent's voice and asking for the parent's employment and the child's age, is from that same document. The printing charge of Rs 1,700 is printed there with effect from 01.04.2016 to 31.03.2017, against Rs 1,100 in the adult guidelines for the same year, and each category's guidelines state that the charge varies each financial year and from case to case, which is why this page tells you to read BharatKosh on the day you pay rather than trusting a figure. The one year rule, the non-return rule and the bar on agents and advocates come from the same guidelines. The eight-clause affidavit wording on this page is our own drafting, not a copy of any published format, and it is offered only where an office has asked for an affidavit without giving one; where an office publishes its own format, that one governs. The Rs 100 stamp paper value is our working default and not a stated legal requirement. We are a documentation consultancy and not advocates, and where a court order about a child is involved we will say plainly that it belongs with a family lawyer first. Who we are is on the about page.

Last reviewed 20 September 2026 • 9540005002 • info@jharkhandnamechange.com • Jharkhandnamechange.com is a private documentation consultancy and is not the Department of Publication, the Controller of Publication, a court, a law firm or any Government office. This page is general information, not legal advice.

Verify it yourself

Official Sources on a Minor's Name Change

Guidelines for Change of Name for Minor, Department of PublicationThe seven papers, the proforma in the parent's voice, the guardian's signature, the photographs of each applicant and the child, and the Rs 1,700 printing charge.
Guidelines for Change of Name for Adult (Major), Department of PublicationThe adult document, for comparison: the hitherto known as proforma, the old name on the CD, and the Rs 1,100 charge.
Department of Publication, guidelines for change of nameWhere all twelve published categories sit, including change of name for a minor and the public notice of change of name of a minor after divorce.
Department of Publication, Government of IndiaThe office at Civil Lines, Delhi 110054, where the file goes.
BharatKosh, Non Tax Receipt PortalThe only channel for the Government charge, and where the amount that applies on the day is shown.
e-GazetteWhere a published Part IV notice is searched for and downloaded free.
UIDAI list of supporting documentsWhat Aadhaar accepts for a child, which is done after the school record is settled.

Quick Summary

The Minor Affidavit in Eight Lines

The short version

The Guardian signs the undertaking, and the child signs nothing at all.
The proforma is in the parent's voice and asks for the child's age.
The soft copy types the guardian's name where a signature would go.
Two self attested photographs of each applicant and the child are asked for.
The minor charge is printed as Rs 1,700, not the adult Rs 1,100.
Nothing in the file may be older than one year, and nothing is returned.
No agent or advocate may submit the application, so you post it yourself.
Correct the school register first, and update the Aadhaar last.

Send the child's papers and we will tell you which form and which charge apply.

Birth certificate, school admission form, and the identity proof of whoever will sign. We will name the category, the wording and the total.

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