Name Change for NRI From Jharkhand
Most pages treat an applicant abroad as an ordinary applicant with a bigger fee. The Department of Publication's guidelines say something quite different, in one sentence people skip. They read: "In case of Indians living abroad, he/she will submit deed duly attested by the respective Indian embassy/ Indian High Commission, in original to this department." Read it carefully. A deed, not the undertaking a domestic applicant signs. Attested by the Indian Mission, not a local notary and not an apostille. And in original, which means a physical document has to travel from where you live to Civil Lines in Delhi. That is a different file from the one your family in Ranchi would make, and knowing it before you start is most of the job.
The route for an Indian living abroad is set out in a single published sentence, and every practical decision follows from it. The guidelines say "In case of Indians living abroad, he/she will submit deed duly attested by the respective Indian embassy/ Indian High Commission, in original to this department." Three things follow. First, the instrument is a deed, where a domestic applicant's file carries "An undertaking duly signed by the applicant". Second, the attestation is by the Indian Mission in your country, which is not the same as a local notary and not the same as an apostille. The apostille route exists, and India has been a member of the Hague Convention since 2005, but that route is for Indian documents going abroad rather than for a deed coming home. Third, the original must reach the Department, so posting a scan is not an option and the physical document has to travel. On money, the guidelines do state a higher figure for Indians living abroad, but they state it expressly for the financial year 2016 to 2017, so it is a published figure that has aged out and the current rate has to be confirmed before filing. We will not print a stale number as though it were today's.
Why an NRI Files a Deed and Not the Undertaking a Domestic Applicant Signs
Put the two sentences from the same document side by side and the difference is plain.
| A file made in Jharkhand | A file made by an Indian living abroad |
|---|---|
| The guidelines list "An undertaking duly signed by the applicant" | The guidelines say the applicant "will submit deed duly attested by the respective Indian embassy/ Indian High Commission" |
| Self attested throughout. Nothing in the list requires a notary | Attested by the Indian Mission in the country where you live. A different act by a different officer |
| The file is handed in or posted within India | The deed goes "in original to this department". A physical document has to travel, and a scan will not do |
| The applicant can visit Civil Lines if something is queried | You cannot. Every query is answered by post or through somebody acting for you in India, which is why the file has to be right the first time |
| The fee is the ordinary adult rate | The guidelines name a higher figure for Indians living abroad, and tie it to a financial year that has passed, which the section below deals with honestly |
| What is the same for both | The newspaper, the proforma in duplicate with two witnesses, the soft copy, the photographs, the identity proof, the similarity certificate and the request letter. Those do not change because you moved |
Why the wording matters more than it looks. A deed is an instrument in which you renounce the old name and bind yourself to the new one. An undertaking is a signed promise. They are different documents doing different jobs, and if you prepare the domestic undertaking and have a foreign notary stamp it, you have made neither of the two things the guidelines describe. That is the commonest way an NRI file comes back, and it comes back slowly, because it comes back across an ocean.
Who Attests an NRI Name Change Deed, and Why the Apostille Is Usually the Wrong Route
Ask about attestation abroad and somebody will say apostille. It is a real process, India has been part of it for two decades, and for this particular document it is usually pointing you in the opposite direction.
| The route | What it is actually for |
|---|---|
| Indian embassy or High Commission attestation | This is what the gazette guidelines name. The applicant abroad submits the deed "duly attested by the respective Indian embassy/ Indian High Commission, in original to this department." The Mission of your country of residence, and nobody else |
| The apostille | A real and important process. The Ministry of External Affairs states that "India, since 2005, is a member of the Hague Convention of October 5 1961", and an apostille covers personal documents including affidavits and powers of attorney. But the flow runs outward, legalising an Indian document for use abroad |
| Normal attestation by the Ministry | The Ministry explains this is "done for all the countries which are not a member of Hague Convention and where Apostille is not accepted." Again, for documents leaving India |
| Why this matters to you in practice | Your deed is being made abroad and sent to India. Getting it apostilled in your country of residence is not what the gazette guidelines ask for, and paying for it does not replace the Mission attestation they name |
| A detail worth knowing about the Indian side | The Ministry states that "No document is directly accepted from individuals at the Ministry of External Affairs Counter" and that documents go through designated outsourced service providers, after authentication by a State authority. So even the outward route is not a walk in visit |
| And the limit the Ministry itself states | It legalises on the basis of the signatures of designated authorities and "does not take responsibility of the contents of the documents." Attestation confirms a signature, never the truth of what is written, which is worth remembering before assuming a stamp settles anything |
What the Published NRI Gazette Fee Says, and Why That Figure Has Expired
This section exists because we found something awkward and decided to print it rather than tidy it away. The guidelines do give a figure for Indians living abroad. They also date it.
| The point | What we found and what we conclude |
|---|---|
| The sentence as published | The guidelines state "For Indians living abroad it is Rs 3500/- only w.e.f. 01/04/2016 to 31/03/2017." Read the second half. The figure carries its own validity period on its face |
| Why that matters | That financial year ended a long time ago, and the charge is revised each financial year. So the number is published and stale at the same time, which is an unusual situation and worth saying plainly |
| What other pages do with it | Quote Rs 3,500 as the current NRI fee without the date. Others quote figures two or three times higher. We have seen both and can verify neither as today's rate |
| What we do instead | We tell you a higher rate applies to Indians living abroad than to applicants in India, because the guidelines say so, and we confirm the current figure before anything is filed. We do not print a number we cannot stand behind |
| How the payment works | Through BharatKosh, which is the only route, and the payment is non refundable. Read the amount on the portal on the day you pay, which is the only figure that is ever current |
| The practical consequence for an NRI | Budget for the higher rate and confirm it before you pay, because a payment into the wrong amount or the wrong head is not traced back easily from abroad. Our BharatKosh payment page covers the fields |
The Passport Name Change Route From Abroad and the Consular Officer Option
For most NRIs from Jharkhand the passport is the record that actually matters, because it is the one every other country reads. Here the rules are unusually accommodating, and almost nobody points it out.
| What the passport route provides | What it means if you live abroad |
|---|---|
| The specimen deed poll may be signed before a Judicial Magistrate, an Executive Magistrate, a Notary Public or a Consular Officer | A Consular Officer is named in the list. So for this document you do not have to be in India, and you do not have to wait for a trip home |
| The clauses are the same wherever you sign | You "wholly renounce/relinquish and abandon the use of my former name/surname", undertake to use the new name "in all records, deeds and writings and in all proceedings, dealings and transactions", and request everybody to address you by it |
| The note requires advertisements in two newspapers | One of the area in which you are residing and one of the area of your permanent address. The second is your Jharkhand district. The first is dealt with in the next section, because the rules do not settle it for a person living abroad |
| The note says to "submit original newspapers at the time of applying for passport in his/her new name" | Originals, carried or posted. Have somebody in Jharkhand buy several spare copies on the day and keep them flat, because a cutting is not the same thing |
| The proforma also asks for "two government issued photo ID proofs containing the new name" | So the passport expects other records to be changed already, which is the sequencing trap. Do not treat the passport as the first record to fix |
| And the fact that catches people with visas | A passport name change is a reissue. A new booklet with a new number, not an amendment to the old one, so plan around any visa or residence permit tied to the current passport. Our passport name change page deals with the reissue |
The Newspaper Question an NRI Cannot Answer From the Rules Alone
Here is a genuine gap, and we would rather show it to you than paper over it. The passport deed poll note says to advertise in two newspapers, one "of the area in which he/she is residing" and one "of the area of permanent address." For somebody living in Ranchi and keeping a family home in Gumla, that is obvious. For somebody living in Dubai, Toronto or Melbourne, it is not.
| The question | What we can and cannot tell you |
|---|---|
| Which paper covers the area of my permanent address | This one is clear. Your Jharkhand district, in the papers read there. Our newspaper advertisement page covers the Hindi and English dailies circulating in this State and the wording |
| Which paper covers the area in which I am residing, if that is abroad | The text says what it says and does not explain this case. A local paper where you live is what the words describe. We are not going to invent a rule the note does not give |
| So what should you actually do | Ask your own Mission in writing before publishing anything, because that is the office that will read your application. Their answer is worth more than any consultant's opinion, ours included |
| What the gazette file asks for, separately | The gazette guidelines say "Change of name should be advertised in one of the daily local leading newspapers" and list the "Original newspaper" among the enclosures. A Jharkhand publication answers that comfortably |
| The practical approach most NRI clients take | Publish in Jharkhand, because that satisfies the gazette file and the permanent address limb, and confirm with the Mission whether a publication where they live is additionally required before the passport application |
| And the part that is not optional either way | Originals. Both routes want the whole paper rather than a cutting, so arrange for spare copies on the day and for somebody to keep them flat and undamaged until they are needed |
How an NRI From Jharkhand Should Change a Name, Step by Step
List Every Indian Record and Decide Which Ones You Truly Need
Passport, Aadhaar, PAN, Indian bank accounts, property papers in Jharkhand, school and degree certificates, insurance. An NRI often needs far fewer of them changed than a resident does, and the list decides whether a gazette is required at all.
Separate a Name Correction From a Real Name Change
A spelling a clerk typed wrongly is a correction against the office's own entry, and no published paper may be needed. From abroad this distinction is worth even more, because every wasted step costs postage and time zones. Our correction against change page is the test.
Ask Your Indian Mission in Writing What It Requires
For the deed attestation, and for the newspaper question above. By email, so you have the answer in writing. Missions differ in appointments and in what they want to see, and their answer outranks anybody's general advice.
Settle the New Name Letter by Letter Before Anything Is Signed
Spelling, spacing, initials, the order of the words, and how it should appear in a passport's machine readable line. Changing it later means repeating an attestation abroad and a file across an ocean.
Prepare the Deed and Have the Indian Mission Attest It
A deed, not the domestic undertaking, because the guidelines say the applicant abroad "will submit deed duly attested by the respective Indian embassy/ Indian High Commission." A foreign notary's stamp is not what that sentence names.
Publish the Newspaper Advertisement and Keep Whole Original Copies
In Jharkhand for the permanent address, and wherever your Mission's reply tells you. Buy several spare copies on the day and have somebody keep them flat, because both routes ask for originals rather than cuttings.
Confirm the Current Fee and Pay Only Through BharatKosh
The guidelines' figure for Indians living abroad is tied to a financial year that has passed, and the charge is revised each year and non refundable. Read the amount on the portal on the day you pay.
Send the Attested Deed in Original With the Complete File
The guidelines say in original, so use a tracked service and keep the tracking number. Check the hard copy against the soft copy letter by letter first, because a returned file from abroad costs weeks rather than days.
Update the Indian Records in an Order That Does Not Backtrack
Aadhaar where you hold one, then PAN, then Indian bank accounts, then the passport reissue, then property and any business registration. The passport asks for two Government photo identity proofs already carrying the new name, so it is not the first record to fix.
The Full Central Gazette Process as It Works From Outside India
No district in Jharkhand has a gazette counter, so a genuine 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 Name File Sent From Jharkhand
Settle the final name first
Letter by letter, with the spacing you want, and then use exactly that everywhere, Aadhaar included. A corrigendum after publication is a second fee and a second wait.
Pick the category, then its proforma
A genuine change of name is change of Name Adult or Major. A wrongly typed spelling is the public notice for a wrongly written name. Twelve categories exist and only one is yours.
Type the proforma in duplicate
Two originals with two witnesses giving signature, full name, address and mobile number on both copies. A change of name is signed in the old name; a public notice is signed in your own name.
Fill the employment field if it is a change of name
The adult proforma asks for the post of the applicant and the office or company name. A student or a homemaker should still complete it rather than leaving it blank, because a blank field brings the file back.
Publish and keep the original paper
One of the daily local leading newspapers, carrying both names in full, the father or husband name and the residential address. The whole original paper goes in the file, not a cutting.
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 update in the right order
Check every word the day it publishes, because a published gazette is not edited and a mistake needs a fresh corrective process, which is a great deal harder to run from abroad. Download the e-Gazette copy, which is free, then take the Indian records in order: the Aadhaar where you hold one, then the PAN, which is corrected and never replaced, then any Indian bank accounts, and only then the passport reissue, because the passport proforma expects two Government photo identity proofs already carrying the new name.
The Five Papers in the File, and What Is Checked in Each
| The paper | What is checked in it, clause by clause |
|---|---|
| 1. The proforma, in duplicate | That it is the right category format; the existing full name exactly as your documents carry it; the new full name exactly as settled; the father or husband name; the full address with pin code; the post and office or company name where it is a change of name; the signature in the right name for the category; two witnesses complete with signature, full name, address and mobile number |
| 2. The affidavit or undertaking | The same names and address as the proforma, word for word, with wording matching the category. On Rs 100 non-judicial stamp paper as our safe default |
| 3. The original newspaper | The original paper, not a cutting; the paper name and date of publication visible; both names carried; the father or husband name and residential address; dated within the last year |
| 4. Photographs, identity proof and any category paper | Two self attested passport photographs; self attested identity and address proof matching the proforma address; both witnesses proofs; and, in a public notice file, the attested photocopy of the connected document carrying the error |
| 5. The CD, its certificate and the BharatKosh receipt | MS Word, without the witness portion, with the name typed in place of the signature; 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 posting detail is on the sending the file to Delhi page, the change of name wording on the proforma format page and the public notice wording on the public notice proforma 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.
What a Name Change Costs an NRI From Jharkhand
An applicant abroad pays for several things a resident does not, and not all of them are fees. Here is the whole picture, including the places where we will not give you a figure and why.
| Item | What we can and cannot tell you |
|---|---|
| The Government gazette charge | The guidelines name a higher figure for Indians living abroad, expressly for the financial year 2016 to 2017. The charge is revised each financial year, paid only through BharatKosh and non refundable. We confirm the current amount before filing rather than quoting a stale one |
| The Mission attestation | A real cost that we cannot quote, because each Indian Mission publishes its own consular schedule in local currency and revises it. Ask your Mission in the same email in which you ask what they require |
| The newspaper advertisement | Varies by paper, edition and the number of lines, so we print no figure. Keep the wording short, because you pay by the space. Our newspaper page covers the papers read in this State |
| Courier and tracking, both ways | The deed must reach the Department in original, so this is not optional and not trivial from another country. Use a tracked service and keep the number |
| The passport reissue | A separate Government charge on a separate route, and a new booklet with a new number rather than an amendment. Budget for it as its own job |
| The cost nobody plans for | Doing it twice. A returned file from abroad means the charge again, possibly the attestation again, and several more weeks. This is why an NRI file is checked harder than a domestic one |
| Our charge | Quoted on the call, after we have seen your papers and your list of records, and never before we have told you whether you need a gazette at all |
Myths About the NRI Name Change Route From Jharkhand
| What NRIs are told | What is actually so |
|---|---|
| An NRI files the same papers as anybody else, just with a bigger fee | The instrument itself changes. The guidelines say the applicant abroad "will submit deed duly attested by the respective Indian embassy/ Indian High Commission, in original", where a domestic file carries "An undertaking duly signed by the applicant" |
| A local notary where I live can attest it | That is not what the sentence names. It names the Indian embassy or Indian High Commission of your country of residence. This is the commonest reason an NRI file comes back |
| Get it apostilled and it will be accepted | The apostille is real and India has been in the Hague Convention since 2005, but that route legalises Indian documents going abroad. Your deed is travelling the other way |
| A scanned and emailed copy is enough | The guidelines say in original. A physical document has to reach the Department in Delhi, which means a tracked courier and a tracking number you keep |
| The NRI fee is Rs 3,500 | That figure is published expressly for 01/04/2016 to 31/03/2017. Quoting it as today's rate ignores the second half of the sentence, and the charge is revised each financial year |
| I must fly to India to swear an affidavit | Not for the passport route. The specimen deed poll may be signed before a Judicial Magistrate, an Executive Magistrate, a Notary Public or a Consular Officer. A Consular Officer is in the list |
| Change the passport first, it is the important one | It expects the others to be done already. The proforma asks for "two government issued photo ID proofs containing the new name", so arriving first means arriving too early |
| The passport will simply be amended | It is a reissue. A new booklet with a new number, which matters if a visa or residence permit is tied to the current one |
| Every NRI needs a gazette notification | A good number need none. If the passport is the only record on your list, that route names a deed poll, newspapers and identity proofs, and no gazette |
| A consular stamp proves what my deed says is true | It does not. The Ministry states plainly that it legalises on the basis of signatures and "does not take responsibility of the contents of the documents." Attestation confirms a signature, never the contents |
Key Terms in an NRI Name Change From Jharkhand
| Term | What it means in practice |
|---|---|
| Deed | The instrument an applicant abroad submits, in which the old name is renounced. Not the same as the undertaking a domestic applicant signs |
| Undertaking | What the guidelines name for a domestic file: "An undertaking duly signed by the applicant." Signed by you, not attested by anybody |
| Mission attestation | Attestation by the Indian embassy or Indian High Commission of the country where you live. The step the guidelines name for an NRI deed |
| Apostille | Legalisation under the Hague Convention of 5 October 1961, which India joined in 2005. For Indian documents going abroad, which is the opposite direction from your deed |
| Normal attestation | The Ministry's route "for all the countries which are not a member of Hague Convention and where Apostille is not accepted." Also outward bound |
| In original | The guidelines' own phrase for how the attested deed reaches the Department. A scan will not do |
| Consular Officer | One of the officers before whom the passport specimen deed poll may be signed. Which is why the passport route does not need a flight home |
| Reissue | What a passport name change actually is. A new booklet with a new number, not an amendment |
| Permanent address | Your Jharkhand address for the newspaper limb of the passport note, as against the area in which you are residing, which is the limb the rules do not settle for an NRI |
| Original newspaper | What both the gazette file and the passport route ask for. The whole paper, not a cutting |
| BharatKosh | The Government payment portal and the only route for the gazette charge. Non refundable, and revised each financial year |
| Part IV | Where a personal name notice publishes in the Gazette of India. Digital only since 1 October 2015, and the copy downloads free from anywhere in the world |
NRI Name Change Help for Families From Every District of Jharkhand
People leave this State from every district, and the records they leave behind stay exactly where they were. A degree from Ranchi, a plot in Gumla, a school certificate in Dhanbad, an account in Bokaro. What an NRI needs most is somebody standing in India, and that is the part we actually do. We read your records against each other, tell you whether a gazette is on your path at all, draft the deed in the form the guidelines describe, tell you what to ask your Mission, arrange the newspaper publication in your home district, keep whole original copies safe, confirm the current Government charge on the day, and hand the file in. Where the answer is that you only need the passport route and no gazette, we will say so and charge you nothing. We work for families from Ranchi, Jamshedpur, Dhanbad, Gumla and every other district, entirely on scans and email.
District pages are linked from the services page.
Send your papers from wherever you are
Tell us two things and the rest follows. Which country you are living in, because that decides which Indian Mission attests your deed, and which Indian records you actually need changed, because that decides whether a gazette is on your path at all. Then send scans of your passport, the record carrying the name you want, your Aadhaar and PAN if you hold them, and anything already bought, with the dates readable. If you have written to your Mission, send us their reply, because we would rather build the file around their answer than around our assumption. Our first reply tells you whether this is a correction or a real change of name, whether you need a gazette, and exactly what to ask the Mission. If the passport route alone answers your situation, we will tell you that and charge nothing. Details on the contact page.
- 📞Call 9540005002
Monday to Saturday, 9 AM to 6 PM, India time - WhatsApp 9540005064
Send your scans here, it is the fastest way - ✉️info@jharkhandnamechange.com
- 📍Ranchi office: Main Building, Near Shaheed Chowk, Ranchi, Jharkhand 834001
- 🏛️Head office (Gazette filing desk): Metro Pillar No. 377, Near Burari Metro Station, Shop No. B-1, Ground Floor, Gali No. 1, Khasra No. 31/12, Hardev Nagar, Jharoda Majra, Burari, Delhi 110084
NRI Name Change From Jharkhand: Frequently Asked Questions
What is actually different about a name change file made from abroad?
Can a notary in my country attest the deed?
Should I get my documents apostilled instead?
What does the NRI gazette fee actually cost?
Do I have to fly to India to do any of this?
Which newspaper do I advertise in if I live abroad?
Do I even need a gazette notification?
Can I email a scanned copy of the attested deed?
Will my new passport keep the same number?
Does the consular stamp prove that what my deed says is true?
In what order should I change my Indian records from abroad?
How much of this can you actually do for us from India?
What a Name Change Does to an OCI Card, and Why It Is Not Automatic
Nothing about your OCI card changes by itself when the Gazette of India prints your new name. The Embassy of India in Washington lists a change of name among the situations that need the card re-issued, and says it applies "for whatever reasons, including change in name after marriage". That is a separate application, with its own fee, at your Mission. We do not handle OCI work and we are not selling you anything here. We are telling you because people finish the gazette, update the Indian records, and then discover the card months later at an airport counter.
First, one confusion worth clearing, because it changes which paragraph below applies to you. An NRI holds an Indian passport and lives abroad. An OCI holder is a foreign citizen of Indian origin. Plenty of readers are one today and the other in a few years. If you still hold an Indian passport, the OCI part of this section is for later. If you have taken another citizenship, the gazette route is still open to you for your Indian records, and this section is for now.
| The point | What the published text says |
|---|---|
| Does a name change need a re-issue | Yes. The Embassy of India, Washington DC lists a name change among the reissue situations, "for whatever reasons, including change in name after marriage" |
| What the OCI portal itself says | Its miscellaneous services cover a "change of name" and ask for "Sufficient proof for each requested services like change of name, change of address, occupation etc." and a "Copy of the document(s) relevant for effecting the requisite changes." That is where your gazette copy goes |
| The one re-issue that is called mandatory | A separate rule, not about names. "An OCI Cardholder shall have to get the OCI Card re-issued once when a new passport is issued after completing 20 years of age so as to capture his/ her facial features on attaining adulthood." The Consulate General in San Francisco repeats it as the mandatory case |
| What it costs | The OCI portal states "A fee of US $ 25 or equivalent in local currency is charged for re-issuance of a OCI Card in case of issuance of new passport after completing 20 years of age." The Washington list adds US$100 for a lost or damaged card, US$3 for the Indian Community Welfare Fund and US$15.90 as the service charge to the outsourcing agency |
| How long it takes | "The grant or otherwise of the re-issuance of OCI Card shall be ordinarily decided in one month from the date of acknowledgement of the application on the online system by Indian Mission/ Post/ FRRO." Note the word ordinarily |
| The free route that is not for names | For a new passport, a change of address or a change of occupation, the Missions point at online updation on the OCI portal at no cost instead of a re-issue. A change of name is not in that free list |
| Where we stop | The OCI portal's own question and answer page does not set out a name change re-issue rule in as many words. It folds it into miscellaneous services. The Mission pages name it directly. We are showing you both rather than picking the one that reads better |
People Also Ask About NRI Name Change From India, Answered From the Published Text
These are the questions Indians abroad actually type, and most of them are answered online by guesswork. Every answer below quotes a document the Government of India or an Indian Mission publishes. Where the published text runs out, we say so instead of finishing the sentence for it.
Do I have to travel to India to change my name?
No. The Department of Publication publishes a route for exactly your situation: "In case of Indians living abroad, he/she will submit deed duly attested by the respective Indian embassy/ Indian High Commission, in original to this department." The word that matters there is in original. A scan will not do, and the envelope has to physically reach Delhi. Read how the file reaches the Department before you courier anything.
Who is allowed to attest my deed poll?
The specimen deed poll published for Indian passport services names the authorities, and a foreign notary on its own is not the safe reading. It says the deed may be sworn before "a Judicial Magistrate or Executive Magistrate in India or Notary Public or ... Consular Officer at Embassy of India". The Department of Publication's own NRI sentence is narrower still and names the Indian embassy or Indian High Commission. When two Government texts differ, take the narrower one, which here means your Indian Mission.
Can I just get an apostille instead?
No, and this is the single most expensive mistake on this page. An apostille is for taking an Indian document abroad. You are doing the opposite: bringing a foreign signed document into an Indian office. The Department's sentence names the embassy or high commission, not an apostille. We have set out the whole trap in the attestation section above.
One newspaper or two when I live abroad?
The two Government texts ask for different things, and both apply to different offices. The gazette guidelines say "Change of name should be advertised in one of the daily local leading newspapers" and want the "Original newspaper" in the file. The specimen deed poll published for passport services says the applicant should "insert advertisements in two reputed newspapers (one local newspaper of the area in which he/she is residing and 2nd in newspaper of the area of permanent address in India)". So a Jharkhand paper covers the gazette file and the permanent address limb. The paper where you live is the part to confirm with your own Mission, and we have not invented an answer for it.
Is the NRI gazette fee really Rs 3,500?
That is the figure printed in the guidelines, and it carries its own expiry inside the same sentence. The published wording ties it to a financial year window that closed years ago, and the Department revises the charge each financial year. So it is a published figure, not a current price, and we will not quote you a current one we cannot show you. Confirm the live amount on the payment portal on the day. Paying through BharatKosh shows the screens.
Will my documents and newspaper come back to me?
No. The guidelines say it in one line: "The documents once submitted in this department will not be returned in any circumstances." For somebody sending papers from another country that sentence is worth real money. Buy several copies of the newspaper on the day it appears, photograph and photocopy the entire file before sealing it, and keep your own set. Replacing an original from eight thousand kilometres away is not a small job.
My file has a shortcoming and I am abroad. How long do I get?
Six months, counted from the first contact, not from when you saw the email. The Department's guidelines require the applicant to submit "his/her shortcoming in documents/deficit fees/CD/ CD certificate etc. within 06 (Six Months) from the time he received the first e-mail, phone or objection letter", failing which "the case will be treated cancelled and whole new procedure with requisite fees is to be deposited". Give the Department an email address you actually read, and give it an Indian mobile number that somebody answers. See why files get objected to.
Can a relative in India file it for me?
Somebody in India can post the envelope, but they cannot replace you in it. The guidelines say an application is entertained only if submitted personally or sent by post or courier, so there is no counter where a cousin signs on your behalf, and the deed still has to be the one your Mission attested, in original. What a relative in Ranchi or Dhanbad genuinely helps with is buying the newspaper and keeping the spare copies flat.
Does changing my name in India change my OCI card?
No. It is a separate application at your Mission, and a name change is one of the listed reasons for re-issue, in the words of the Embassy of India in Washington, "for whatever reasons, including change in name after marriage". The free online updation route the Missions offer is for a new passport, an address or an occupation, not for a name. The section above sets out the fees and the one month decision line.
Do my foreign records change as well?
No, and nothing in the Indian process reaches them. Your driving licence, your bank, your employer and your immigration file in the country you live in follow that country's own law. An Indian gazette notification is evidence you can show them, not an instruction they must follow. Ask locally first, because in some countries a name is changed by a wholly different instrument and an Indian gazette is simply supporting paper.
People Also Search For These NRI Name Change Topics, and Where Each Is Answered
These are the searches that sit either side of this one. Each line says what the search really turns on once you read the published rule, and points at the page where we deal with it in full.
| What people search | What it actually turns on | Read next |
|---|---|---|
| NRI passport name change | A reissue, not an edit. New booklet, new number, and the proforma asks for newspaper clippings rather than a gazette | Name change in passport |
| embassy attestation for name change | The Department's own sentence names the Indian embassy or high commission, in original. Nothing else substitutes | Who attests the deed |
| apostille for name change India | It runs the wrong way. An apostille takes an Indian document out, it does not bring a foreign one in | The apostille trap |
| gazette name change fee for NRI | The published figure sits inside a financial year window that has expired, and the charge is revised each year | What a name change costs |
| how to pay gazette fee from abroad | One portal only. Direct bank transfer to the Department was stopped by a published date | BharatKosh fee payment |
| newspaper advertisement from abroad | Two texts, two answers. One paper for the gazette file, two papers in the passport specimen deed poll | Newspaper advertisement |
| affidavit format for NRI name change | The gazette list names an undertaking or, for an NRI, an attested deed. Several other offices still want an affidavit | Name change affidavit |
| affidavit or newspaper or gazette | Three instruments for three offices, and the published lists disagree with each other | Affidavit against newspaper against gazette |
| documents required for gazette name change | A short, specific published list that includes the whole newspaper and a CD, plus the attested deed for an NRI | Documents for the file |
| gazette name change status check | There is no personal tracking number. You look for the issue, then the Part, then the page | Checking your status |
| download gazette copy | Digital and free from the Government portal. Nobody should be selling you the copy itself | Downloading the copy |
| how long does a gazette take | No processing time is published at all, and the Department disclaims delay at the press | How long it takes |
| mistake printed in the gazette | A published notice is corrected by a further published notice, never by editing the old one | Gazette corrigendum |
| name change in Aadhaar for NRI | The name can be updated twice in a lifetime, and beyond that it is an exception route rather than a counter visit | Name change in Aadhaar |
| PAN card name change from abroad | A correction in the existing PAN. A second PAN carries a published penalty | Name change in PAN |
| bank and KYC name mismatch | The bank works off officially valid documents, and the PAN is not one of them for this purpose | Bank and KYC mismatch |
| name change after marriage abroad | Often no gazette at all for Indian records. A marriage certificate issued by the State Government is accepted in its own right by the banking rule | Surname change after marriage |
| name correction or name change | The first question anybody should settle. A typing error and a real change are two different jobs with two different routes | Correction against change |
| minor name change from abroad | A separate published guideline set, signed by the guardian, with the child's age in the newspaper notice | Minor name change |
| name change for Government employees | A stricter published route, with the newspaper and the gazette both required and witnesses from the same department | Government employees |
| degree and marksheet name correction | Board and university records follow their own rules, and a university often will not touch a degree already issued without a gazette | Degree name correction |
| every name change question in one place | The route, documents, fees, timelines and record by record order, with the published sentence quoted for each | The full name change FAQ |
Official Sources on the NRI Name Change Route
| Source | What it is used for on this page |
|---|---|
| Department of Publication, guidelines for change of name | The sentence requiring a deed attested by the Indian embassy or High Commission in original, the fee sentence for Indians living abroad with its validity period, the domestic undertaking, the newspaper sentence and the one year document rule |
| Ministry of External Affairs, attestation and apostille | India's membership of the Hague Convention since 2005, the difference between apostille and normal attestation, the fact that documents are not accepted directly from individuals at the Ministry counter, and that the Ministry does not take responsibility for the contents |
| Specimen deed poll for change of name, passport route | The renunciation clauses, the Consular Officer option, the two newspaper requirement and the submission of original newspapers |
| passportindia.gov.in, name change proforma | The requirement for two Government issued photo identity proofs carrying the new name |
| Department of Publication, Guidelines for Change of Name and Gender in Public Notice | The six month window to make good a shortcoming and what happens after it, the rule that documents are never returned, the counter hours and closed days, and the dates on which the Non-Tax Receipt Portal became the only route |
| OCI miscellaneous services, published questions and answers | That a change of name sits under miscellaneous services, the proof it asks for, the US $ 25 re-issuance fee sentence, and the one month decision line |
| Embassy of India, Washington DC, and Consulate General of India, San Francisco | That a change of name "for whatever reasons, including change in name after marriage" is a listed reason to re-issue an OCI card, the fee schedule in US dollars, and the mandatory re-issue on a new passport after the age of twenty |
| egazette.gov.in | Part IV publication of personal notices, digital only since 1 October 2015, and the free copy that downloads from anywhere |
| bharatkosh.gov.in | The only route for the Government charge, revised each financial year and non refundable |
| Your own Indian Mission | The source that outranks this page on attestation requirements, appointments and consular charges. Ask in writing and keep the reply |
| What the published text does not settle | Which newspaper satisfies the area of residence limb for a person living outside India, and the current gazette charge for Indians living abroad. The page states both gaps rather than filling them |
The route itself is on the name change process page, the file contents on the documents required page, and the choice of paper on the affidavit, newspaper or gazette page.
NRI Name Change From Jharkhand in Nine Lines
| The short version | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| An applicant abroad submits a deed, not an undertaking | A different instrument from the domestic file |
| The Indian embassy or High Commission attests it | Not a local notary, which is the commonest error |
| It must reach the Department in original | So a tracked courier, not an email |
| The apostille route runs the other way | It legalises Indian documents going abroad |
| The published NRI fee names an expired financial year | Confirm the current amount on the portal before paying |
| The passport deed poll may be signed before a Consular Officer | So no flight home is needed for that step |
| The passport is a reissue with a new number | Which matters if a visa is tied to the old one |
| The newspaper rule for a person abroad is unresolved | Ask your own Mission in writing first |
| Many NRIs need no gazette at all | If the passport is the only record on the list |
Changing Your Name From Abroad and Need Somebody Standing in India?
Tell us which country you are in and which Indian records you need changed. Our first reply tells you whether you need a gazette at all and exactly what to ask your Mission.