Colorado Name Change Laws: Fingerprints, Felony Bar, and How to Petition

Colorado's name-change statute, C.R.S. Section 13-15-101, is more demanding than most. Petitioners over 14 must submit a certified, fingerprint-based criminal history check, and the court must deny any petition from someone with a prior felony conviction, subject only to a narrow exception process. Publication is the default for adults, but Colorado carves out broad exemptions for domestic violence, child abuse, gender-identity-related changes, and, since 2026, any petition filed by or on behalf of someone under eighteen.

This guide covers the adult and minor petition process, the felony bar and its narrow exception, publication and its exemptions, and the separate, simpler process for restoring a name after divorce.

Information last verified on 2026-08-11. This article has not yet been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

Adult Petition Process

Adults file a verified petition in district or county court in the county where they live, under C.R.S. Section 13-15-101. The court grants the change if it finds the new name is «proper and not detrimental to the interests of any other person.» Petitioners over 14 must include a certified, fingerprint-based criminal history check completed within 90 days of filing. Colorado's Judicial Branch publishes the JDF 433 petition form, Petition for Change of Name (Adult), along with the JDF 432 guide to the process.

Filing Fee

No official statewide filing fee was confirmed for this guide. Confirm the current fee with the district or county court where you plan to file, and ask about the JDF 433 petition form when you do.

Minor Name Changes

Colorado's minor-specific statutory language does not, on its own, spell out who may file on a minor's behalf. What the statute does require is disclosure: a petitioner under 19 must include the caption of any child-support, parental-responsibility, or parenting-time proceeding involving them, and special venue rules route a minor already involved in a custody, support, or foster-care case to the court that is already handling it. The practical mechanics of who files, a parent, in most cases, are handled through the JDF 420 form series rather than spelled out in the statute itself.

Senate Bill 26-018, effective April 20, 2026, added C.R.S. Section 13-15-101(7) and changed how these cases sit on the public record. Beginning July 1, 2026, if the petitioner is under eighteen at the time of filing, the court record associated with the name-change petition is a suppressed court record, accessible only to judges, court staff, authorized judicial department staff, a party and the party's attorney, and anyone holding a valid court order or affidavit authorizing access. The court may use the record for administrative purposes, but it may not under any circumstance publish the petitioner's name or the petitioner's new name online.

Two details matter in practice. For a petition filed before July 1, 2026, suppression is not automatic, but if a person asks the court to suppress the record, the statute says the court shall grant the request. And someone outside the case can reach a suppressed record only by obtaining verbal consent from a party to the case and submitting an affidavit to the court, under penalty of perjury, stating that the consent was obtained. The suppression rule does not apply where the name change is granted through the felony-exception process in Section 13-15-101(3) on the gender-identity good-cause ground.

Name Change After Divorce

Colorado keeps divorce-related name restoration separate from, and simpler than, the general C.R.S. Section 13-15-101 process. Under C.R.S. Section 14-10-120.2, a person restores a former name by filing an ex parte motion under the original dissolution or legal-separation case number, in the same district court that entered the decree, with a sworn statement that the restoration is not detrimental to any person. This post-decree motion does not require fingerprints, publication, or the felony-conviction bar that applies to a standalone name-change petition, and it does not affect either party's rights or obligations under the original divorce decree. See Colorado divorce laws for the broader dissolution process.

Publication

Colorado requires public notice by default, at least three times within 21 days after the court orders publication, in a newspaper in the petitioner's county. The court can skip this for good cause, and several categories of petitioners are exempt outright under C.R.S. Section 13-15-102: victims of domestic violence, victims of child abuse, victims of domestic abuse, a child or youth adjudicated dependent or neglected, and petitioners changing their name to conform to their gender identity. Senate Bill 26-018 added subsection (3.5), effective April 20, 2026, exempting any petition filed by, or on behalf of, a person who is under eighteen years old, so publication is no longer the default for a minor's name change.

A separate simplified process under C.R.S. Section 13-15-101(5) also skips publication. It is open to a petitioner who is at least 70 years old, who is seeking the change to harmonize name discrepancies necessary to be issued an identification card, and who signs an affidavit stating that purpose and that the change would not be detrimental to anyone else. A petitioner who attempted a fingerprint-based criminal history check and got inconclusive or unreadable results may substitute a name-based check covering all previously used names plus an attestation of no felony conviction, but that substitution is a separate allowance within the same subsection, not a condition of the publication waiver.

Restrictions

Colorado's felony bar is unusually strict compared to most states in this guide. C.R.S. Section 13-15-101(2)(b) requires the court to deny a petition if the person was previously convicted of a felony, or adjudicated a juvenile delinquent for a felony-equivalent offense. This is a mandatory denial, not a discretionary factor for the judge to weigh. The only path around it is the narrow exception in Section 13-15-101(3), available where the court finds the petitioner must have the legal name change in order for the Department of Revenue to issue a driver's license or identification card in that name. It requires notice to the district attorney and any victim, a fingerprint alias filing, and a court finding that the request is not for fraud, to avoid criminal consequences, or to facilitate criminal activity. The default is that the new name is the one under which the petitioner was convicted or adjudicated, but Section 13-15-101(3)(b)(I) lets the court allow a different name for good cause, and (3)(b)(II), added by House Bill 24-1071, states that good cause includes changing the name to conform with the petitioner's gender identity. Anyone with a felony conviction should understand Colorado's default is an automatic denial, not merely heightened judicial scrutiny.

Marriage-Based Name Change

Colorado has no statute specifically codifying marriage-based name changes. A newly married person typically updates their last name by presenting a marriage certificate to the Social Security Administration and Colorado's Division of Motor Vehicles, the customary practice used in most states without a dedicated marriage statute.

Domestic Violence and Safety Considerations

Colorado's publication exemptions for domestic violence and child abuse victims, and its separate gender-identity exemption, are broader than what many states offer, and they apply automatically to the categories the statute lists rather than requiring enrollment in a separate program. That said, a Colorado publication waiver does not automatically make a new name confidential with the Social Security Administration or the U.S. State Department, which apply their own separate rules. Anyone changing their name for safety reasons should raise it directly with the court at the time of filing.

Related Colorado Records

See Colorado marriage and divorce records for obtaining certified copies your petition may require, and Colorado court records for how name-change case files fit into the state's broader court-records rules.

For the general nationwide process, see how to legally change your name, what it costs to change your name, and the post-name-change checklist.

Disclaimer

This article provides general information about Colorado name-change law. It is not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Verify current fees, forms, and any local court practices with the district or county court where you plan to file, or with a licensed Colorado attorney, before relying on anything here for a specific situation.

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Last updated: 2026-08-11. Fees and forms reflect their published status as of August 2026.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Colorado require a fingerprint check to change your name?

Yes, for petitioners over 14. C.R.S. Section 13-15-101(1)(a)(II) requires a certified, fingerprint-based criminal history check completed within 90 days of filing.

Can someone with a felony conviction change their name in Colorado?

Generally no. The court must deny the petition if the person has a prior felony conviction or equivalent juvenile adjudication. The one exception, under Section 13-15-101(3), covers a petitioner who needs the change so the Department of Revenue can issue a driver's license or identification card, and it requires district attorney and victim notice. The new name is normally the convicted name, but the court may allow a different one for good cause, which the statute says includes conforming the name to the petitioner's gender identity.

Do I have to publish my name change in a Colorado newspaper?

By default, yes, at least three times within 21 days. Domestic violence and child abuse victims, dependency and neglect cases, petitioners changing their name for gender identity, and any petition filed by or on behalf of a person under eighteen are exempt.

How do I restore my former name after a Colorado divorce?

File an ex parte motion under C.R.S. Section 14-10-120.2, using your original divorce case number in the same district court, with a sworn statement that the restoration is not detrimental to any person. No fingerprints or publication are required for this route.

What court handles a name change in Colorado?

District or county court, in the county where the petitioner lives.

Is a Colorado minor's name-change court record public?

Not for a petition filed on or after July 1, 2026. C.R.S. Section 13-15-101(7), added by Senate Bill 26-018, makes the court record of a petitioner under eighteen a suppressed court record and bars the court from publishing the minor's old or new name online. For a petition filed before that date, the court must order the record suppressed if a person asks it to.