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Signing your deed poll

Can a deed poll be signed electronically or by video?

Not if you want HM Passport Office to accept it. The law lets some deeds be signed electronically, but your witnesses still have to be in the room, and the Passport Office only accepts a deed poll with real ink signatures. That’s why ours arrives printed and ready to sign with a pen.

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Ink signatures only
Witnesses in the room
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E-signatures, video calls and deed polls

Checked against the Law Commission’s report on electronic deeds, the Law of Property (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1989 and HM Passport Office’s caseworker guidance. Sources are listed at the end.

Updated: 30 October 2026
On this pageQuick answerWhat the law saysWhy ink mattersSigning it properlyAlready e-signed one?FAQs

The quick answer

No. Sign your deed poll in ink, with both witnesses in the room watching you. HM Passport Office’s caseworker guidance says every signature on a deed poll must be a wet ink signature, and that one without needs replacing.

The law is less of a problem than the people who check it. The Law Commission says an electronic signature can be used to sign a deed, but the witness still has to be there in person, and video witnessing was only ever allowed for wills, for a limited time. Our deed poll is £14.95, printed and posted free, so there’s nothing to print, scan or e-sign.

The law

What the law says about e-signatures and deeds

A deed poll is a deed. For a deed signed by one person, the Law of Property (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1989 says it must be signed in the presence of a witness who attests the signature, and delivered as a deed. Law of Property (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1989, section 1

In 2019 the Law Commission concluded that an electronic signature is capable in law of being used to sign a deed, but that the deed must still be signed in the physical presence of a witness. It suggested the Government look at video witnessing in the future. Law Commission: electronic execution of documents

The only time video witnessing was allowed was for wills, made between 31 January 2020 and 31 January 2024, and that never covered deed polls. GOV.UK: making wills using video conferencing

How it’s signedIn lawAt HM Passport Office
In ink, witnesses in the roomValidAccepted
E-signature, typed name or pasted image, witnesses in the roomCan be valid, says the Law CommissionNot accepted: it needs a wet signature
Any signature, witnessed over a video callNot valid, says the Law Commission: the witness must be there in personNot accepted
In practice

Why the Passport Office wants ink

HM Passport Office’s caseworkers accept an unenrolled deed poll when it’s signed in your old and new names, signed by at least one witness, dated and made at the time, and when every signature is a wet signature. If a signature isn’t, they ask for a new deed poll. HM Passport Office: evidence to change a name

A wet signature just means a real one, in ink, on paper. The DVLA wants your original documents too, not photocopies, so a printed deed poll signed in ink is the one to send. GOV.UK: change the name on your driving licence

Ordering online is fine. HM Passport Office tells its caseworkers not to make inappropriate comments about deed polls made online or the companies that provide them. What matters is how yours is signed and witnessed.

Getting it right

Signing it properly, in one sitting

Get your deed poll printed

Ours arrives printed on certificate paper with an embossed seal, so you don’t need a printer.

Get two witnesses together

Adults who aren’t close relatives and don’t live with you. Both need to be in the room, not on a call. See who can witness a deed poll.

Sign in ink, in both names

Your usual signature for your old name and your new one for your new name, with both witnesses watching.

Your witnesses sign and add their details

Each one signs in ink and adds their name and address.

Our guide to how to sign a deed poll shows where everything goes, and the mistakes that get one sent back.

Order online, sign in ink

Order in a few minutes and we’ll post your deed poll ready to sign. Same-day processing when you order by 6pm, Monday to Friday.

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Fixing it

Already signed one electronically or over video?

Don’t send it off. Expect HM Passport Office to ask for a new one, and the DVLA and your bank may turn it away too. The fix is a fresh deed poll, signed in ink in front of two witnesses and dated the day you sign it.

Don’t date the new one to match your first attempt. A deed poll has to show the date it was really signed, and our guide to backdating a deed poll explains why. Your new name works from the day you sign, so you lose nothing.

Need several organisations to see it at once? Add extra copies when you order. Each one is signed and witnessed like the original, so your passport, licence and bank can all be updated at the same time. See how many copies you need.

Your questions answered

Frequently asked questions

Not if you want it accepted. HM Passport Office’s caseworker guidance says every signature on an unenrolled deed poll must be a wet ink signature, and that a deed poll without one needs replacing.

No. The Law Commission says a deed must be signed in the physical presence of a witness. Video witnessing was only ever allowed for wills, made between 31 January 2020 and 31 January 2024.

You can sign plenty of documents that way, but not a deed poll for your passport. HM Passport Office asks for a new deed poll if any signature isn’t a wet one.

Yes. Where you order it doesn’t matter. HM Passport Office accepts deed polls made online, as long as they’re signed and witnessed in ink and there’s no doubt they’re genuine.

No. They’re confirming they watched you sign, so they need to be with you when you do. Get both together, sign in front of them and let them sign straight after.

Some banks accept an upload, but HM Passport Office and the DVLA want the original. Extra copies, each signed and witnessed, let several organisations have one at once.

Check the detail

Sources for this guide

Guidance and reference pages

The official rules this guide is based on, checked in October 2026.

Continue your name change

Related guides

How to sign a deed poll

Step by step, and the mistakes to avoid.

Who can witness a deed poll?

Who can and can’t sign as your witness.

Can a family member witness a deed poll?

Why it’s best to ask someone else.

Ready when you are

Sign it in ink, use it today.

A printed deed poll, prepared from your details, checked by a person and posted free. Same-day processing when you order by 6pm, Monday to Friday.

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