According to the letter of explanation for the ministry's bill, people would be able to securely change their first or last names online without needing to visit a vital statistics office or submit a digitally signed application.

If an application meets the criteria, the system would automatically process it, running it against the country's centralized population register and criminal records — without involving any officials in the process.

In feedback from the Association of Estonian Cities and Municipalities (ELVL), Tartu city government said speed should be the last priority when it comes to legal name changes.

"Oftentimes, the applicant themselves doesn't know what, why or when they want to change their name," Tartu officials noted, adding that some later regret the decision or face opposition from family.

From 2022 to 2024, a total of 2,445 name change applications were submitted in Estonia.

The City of Tartu also expressed concern about data security, pointing out that people often rather willingly share the PIN codes for their identity documents — with loved ones or even strangers — and automated name changes could lead to someone's name being legally changed without their knowledge.

While the city supports being able to apply for name changes online, it opposes automating the process.

The bill would still restrict certain groups, including minors, from applying for name changes online, requiring them to submit applications in person at a vital statistics office.

'Cannibal' and 'Mixed-Gender'

In 2023, 552 people received new first names. The proposed changes to the Names Act would also eliminate the requirement to justify choosing a new one.

Still, the law would prohibit full names — i.e. first and last names together — identical to those of another living person born in the same year, which the Interior Ministry says is meant to help prevent identity theft. It would also require compliance with rules such as not including numerals.

An automated system wouldn't be able to make discretionary judgments about whether a name adheres to proper conventions. In such cases, the application would be forwarded to an official for review.

The City of Tartu, however, questioned whether an automated system could reliably catch inappropriate names, noting that adults have been more prone than parents naming newborns to requesting controversial names. Notable recent examples include Ljudoed ("cannibal" in Russian), Segasooline ("mixed-gender" in Estonian), and Älice for a man.

Officials warned it may also be easier to obtain the name of a famous person by first changing one's last name, then the first.

Children's names to be changed in person

For children, the ministry wants to require that name change applications be submitted in person so that officials can confirm both parental and child consent. Currently, consent can be submitted digitally or in writing.

"It's unreasonable to expect that all parents who want to change their child's name would now have to show up in person — and in most cases, all three of them together," Tartu city government commented.

Children currently make up a significant share of name change requests in Estonia. This May, the Tallinn Vital Statistics Department received 32 legal name change applications — 17 of them for children.

In some cases, requests have come from foreign citizens who unintentionally gave their child an undesired name due to transcription issues between different writing systems.

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