It is learnt that the ‘Goa Change of Name and Surname (Amendment) Act, 2022’ has come into effect from December 25, 2022. The Act places restrictions on who can change their names in Goa. The legislation reportedly allows only those either born in Goa or having a parent or grandparents born in Goa to change their name or surname in the state. Furthermore, only a person whose name and surname are already recorded in the birth register of Goa will be permitted to change their names.
The decision to amend the Act was a result of an apprehension in the minds of Goans that benefits and amenities available to them may be usurped by persons from other states by changing and adopting Goan names and surnames. Other reasons for amending the Act were increasing frauds in land deals, and revelations that non-Goans were adopting Goan surnames in a bid to seek Portuguese citizenship, a facility available to Goans. Under Portuguese law, those born in its erstwhile colonies before liberation can get the country’s citizenship.
In the case of Goa, all those born in the state before 1961 and their descendants are eligible for Portuguese citizenship. The law was passed to streamline the process of name changes because people were found to be adopting Goan surnames completely unrelated to their original name. Obviously this amendment will safeguard the interest of Goans in the long run.
