What happens if one parent cannot be located to give consent for a child's name change?

If a parent whose consent is needed can't be located, the name change generally can't proceed through the standard registrar application, since that route depends on everyone with decision-making responsibility or parenting time actually providing consent. The parent seeking the change would instead need to apply to a court to dispense with the missing parent's consent, which typically requires showing genuine, documented efforts to locate and contact that parent — not just an assumption that they're unreachable or uninterested.

A court considering this kind of application will want to see what steps were actually taken, such as attempts through last known addresses, family members, or other contact points, before concluding that consent should be dispensed with, and will still apply the best-interests-of-the-child test to the underlying name change itself. This process takes more time and evidence than a straightforward consent-based application, so a parent in this situation should start gathering proof of their efforts as early as possible and get legal advice on what a court will expect to see.