Agreed they are not the same but if BC says Jon Doe and passport says John Doe, asking to prove they are same is trivial. Also remember in a country like India it does not take much to get an Affidavit or even certificates from govt authorities (all it takes is some 'bakshish'). There is no way INS is going to be able to verify the authenticity of the documents and if that's the case there is no sanctity or logic in this process! Just as an example I had no BC, my dad after a bit of struggle got it. They made the BC based on the info he gave (school documents etc). School documents themselves are based on what my dad filled out when I was at school, so who knows what's actual? So, I kind of forced my BC to have the same data as my passport? What's the point in this? It's just waste of time. Now INS will come back and say the BC is dated 33 years after I was born and ask why? Now my dad will have to go to the muncipality and get a not found or lost certificate and spend more 'bakshish' on this otherwise I will have to ask my uncle/aunt to give Affidavits as if they will refuse to sign what I typed and asked them to sign. All of this is insane, in my opnion.