The process of Name Change via citizenship... what's involved? Please help

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Aakash28

Registered Users (C)
My wife is going to tell IO to do her name change during the interview. Once she does that I am wondering how things go from there.

Will the name change officially happen on the date of interview? Or, will it happen on the date of oath ceremony? what is the process? will IO officer ask her to fill out a bunch of paper-work during the interview for a name change? Can someone please elaborate the process in detail?

Also, once the name change happens vis USCIS what other places/organizations do we need to contact for a name change? Are there time constraints(specific time periods within which name change has to happen at these otherp laces) to getting the name changed at these places. I know we have to call up Social Security Administration etc.. but I am not aware of the process at all. Can some one please list out a list of places to call (or do we have to visit these places and fill out bunch of forms everytime), alongwith their process, if possible.

Also my marriage certificate, children birth certificates and a whole bunch of other original certificates will have her old name... how to deal with those?

Thanks for your help
 
Aakash28 said:
My wife is going to tell IO to do her name change during the interview. Once she does that I am wondering how things go from there.

Will the name change officially happen on the date of interview? Or, will it happen on the date of oath ceremony? what is the process?
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The oath ceremony will be held in a court, where a judge will officially change the name.

Aakash28 said:
will IO officer ask her to fill out a bunch of paper-work during the interview for a name change? Can someone please elaborate the process in detail?
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no. the officer will make a note on N-400
Aakash28 said:
Also, once the name change happens vis USCIS
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There is no such thing. The name will be changed by the judge in the court during the oath ceremony. It's pretty much the same as a regular name change, but she does not have to pay the court fee for that.

Aakash28 said:
what other places/organizations do we need to contact for a name change? Are there time constraints(specific time periods within which name change has to happen at these otherp laces) to getting the name changed at these places. I know we have to call up Social Security Administration etc.. but I am not aware of the process at all. Can some one please list out a list of places to call (or do we have to visit these places and fill out bunch of forms everytime), alongwith their process, if possible.
Click to expand...
Just for starters

- change name on driver's license (pilot's license, weapon license, etc)
- insurance companies (medical, home, rental, car, dental, vision, etc)
- notify all banks/trusts/brokeage firms/etc. Literally, notify any institution where you have money/loan/credit
- employer
- any associations she's a member of
- change her name in the foreign documents (passports, national ids, etc).
- http://www.bankrate.com/finance/personal-finance/checklist-for-name-change-after-marriage-1.aspx


Actually it's not much different from the situation, when a woman getting married and takes the husband's last name.
 
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-me- said:
The oath ceremony will be held in a court, where a judge will officially change the name.
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Unless the name change is only to take her husband's last name, which would make the court oath unnecessary. Spousal name changes like that can be handled in the regular administrative oaths.
 
Jackolantern said:
Unless the name change is only to take her husband's last name, which would make the court oath unnecessary. Spousal name changes like that can be handled in the regular administrative oaths.
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The name change is only to take husband's last name. But like '-me-' suggested.. going through that whole list can take several months.. is'nt there an easier way?? Almost all women go through this process after marriage... there should be an easier way to get through the name change process...
 
Aakash28 said:
The name change is only to take husband's last name. But like '-me-' suggested.. going through that whole list can take several months.. is'nt there an easier way?? Almost all women go through this process after marriage... there should be an easier way to get through the name change process...
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You mean she just changes it in one place and the change automatically propagates everywhere else? No. No such thing. Every little thing that still has her original name (bank account, employer, driver's license, Social Security, car registration etc.) will have to be updated individually. And yes, it can take months to get everything changed. That's just how it is.

Some less important things can be left as is ... I don't think the cellphone company or newspaper/magazine subscription will care, as long as the bills still reach her and she keeps paying. But everything else that needs to be changed has to be done separately.
 
Note that once she completes the citizenship oath and gets the certificate with the new name, her name change process is legally complete as far as officially acquiring the new name is concerned. Changing her name on all the other stuff is just a side-effect of the name change that has already been legally completed.
 
Aakash28 said:
The name change is only to take husband's last name. But like '-me-' suggested.. going through that whole list can take several months.. is'nt there an easier way?? Almost all women go through this process after marriage... there should be an easier way to get through the name change process...
Click to expand...

I had my name changed during N400. Earlier there was a mix up of my first and last name in GC. The oath was in court. I did get a court document for name change with their seal. This is apart from Naturalization Certificate. I got name changed in DMV, SSN ,Bank, Credit Cards and host of other places. Quite easy only one visit, all done within 3-4 weeks.

My question is, when the spouse takes husband's name , does she get any doc for name change from USCIS???
 
madh4 said:
My question is, when the spouse takes husband's name , does she get any doc for name change from USCIS???
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No, for spousal name changes like that the marriage certificate would be the document that links the old name to the new name.
 
Aakash28 said:
But like '-me-' suggested.. going through that whole list can take several months.. is'nt there an easier way??
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There is no easy way here, unless you pay someone to do it for you or your wife. Sorry.
The actual list may be ten times longer, depends on how active your wife was.
There are some pitfals on the way. Like, she changed her name on DL, but keep using old credit cards and at some point she's asked to provide her ID at a store... You get the picture...
 
I changed my last name during the naturalization process and haven't encountered any difficulties changing the name on my driver license, bank accounts, utilities, etc. The whole process took a week, at most.
 
So if one changes last name during naturalization (not marriage derived, just "americanized"..) - do they also HAVE TO change name in home country? Is it optional only or would it cause multiple problems in the future (having two passports with two different last names..). Does anybody know?
 
chico74 said:
So if one changes last name during naturalization (not marriage derived, just "americanized"..) - do they also HAVE TO change name in home country? Is it optional only or would it cause multiple problems in the future (having two passports with two different last names..). Does anybody know?
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I am in the same boat and have a similar question. I am just getting my middle name flipped with the first (last name remaining the same) but I have no desire to change my name in my country of birth. Why does USCIS care what name I have in my country of origin unless someone can quote me from the law.
 
Name Change

Hi!
While filled out the application for naturalization, I have indicated that I want to change my name from Yen to Mandy. However, right now, I am thinking of taking the name different from Mandy, would I be able to do that? (Note: I already have a naturalization interview)
Thank You!
 
yenlinhcao said:
However, right now, I am thinking of taking the name different from Mandy, would I be able to do that? (Note: I already have a naturalization interview)
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Yes, but it probably will delay your oath. Make an Infopass appointment; bring your green card + naturalization receipt notice (and the letter they gave you at the end of the interview if they gave you one), and explain what you want.
 
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