Travel Problems

[slim 1,525]

I'm still waiting on the "it was all a big hoax" post from akdiver.

[akdiver 3]

I'm still waiting on the "it was all a big hoax" post from akdiver.

Nope, true story.

Not a very interesting hoax though. I can do a lot better if that's my goal (:

[Cliff_Ksenia 0]

My wife in attempts to avert such problems had her Russian passport updated to show her married name, it is only a stamp in her passport saying she is also know by her now married name. Hopefully that is enough. We are planning to have an extended visit next summer and don't want/need any problems.

[Neonred 3,562]

My wife in attempts to avert such problems had her Russian passport updated to show her married name, it is only a stamp in her passport saying she is also know by her now married name. Hopefully that is enough. We are planning to have an extended visit next summer and don't want/need any problems.

As I have noted before this has worked great for us. Never a need for the marriage certificate and you can buy tickets in the married name and just use the passport as ID.

[akdiver 3]

My wife had her Russian passport re-issued in her married name - so it is a non-issue for us.

However, this whole business of having to make two trips to a Russian consulate IN PERSON to renew a Russian passport is ridiculous - and adds a minimum of $1000 to the cost of simply getting a passport renewed. That is likely to cause us to just let her Russian passport lapse on expiration and may prevent future trips to Russia.

[Cliff_Ksenia 0]

However, this whole business of having to make two trips to a Russian consulate IN PERSON to renew a Russian passport is ridiculous -

My wife was able to update hers by mail, perhaps because we live so far from any Russian consulate or maybe rules have changed recently.

[akdiver 3]

However, this whole business of having to make two trips to a Russian consulate IN PERSON to renew a Russian passport is ridiculous -

My wife was able to update hers by mail, perhaps because we live so far from any Russian consulate or maybe rules have changed recently.

Mine was too - but that was in, um...2006 I think. My understanding is that the rules have changed recently.

[IrinaNMike 0]

Irina is now a US citizen, and she will be traveling to Russia in three weeks under her married name. I will make certain she follows another piece of advice from akdiver by carrying an apostille'd copy of our marriage certificate with her, just in case this weird situation happens to her

I never would have guessed that someone with a valid Russian passport could be denied permission to fly to Russia on the grounds that they didn't have a visa. Maybe someone was just having a bad day. I have seen some pretty erratic behavior on the part of TSA's at times. I remember one at the DFW airport who kept yelling "FREEZE", at which point everyone, passengers and the other TSA"s, would have to remain motionless until he yelled "ALL CLEAR". He called it a drill; I call it a nervous breakdown.

[akdiver 3]

Irina is now a US citizen, and she will be traveling to Russia in three weeks under her married name. I will make certain she follows another piece of advice from akdiver by carrying an apostille'd copy of our marriage certificate with her, just in case this weird situation happens to her. I never would have guessed that someone with a valid Russian passport could be denied permission to fly to Russia on the grounds that they didn't have a visa.

Absolutely bizare, I know.

On that note - funny I should read this just now. The person in question (wife's cousin), now wants to change the name in her Russian passport. She is being told by the consulate in/near/that serves Houston that she needs something that indicates WHY she changed her name, and that a marriage certificate is not enough because it doesn't say WHY, or specifically indicate that her name is changing. Bizarro!!! Hey - sounds strange to me too, but I can just report what I'm told. I'll report more facts as they become available to me.

[akdiver 3]

FWIW, some of you may be interested in reviewing this thread:

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=24549

[akdiver 3]

FWIW, some of you may be interested in reviewing this thread:

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=24549

FYI - got this e-mail from my wife's cousin today:

oh my god you speak like a true Russian!! You are amazed when they do it right! So am I!!!

Thank you for all the info and the offer to help. At this point the marriage certificate does not seem to be enough for any consulate as it does not state my new name on it, only my maiden name. Does yours have both? Did you guys get married in Hawaii? This is the only place that puts both name on the document. I went back to consulate and said "look, Seattle does it, you should too". They told me that they might consider it (no promises) if I produce some document with apostille that states both my married and maiden name in one piece of paper and suggested I called to court house. So I did and the clerk was stunned and directed me to a head clerk who said that there is no such document exist and they cant produce it. However, he did suggest that I call to home-land security!! and see they can do it as a part of Naturalization documents. I haven't called yet, but I doubt they will do anything. If all fails I will have to change my married name back to the original, I get so frustrated when I think of it. Seems that I am lost in translation.

The problem she has of course is that she has been a U.S. citizen for some time, so the N400 process can't help her at this point.

Lesson learned: use the N400 process to do a legal name change, even if you are already using your married name. This may help you. Maybe.

Edited October 1, 2009 by akdiver

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

My wife's cousin, a U.S. citizen from Russia, recently had some travel problems that people may want to know about.

She has a current U.S. passport with her married name.

She has a current Russian passport with her original name.

Her plane ticket was in her married name.

She has been living in the U.S. for something like 15 years.

THE PROBLEM:

U.S. airline denied her boarding permission, for lack of a travel document with the same name on her plane ticket, permitting entry into Russia. So, she couldn't make her trip.

THE ANALYSIS:

She had ID proving that she was the person named on the plane ticket (the U.S. passport). She had ID proving she had permitted entry into Russia (the Russian passport). The fact that one had a different name on it than the other shouldn't matter - they are both clearly her IDs (a fact that was not in dispute). There really is no way she should have been denied boarding - I think the airline was in error. However, the reality is that she wasn't able to get on the plane.

THE CONCLUSION:

For the love of god people, don't change your name just because you get married - but if you do, then get the same name, whatever it is, on all of your documents.

I agree in some reagrds. Alla did not change her name and it has made a lot of things easier, however carrying proof of name change (marriage certificate) may also have helped and I do think the airline was in error. Of what business is it of theirs that she can get into Russia? The US can deny entry to anyone (so can Russia) even if they are from a visa waiver country. Should US airlines refuse to carry them because they MIGHT not get into the US?

[akdiver 3]

I agree in some reagrds. Alla did not change her name and it has made a lot of things easier, however carrying proof of name change (marriage certificate) may also have helped

FWIW, the marriage cert of the person I am describing in this case does not actually indicate a name change, or a before/after name. That seems to lie at the hard of the problem with respect to getting her passport reissued in the married name.

Of what business is it of theirs that she can get into Russia?

They are REQUIRED to ascertain whether one has a prima facia standing for legal entry into the destination country. However, their error was in refusing to allow the use of two passports to establish identity match with the ticket and permitted entry into Russia, or, at a minimum, simply changing the name on the ticket to match the name on the Russian passport.

[Brad and Vika 129]

My wife's cousin, a U.S. citizen from Russia, recently had some travel problems that people may want to know about.

She has a current U.S. passport with her married name.

She has a current Russian passport with her original name.

Her plane ticket was in her married name.

She has been living in the U.S. for something like 15 years.

THE PROBLEM:

U.S. airline denied her boarding permission, for lack of a travel document with the same name on her plane ticket, permitting entry into Russia. So, she couldn't make her trip.

THE ANALYSIS:

She had ID proving that she was the person named on the plane ticket (the U.S. passport). She had ID proving she had permitted entry into Russia (the Russian passport). The fact that one had a different name on it than the other shouldn't matter - they are both clearly her IDs (a fact that was not in dispute). There really is no way she should have been denied boarding - I think the airline was in error. However, the reality is that she wasn't able to get on the plane.

THE CONCLUSION:

For the love of god people, don't change your name just because you get married - but if you do, then get the same name, whatever it is, on all of your documents.

I agree in some reagrds. Alla did not change her name and it has made a lot of things easier, however carrying proof of name change (marriage certificate) may also have helped and I do think the airline was in error. Of what business is it of theirs that she can get into Russia? The US can deny entry to anyone (so can Russia) even if they are from a visa waiver country. Should US airlines refuse to carry them because they MIGHT not get into the US?

As I read through this thread, it seems to skate around an issue we are talking about right now. Vika says that changing her Ukrainian passport could cause all kinds of problems with inheritance, etc. in Ukraine. If there is a stamp that goes in her passport instead that would seem to get around all the concerns about keeping her maiden name for those purposes. Does Ukraine simply stamp the married name into the passport too?

[akdiver 3]

As I read through this thread, it seems to skate around an issue we are talking about right now. Vika says that changing her Ukrainian passport could cause all kinds of problems with inheritance, etc. in Ukraine. If there is a stamp that goes in her passport instead that would seem to get around all the concerns about keeping her maiden name for those purposes. Does Ukraine simply stamp the married name into the passport too?

That strikes me as odd, that inheritance would be based on one's name, rather than WHO ONE IS, and what someone's will says.