How do I go about changing my last name?

[Amy-Rose 0]

Hey! I'm going to be getting married shortly, and I will be adjusting my status to be able to stay with my fiance. Just wondering though, as this is my first (and hopefully only!) marriage, how does one go about changing their last name in the US? I don't have any US documentations, and I don't have a driver's license. How can one legally change their last name? Thanks!!

[Inky 1,111]

You dont legally change your name. When you get married your name is changed. You use your marriage certificate to get your documents in your married name.

Apply for your AOS in your married name.

[VanessaTony 3,567]

To change your name, you simply change your name. Your husbands last name is permitted to be your last name by virtue of your marriage certificate. So to change it, you just, for instance, go to the DMV with your marriage licence and change your name.

For AOS you write your married name on all the forms. If you have nothing in the US (as you stated) in your married name then when you apply for them, your marriage certificate proves the change from your ID documents (passport) to married name. You can change your passport to your married name. You can try and change some of your Canadian stuff while in the US or you can wait till you go back there.

** moved from "Adjustment of Status (Green Card) from Family Based Visas" to Moving Here and Your New Life In America as this isn't an AOS question or a qn about the immigration process, but a "life in USA" qn**

[ludijay 0]

You actually just check the box "changing my name" when you apply for the wedding licence... After that it will appear on the wedding certificate which you use to justify the name change to any administrative thingies you can apply for (ID, etc...)

By the way, just because i had to learn it the hard way; you CANNOT change your name on the social security card before you have your green card.. you can apply for one before that (that specify its not a work authorization in itself) but it will be on the name on your visa (K1 i guess) aka your maiden name...

And congratulations

[Inky 1,111]

You actually just check the box "changing my name" when you apply for the wedding licence... After that it will appear on the wedding certificate which you use to justify the name change to any administrative thingies you can apply for (ID, etc...)

By the way, just because i had to learn it the hard way; you CANNOT change your name on the social security card before you have your green card.. you can apply for one before that (that specify its not a work authorization in itself) but it will be on the name on your visa (K1 i guess) aka your maiden name...

And congratulations

There was no such box when we applied for the marriage license in the state of nebraska.

As for the SSN you can wait till your married to go get it at the SSN office and bring your marriage license with you they will issue it in your married name. BUT you can only do this if you marry very soon after you enter because your I-94 needs to be valid still when applying for the SSN.

[VanessaTony 3,567]

You actually just check the box "changing my name" when you apply for the wedding licence... After that it will appear on the wedding certificate which you use to justify the name change to any administrative thingies you can apply for (ID, etc...)

By the way, just because i had to learn it the hard way; you CANNOT change your name on the social security card before you have your green card.. you can apply for one before that (that specify its not a work authorization in itself) but it will be on the name on your visa (K1 i guess) aka your maiden name...

And congratulations

My marriage licence didn't have a "check box". mine had "name before" and "name after" marriage.

You CAN change your name on your SSN before you have your GC (or EAD). IQuit is the pro on this. Lots of people have successfully changed their name on their SSN before they got their GC. It's definitely EASIER when you have your GC (or EAD) but it's still possible.

[KiwiBird 132]

Like everyone has said, you don't really have to 'legally' change your name since a marriage certificate is sufficient.

HOWEVER, if you are the USC (which I'm not sure if you are or if you were the beneficiary), you'll need to change your name on things like bank accounts, DMV records, and get a new SSN with your married name on it. (You don't need to apply for a new number or anything, but just get a new card.) There is something you can order from online called the "Name Change Kit" for brides. It gives some common forms and checklists of places you might want to change your name with. It's extremely helpful.

If you're not the UCS, then you don't have to worry about all that. A copy of the marriage certificate should be enough for just about every place you would want to update your records with. (And if you don't have a record yet, like when you go in to open a new account at a bank or something, you just give them your married name from the start.)

And congrats!!

[Aubrey 10]

My marriage licence didn't have a "check box". mine had "name before" and "name after" marriage.

You CAN change your name on your SSN before you have your GC (or EAD). IQuit is the pro on this. Lots of people have successfully changed their name on their SSN before they got their GC. It's definitely EASIER when you have your GC (or EAD) but it's still possible.

Right, it depends on the state issuing it. Some show the name change, others don't. It doesn't matter either way. When you get married, get 2-3 official copies of the marriage certificate. Some agencies want their own official copy to complete a change of name. My husband and I BOTH changed our names (hyphenated ours together), and our certificate just showed our old names.

My husband waited and got his SSN card after we were married (and before his GC paperwork) so to avoid the hassle of going back in to get his name change on the card. It was not a problem at all.

Congratulations.

[Szilvia74 3]

Yes it depends on the state. Ask at the place you get married perhaps they can tell you. Some states only accept a name change by marriage if the new name is actually on the marriage license. In other states you can just start using your new name and that's it. I went into a little trouble myself: I lived in CA and I didn't think about changing my name at the time of the marriage. (I also believe in CA, you can just start using your name and that is considered a name change). Then I moved to another state where it is not the case. One day, I thought I change my name (hyphenated to my husband's name) and I thought it is same as in CA and I just started using the new name. I got my new name on my new greencard and then on the state ID. However, later I found out that is not the legal way to do it! I actually had to go to stand in front of a judge and ask for a name change (had to pay for it too!) even though I had my documents on the new name already. Another time you can change your name easy (and free) is when you become a citizen.

[Tahoma 2,292]

...you CANNOT change your name on the social security card before you have your green card..

^ That is just plain wrong. My wife had no problem changing her name on her Social Security Card before she got her Green Card.

[Brother Hesekiel 2,236]

You dont legally change your name. When you get married your name is changed.

Oh my God . . . I didn't' know that!

When my wife and I married . . . she got another name then? She still uses the name her parents gave her at birth, so what shall we do now, in your opinion?