RFE for Sworn Affidavit Indicating Full Legal Name

[JayCS 0]

Hi All,

I'm wondering if anyone else has run into this. My then-fiancée arrived 4/5 & we were married 6/8. We're currently going through AOS (I-485, I-131, I-765 concurrently), submitted 7/3. We just received an RFE - actually two identical letters but one regarding AP and the other regarding EAD. The RFE references "application conflict" regarding the "full legal name" of my now-wife.

What's requested is simple enough - "please send us a sworn affidavit providing your full legal name and any other names by which you have been known" (I paraphrase). She has her birth name, and a prior married name before she immigrated but all of that was documented in the I-485 package (birth certificate w/ translation, divorce certificate from previous husband w/ translation, and our marriage certificate with her name change to my family name). Anyway, what they ask for is simple enough, so we wrote something up for her to sign. I thought it would be a good idea to have it notarized but I can't find a notary who will do it. The rub is that my wife took my last name when we married, so that's now her full legal name (and that's the name we used on all the I-485 paperwork). But the only documentation of her current name is our marriage certificate, and the notaries I've talked to say that they need to see a photo ID for her with her true current name in order to notarize a document. Her only "photo ID" is her passport, which has her pre-marriage-to-me name.

I can't find any "official" definition of a "Sworn Affidavit" anywhere on the USCIS website, so it may be that notarization isn't required on one - and in our case I can't figure out how we can have her (now married) signature notarized anyway. So, am I overthinking this - can we just send in an explanation signed by her? Or perhaps have it "witnessed" by someone instead of notarized?

Thanks,

Jay

[perfect 39]

As a Notary of 8 years (California) I can tell you that a notary can notarize without current photo ID if he/she has two "credible identifying witnesses". Basically these would be two people known to your wife who can validate that she is who she says she is and they serve as her ID for the purpose of the notarization. BTW - notaries are subject to the Secretary of state and are not allowed to reject clients who make a "reasonable request"! Yours was a reasonable request. if all else fails call the office of the secretary of state and let them know the problem you are having!

Here is a link to that information from the National Notary Association - http://www.nationalnotary.org/notary-bulletin/blog/2011/10/hotline-tip-credible-identifying-witness

Hope that helps.

Edited September 11, 2014 by perfect

[JayCS 0]

Thanks for the information, 'perfect', that is most useful. Looks like I just need to find a notary who knows the rules. The ones I've spoken to have all been "corporate" (bank, escrow company, etc) and so they may just be following company policy. I'll make a few more phone calls armed with your information. Thanks!

[perfect 39]

In case you run into the same problem - here is the actual process - if you want to print it and take it to the notary!

http://blog.123notary.com/?p=2464

Useful phone numbers:

National Notary Association: 1-800-876-6827

Secretary of State for California: (916) 653–3595

[perfect 39]

Just curious whether or not you managed to find a notary to get this done?