How do you get a UK passport with new married name?

[Beccaxo 1]

Hi guys, I've recieved my K1 visa and am flying to the US next week, finally! I was just wondering, we're getting married in March and I'm changing my surname to my husbands. How do I then go about getting a UK passport with the new name, whilst still in the US? Do I have to wait to get that before filing any further paperwork to stay in the US?

Thank you!

[Yoveeta 36]

https://www.gov.uk/changing-passport-information

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

Hi guys, I've recieved my K1 visa and am flying to the US next week, finally! I was just wondering, we're getting married in March and I'm changing my surname to my husbands. How do I then go about getting a UK passport with the new name, whilst still in the US? Do I have to wait to get that before filing any further paperwork to stay in the US?

Thank you!

I would advise waIting because your passport will be your photo ID for immigration things. You have to mail the passport off to the UK and might not have the new one back for a while. It is required for your biometric appointment and interview, banks, etc. You wouldn't want to be without a passport if you plan to file for AOS right after marriage. You can still use your married name even of your passport has the maiden name. Use your marriage license as proof of name change. You can even travel on it.

[oscillate.wildly 1]

I would advise waIting because your passport will be your photo ID for immigration things. You have to mail the passport off to the UK and might not have the new one back for a while. It is required for your biometric appointment and interview, banks, etc. You wouldn't want to be without a passport if you plan to file for AOS right after marriage. You can still use your married name even of your passport has the maiden name. Use your marriage license as proof of name change. You can even travel on it.

I am planning on filing for AOS right away and then moving to Saipan within a month or two. So do you mean that I don't need to get a new passport if I take my fiancé's name as long as I have a copy of the marriage certificate? Can I still travel to and from the US and Saipan (US immigration rules apply) without having to get a new passport?

Haven't fully looked into this yet but this post is making me think that I need to do that now

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

I am planning on filing for AOS right away and then moving to Saipan within a month or two. So do you mean that I don't need to get a new passport if I take my fiancé's name as long as I have a copy of the marriage certificate? Can I still travel to and from the US and Saipan (US immigration rules apply) without having to get a new passport?

Haven't fully looked into this yet but this post is making me think that I need to do that now

I'm not going to comment further because your plans are out of the normal realm and my experience. Mailing your passport off to the UK and moving countries right after filing AOS both have potential timing problems you will have to work out if they happen. Edited January 24, 2016 by Nich-Nick

[Yoveeta 36]

I am planning on filing for AOS right away and then moving to Saipan within a month or two. So do you mean that I don't need to get a new passport if I take my fiancé's name as long as I have a copy of the marriage certificate? Can I still travel to and from the US and Saipan (US immigration rules apply) without having to get a new passport?

Haven't fully looked into this yet but this post is making me think that I need to do that now

you can't move to Spain after filling the AOS.. You can't travel outside the USA till you get green card.. Do some reading... And you don't need to change your name in passport to be able to travel.

[oscillate.wildly 1]

you can't move to Spain after filling the AOS.. You can't travel outside the USA till you get green card.. Do some reading... And you don't need to change your name in passport to be able to travel.

Saipan is a US commonwealth - US immigration laws apply. It's the same as moving to Hawaii. You also don't need to wait until you get your greencard to travel outside of the US, just until you get Advance Parole

I'm not going to comment further because your plans are out of the normal realm and my experience. Mailing your passport off to the UK and moving countries right after filing AOS both have potential timing problems you will have to work out if they happen.

I am just finding all of this overwhelming and confusing. Now I know that I don't need to change my passport to travel it's not an issue, which is great. I am just unfamiliar with any issues surrounding addresses etc and choosing where to get my biometric done etc., and that is only because I haven't done this before. Sorry if I am asking for help all the time

[Yoveeta 36]

Saipan is a US commonwealth - US immigration laws apply. It's the same as moving to Hawaii. You also don't need to wait until you get your greencard to travel outside of the US, just until you get Advance Parole

I am just finding all of this overwhelming and confusing. Now I know that I don't need to change my passport to travel it's not an issue, which is great. I am just unfamiliar with any issues surrounding addresses etc and choosing where to get my biometric done etc., and that is only because I haven't done this before. Sorry if I am asking for help all the time

Are you serious???? US commonwealth...

Advance parole is for emergency travel not for moving to other country.. How you suppose to come to your biometric appointment and interview if you are in the other continent?

You need to do some serious reading.. And a lot... Because with your ''deep knowledge'' you just making other people confused..

[oscillate.wildly 1]

Are you serious???? US commonwealth...

Advance parole is for emergency travel not for moving to other country.. How you suppose to come to your biometric appointment and interview if you are in the other continent?

You need to do some serious reading.. And a lot... Because with your ''deep knowledge'' you just making other people confused..

Yes, Saipan is a US Commonwealth https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saipan

and

http://www.uscis.gov/laws/immigration-commonwealth-northern-mariana-islands-cnmi/us-immigration-law-commonwealth-northern-mariana-islands-cnmi

Please don't be rude. I have done plenty of reading. I have not implied that I have "deep knowledge". Why would I ask for advice if I did. I was merely stating that you can travel before you receive your green card if you apply for advance parole, considering that the green card can take much longer than 90 days to be issued.

There is a USCIS office there. Obviously I checked this before we considered moving there for a job.

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

I am just finding all of this overwhelming and confusing. Now I know that I don't need to change my passport to travel it's not an issue, which is great. I am just unfamiliar with any issues surrounding addresses etc and choosing where to get my biometric done etc., and that is only because I haven't done this before. Sorry if I am asking for help all the time

Not a problem asking for help. I just answer when I have experienced something, or read it directly from somebody else who experienced it first hand. I don't know a soul who went to a Commonwealth or about any immigration facilities there. Is there a USCIS facility for interviews? Is there an ASC for biometrics? Are ther civil surgeons? Will you need one? I don't know. Will your address get changed properly before you are assigned a biometric appt for the original address? Wil your Social Security card go to the original address? Some things will have to be sorted if/when they happen depending on when you move.

I answered you can travel on a maiden name passport with the proof of name change (marriage license). Then you asked if you could travel before changing your passport. ???? I had already said that people do that.

[oscillate.wildly 1]

Not a problem asking for help. I just answer when I have experienced something, or read it directly from somebody else who experienced it first hand. I don't know a soul who went to a Commonwealth or about any immigration facilities there. Is there a USCIS facility for interviews? Is there an ASC for biometrics? Are ther civil surgeons? Will you need one? I don't know. Will your address get changed properly before you are assigned a biometric appt for the original address? Wil your Social Security card go to the original address? Some things will have to be sorted if/when they happen depending on when you move.

I answered you can travel on a maiden name passport with the proof of name change (marriage license). Then you asked if you could travel before changing your passport. ???? I had already said that people do that.

Yeah I'm sorry about that, I mis-read your reply and read instead as "I would advise AGAINST waiting...." so my bad. I admit to being a bit overwhelmed since everything is happening very fast with this move. We weren't expecting it.

Am I right in my understanding that the process is: we file for AOS and give our address with the application (currently Charlottesville, Virginia) - filing for EAD and AP at the same time - and then someone looks at our file and issues me a biometrics appointment based on my location (from the address stated in the application). I wonder therefore if the best approach would be to put our address as his (future) office in Saipan instead of the VA address. We will be there around April 1st, filing for AOS mid-feb assuming I have an average timeframe for getting my visa back after the interview (Feb 2nd).

Unless we would expect mail before April 1st that we would need to have in-hand before that date.

The other options are:

- keep the address as VA and get his mom to open the mail. We are returning in July for our wedding, or she can post anything to us

- put VA address, then change when we get to Saipan

I know you haven't experienced our situation but it is similar to others who have moved

My main concern is getting permission to work ASAP and whether I need whatever arrives in the mail or whether I'm just 'legal' from when it arrives and therefore good to go

Here's the Saipan office: https://egov.uscis.gov/crisgwi/go?action=offices.detail&office=XHS&OfficeLocator.office_type=ASC&OfficeLocator.statecode=MP I think it looks like we'll be ok there!

Just drowning in info to do with this getting to crunch time and everything with a move to the middle of nowhere! So feel the need to run all this past someone in the know in case I am missing something vital

Thanks for your help, as always

(sorry for hijacking the post)

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

1. Get SSN immediately in maiden name exactly as entered on your I-94. Should come in mail 7-10 days. Sometimes a problem and takes weeks, months.

2. Must have marriage certificate (registered by your county) before you can send AOS. I got mine while we waited the next day. Some places/counties take weeks to mail them out. You might not be filing as soon as you think. Have you researched AOS and know all the forms and started filling them out?

Next part-- I do not study timelines anymore so guessing.

3. After mailing AOS/EAD/AP, the NOA1s come in mail in 1-2 weeks or they mail an RFE if something was missing. Must have the RFE letter to send with response.

4. Biometric appointment letter could come during first four weeks. It will be scheduled for a few weeks in future. Need passport and the appointment letter. Or letter may not come for two months. You could have changed your address but the bio letter still goes to VA. It varies.

I would not put a future address. Things come quickly at first.

I personally would get SSN, get married, unstress a bit, get packed for moving, get AOS filled out perfectly. THEN file from Saipan. You have too much on your plate and you know timelines are not predictable. You will survive without working. And it the mail goes all awry and you do a rushed job on the packets, you could be making EAD take longer because of the mess.

[oscillate.wildly 1]

1. Get SSN immediately in maiden name exactly as entered on your I-94. Should come in mail 7-10 days. Sometimes a problem and takes weeks, months.

2. Must have marriage certificate (registered by your county) before you can send AOS. I got mine while we waited the next day. Some places/counties take weeks to mail them out. You might not be filing as soon as you think. Have you researched AOS and know all the forms and started filling them out?

Next part-- I do not study timelines anymore so guessing.

3. After mailing AOS/EAD/AP, the NOA1s come in mail in 1-2 weeks or they mail an RFE if something was missing. Must have the RFE letter to send with response.

4. Biometric appointment letter could come during first four weeks. It will be scheduled for a few weeks in future. Need passport and the appointment letter. Or letter may not come for two months. You could have changed your address but the bio letter still goes to VA. It varies.

I would not put a future address. Things come quickly at first.

I personally would get SSN, get married, unstress a bit, get packed for moving, get AOS filled out perfectly. THEN file from Saipan. You have too much on your plate and you know timelines are not predictable. You will survive without working. And it the mail goes all awry and you do a rushed job on the packets, you could be making EAD take longer because of the mess.

Thanks, it sounds like that might be a good move. I've spoken to the people where we will get married and they can get us a copy right away (or the day after if we get married after office hours).

In case where we file for AOS before moving, such as if his start date is later than we anticipate (very rough so far), I have a few more questions that will help us to make a decision:

- I have read that even if you have a biometrics exam scheduled for one center, that you can often do a walk-in at another. Do you have any experience of this, or can anyone else chip in?

- would changing our address slow things down? I have also read that if you move to a different 'district' (which surely Saipan is) it can be an issue.

- I am about to look more into this, but perhaps you know also - how exactly does the EAD work - do I need the physical card with me, or am I good to work as soon as it is issued (assume that I can check status online etc or will get a notification)

There is also of course the issue that we are legally required to change our address within 10 days of moving, but not sure how much of an issue this is

I think I am concerned that with the mail back and forth from Saipan taking a long time, and it being Saipan, that our case would take much longer if we filed from there

Thanks again

[La Souris 19]

How are you flying to Saipan? Do you have a connecting flight/layover in another country than the USA?

[oscillate.wildly 1]

How are you flying to Saipan? Do you have a connecting flight/layover in another country than the USA?

The organisation will be booking the flights but a quick Kayak search from Washington to Saipan has 2 connections, one in Honolulu HI, and the other in Guam, which are both under US immigration laws

...is connecting in another country an issue even if you don't leave the airport? Trying to quickly Google it but not getting very far