Use spouse's new last name on I-485 & I-864?

[stevea 0]

My wife and I married last Friday and now we are beginning the sojourn of the AOS. When completing the forms and it asks for the beneficiarie's last name, do I enter her new married name (she is taking my family name) or continue to use her maiden name? Are there any advantages/disadvantages in using either?

BTW, Rong has not yet received her SSN so we cannot change her name per Social Security as of yet.

This is sooo confusing!! All we want to do is the right thing! Why is it so hard? Dang!!!

Please help two very frustrated people, if you can!

[Nancy2015 2]

Congrats on your marriage!

What name does your wife want to use? If she is taking your last name, definitely put it on the forms. That way her EAD and green card will automatically be in her married name. There are no disadvantages to using a married name for AOS. She will be able to change her name with social security when she gets her EAD or green card.

Good luck!

[antda 13]

Hi Stevea,

Good luck on your immigration journey. Congrats on your marriage. In answer to your question, you file the AOS and all other immigration paperwork with your wife's married name (I assume that's the last name she wants to be known by) as it's going to be more of a hassle to get it changed afterwards when all the paperwork is already done. Just include a copy of your marriage certificate in your application and on the application in the "other names used" section fill it in with your wife's maiden name. I don't think you'd want to deal with the USCIS (Green Card), SSA (SS# Card), DMV (Driver's License), banks, etc. or any other people who you need your wife's married name, more than you should have to in order to notify them again of your wife's married name change!

As for my situation, I filed my immigration paperwork with my married name and have everything in my married last name and I am using that new married last name instead of my old maiden last name which I hated. I like my married last name, and I love my husband and feel that this is respectful for him and his family.

Hope this helps.

Ant

My wife and I married last Friday and now we are beginning the sojourn of the AOS. When completing the forms and it asks for the beneficiarie's last name, do I enter her new married name (she is taking my family name) or continue to use her maiden name? Are there any advantages/disadvantages in using either?

BTW, Rong has not yet received her SSN so we cannot change her name per Social Security as of yet.

This is sooo confusing!! All we want to do is the right thing! Why is it so hard? Dang!!!

Please help two very frustrated people, if you can!

Edited March 20, 2007 by AntandD

[susan+mike 0]

My wife and I married last Friday and now we are beginning the sojourn of the AOS. When completing the forms and it asks for the beneficiarie's last name, do I enter her new married name (she is taking my family name) or continue to use her maiden name? Are there any advantages/disadvantages in using either?

BTW, Rong has not yet received her SSN so we cannot change her name per Social Security as of yet.

This is sooo confusing!! All we want to do is the right thing! Why is it so hard? Dang!!!

Please help two very frustrated people, if you can!

First off........ Congratulations on your marriage! ............. I feel your frustration and so does my new hubby.......we were just married last Thursday and we have my appointment tomorrow, Wed., March 21st through the DORA program with Immigration in Oklahoma City for my AOS so we just basically completed all our paperwork last night in preparation.

I am using my married name on all my paperwork. I don't have a SSN yet either but already have a bank account joint with my hubby and one of my own in my married name..... I couldn't believe it but they did it for us.

Best of luck on your AOS journey!

Susan

[stevea 0]

Rong and I thank you all very much for your advice! Rong is excited to take my last name. Her worry was that it would greatly increase the processing time for her AOS.

Thanks again! Congrats to all those who have survived this unwieldy process and have married! It definitely is worth the trouble.

[Jackson1975 0]

I used my new married name on the AOS application.

As for the SSN, when I had the Notice of Action from the AOS application, I went into the DSS with that and a new application form to change the name and the NOA1 and that was sufficent to request a new social security card with the new name.

Good Luck with the rest of your journey