Questions regarding changing my step son's last name

[jg121783 3,921]

Got a few questions regarding changing my step son's last name. I think I have a basic understanding of how to proceed regarding WI law however I am not sure what our requirements are to change his name on his green card. If I need to I can post on the non country specific forums to get some answers to that but what I need to know from you guys is how do we go about changing his name on his Philippines passport, how much does it cost and how long does it take? We are planning a trip to the Philippines early next year and we want to make sure everything is in order by then.

[Hank_ 9,174]

10 hours ago, jg121783 said:

Got a few questions regarding changing my step son's last name. I think I have a basic understanding of how to proceed regarding WI law however I am not sure what our requirements are to change his name on his green card. If I need to I can post on the non country specific forums to get some answers to that but what I need to know from you guys is how do we go about changing his name on his Philippines passport, how much does it cost and how long does it take? We are planning a trip to the Philippines early next year and we want to make sure everything is in order by then.

You could go through the court process in WI to change his name (this will not legally change his name in the Philippines), or wait until Naturalization then his name can be changed at no additional cost.

 

As for the name on his Philippine passport, that will still be his birth name, unless you adopt him through the courts in the Philippines.   Don't know if they have a process to legally change ones name otherwise.

 

Edited July 6, 2018 by Hank_

[VanDerFran 10]

You can change here with court as you mention, some Filipinos or other experts should tell us if name change is allowed there,  in case it is not possible to change, your son will need to travel with Filipino passport using old name, not a big deal until they say it does not match with the airline ticket or give a hard time saying is not the same child.

 

Luckily as an american he dont need visa in advance to enter Philippines, so he can enter as US tourist.

 

But dont quote me on that, it is just me thinking out loud, I am not an expert in Philippines travel hacks :-D  

[Hank_ 9,174]

52 minutes ago, VanDerFran said:

You can change here with court as you mention, some Filipinos or other experts should tell us if name change is allowed there,  in case it is not possible to change, your son will need to travel with Filipino passport using old name, not a big deal until they say it does not match with the airline ticket or give a hard time saying is not the same child.

 

Luckily as an american he dont need visa in advance to enter Philippines, so he can enter as US tourist.

 

But dont quote me on that, it is just me thinking out loud, I am not an expert in Philippines travel hacks :-D  

Airfare must match the name in the passport to travel internationally, can't get on the airplane if those don't match    

[jg121783 3,921]

So basically it is less of a headache to wait until he is naturalized? The reason we want to do this is because me, my wife and his baby brother all have the same last name and he feels left out.

Edited July 6, 2018 by jg121783

[Randyandyuni 2,682]

Adopt him then it's allowed to align the names

[Jojo92122 1,924]

16 minutes ago, jg121783 said:

So basically it is less of a headache to wait until he is naturalized? The reason we want to do this is because me, my wife and his baby brother all have the same last name and he feels left out.

Adopt him and he can change his last name to match yours.

 

The ONLY way to legally change his name is through the court.  Adoption and family court would be easiest.   A name change during naturalization would be another option.

 

Your stepson can naturalize on his own at age 18.  

 

If he gets derivative citizenship when his mom naturalizes and he's under 18, then he will not be going through the naturalization process.  He would have to go to court to change his name.

How old is your stepson?  Are you willing to adopt him?  Will his father consent to ending their legal relationship and give up his son so you can be his only father?  

 

[jg121783 3,921]

41 minutes ago, Jojo92122 said:

How old is your stepson?  Are you willing to adopt him?  Will his father consent to ending their legal relationship and give up his son so you can be his only father?  

He is 11. I am willing to adopt him but I'm not sure the steps involved in that. His father is no where to be found and not even on his birth certificate so I'm not sure if we need his consent or not.

[Jojo92122 1,924]

16 minutes ago, jg121783 said:

He is 11. I am willing to adopt him but I'm not sure the steps involved in that. His father is no where to be found and not even on his birth certificate so I'm not sure if we need his consent or not.

Go see a family law attorney if you want to do an adoption.

The only way for a name change is through the courts.  Google "name change and your state."

 

[Randyandyuni 2,682]

is the child illegitimate? If so the father has no parental rights under Philippine laws, at worst depending on state laws you may need to post a message in a local newspaper

[jg121783 3,921]

2 minutes ago, Jojo92122 said:

The only way for a name change is through the courts.  Google "name change and your state."

 

1 minute ago, Randyandyuni said:

is the child illegitimate? If so the father has no parental rights under Philippine laws, at worst depending on state laws you may need to post a message in a local newspaper

I have read up on changing his name under WI law and it is pretty straightforward. What I am trying to figure out is how to to change his name on his Philippines passport so we can travel with no issues.

[Jojo92122 1,924]

2 minutes ago, jg121783 said:

 

I have read up on changing his name under WI law and it is pretty straightforward. What I am trying to figure out is how to to change his name on his Philippines passport so we can travel with no issues.

Don't put the cart before the horse.  

 

Get the adoption and name change done before worrying about his PI passport.

 

Once you adopt him, he becomes a USC who can get a US passport with his new name.

 

Then, worry about his PI passport.

[Randyandyuni 2,682]

4 minutes ago, Jojo92122 said:

Don't put the cart before the horse.  

 

Get the adoption and name change done before worrying about his PI passport.

 

Once you adopt him, he becomes a USC who can get a US passport with his new name.

 

Then, worry about his PI passport.

This .. it also solves his citizenship issues since after two years of living with you he is eligible to be a citizen, it also generates a new birth certificate that can be used as evidence for preparation of the name change request in the PI 

[jg121783 3,921]

5 minutes ago, Jojo92122 said:

Don't put the cart before the horse.  

 

Get the adoption and name change done before worrying about his PI passport.

 

Once you adopt him, he becomes a USC who can get a US passport with his new name.

 

Then, worry about his PI passport.

That's what I thought but what are the steps in the adoption process and what is the timeframe? Like I said before we are planning a trip next year so maybe it's best to wait until after the trip?

[Randyandyuni 2,682]

I am in the process of adopting my stepson, it takes roughly 4 months in Ohio to do so, in November he will have lived with me for 2 years, so conceivably he can be adopted, naturalized and issued a passport by December of this year, I assume it is probably a similar timeline in Wisconsin but honestly, I do not know.