Married name / Passport change help

[adamj7 43]

Hi all, My Wife (USC) hasn't changed her name yet - she has an upcoming trip to Canada and was waiting until she gets back to change her name and her passport etc.  My question is this; If we book now for flights to Chicago in July should she book in her existing name or married name? And if the flight is booked in her existing name and then she does change it on her passport can we show our marriage certificate with her passport to board the flights?

Thanks!

[C90 376]

20 minutes ago, adamj7 said:

Hi all, My Wife (USC) hasn't changed her name yet - she has an upcoming trip to Canada and was waiting until she gets back to change her name and her passport etc.  My question is this; If we book now for flights to Chicago in July should she book in her existing name or married name? And if the flight is booked in her existing name and then she does change it on her passport can we show our marriage certificate with her passport to board the flights?

Thanks!

Every flight has to be booked in the name that's on your travel document (passport, real ID, DL etc). If she's going to get a travel document with her new name before July, she can book in her new name, but she has to be 100% sure she'll get it in time and everything is correct on the document.

 

Some websites require your travel document number when booking, that could be a problem since it will change after you book.

 

Why don't just wait with booking until after you obtain the new TD or wait with a new travel document until after traveling in July? Correcting a name on a ticket (when it's your fault) can be very expensive.

Edited February 25, 2019 by C90

[adamj7 43]

1 hour ago, C90 said:

Every flight has to be booked in the name that's on your travel document (passport, real ID, DL etc). If she's going to get a travel document with her new name before July, she can book in her new name, but she has to be 100% sure she'll get it in time and everything is correct on the document.

 

Some websites require your travel document number when booking, that could be a problem since it will change after you book.

 

Why don't just wait with booking until after you obtain the new TD or wait with a new travel document until after traveling in July? Correcting a name on a ticket (when it's your fault) can be very expensive.

That's what I was thinking - I'm not sure when her passport expires and if she'll need a new one by the time we travel in July, in which case it'd have to be in her married name anyway i guess (but we haven't even looked into how long it takes to change her name at the courthouse yet)

[C90 376]

9 minutes ago, adamj7 said:

That's what I was thinking - I'm not sure when her passport expires and if she'll need a new one by the time we travel in July, in which case it'd have to be in her married name anyway i guess (but we haven't even looked into how long it takes to change her name at the courthouse yet)

Figure that out first before you book anything, it might take some time to legally change her name and obtain a passport afterwards. If her current passport is valid at the time of travel it's safer to just book in her maiden name and renew her passport in her new name after, to avoid any trouble imo.

 

I think NY requires DL + real ID to board a domestic flight. If she has both in her married name, she could book a ticket in her married name and show these documents instead of her passport. 

Important: Check the website and the airline where you book. Some websites/airlines won't allow you to book/board a flight with anything else than a passport.