Incorrect name order on Visa and Social Security card

[VietJandD 2]

 Hello,

 

My fiancé arrived in the US from Vietnam on a K-1 visa.  We were married here a few weeks ago.

 

When we went to get her Social Security card, they said they would have to put her name in the order it is on her K-1 visa,  with her middle names first, then her first name, then her last name. 

 

 I showed the person at the Social Security office that her name is listed correctly on our marriage certificate, but they insisted they had to go by the visa. Is this correct? Should I try to get her name listed differently on the I 94 form? Was the mistake made on the original visa because it was  printed in the same order it is on her Vietnam passport? 

 

 Thank you for any help.

 

John

 

 

[Ontarkie 14,218]

~~moved to SSN, from K1 P&P - This is no longer a K1 processing question, but a SSN question.~~

[Ontarkie 14,218]

Yes they need to go by the name on her visa an passport.

 

Her passport should have been fixed before getting the visa.

 

When you file for AOS list the name the in the right order and hope they will fix it.

[VietJandD 2]

Thank you for moving this to the proper forum. 🙂

 

 In Vietnam, names seem to usually be listed in an order that’s different from the US. Usually, the last name is listed first, and then the middle names, and then the first name. So, I’m not sure if I could have gotten it changed on her passport. 

[Ontarkie 14,218]

That explains the order then. Hopefully it will be no problem getting the EAD/AP and later GC in the right order. Once you get any of those documents you should be able to get SS to change the card. 

[WandY 430]

Speaking from experience, the name order doesn't make any difference to people in the U.S. My wife's name has been messed-up numerous times, but it never matters to Americans. However, it can be a headache when traveling overseas. Just a few weeks ago, my wife was stopped by Vietnamese officers in the Hanoi airport. Her China Southern ticket didn't have the same name order as her VN passport. They made her go to the China Southern ticket counter and get a stamp - we had no idea what "get a stamp" meant. However, the ticket agent stamped her ticket with a "Priority Class" stamp and that was good enough. The stamp had nothing to do with proving her identity. We traveled in several countries and the only hassle we received was in Vietnam. I guess we should have slipped the guy 200,000 dong. We're not going to straighten out her name until citizenship and her U.S. passport. And with a U.S. passport, she won't get pushed around (as much).

[USS_Voyager 1,972]

On 7/6/2019 at 4:12 PM, Ontarkie said:

Her passport should have been fixed before getting the visa.

Unfortunately the Vietnamese passport does not say First, middle or last. In the Vietnamese passport, it just says "Name" and proceeds to list the name in the Vietnamese order, which is Family name, middle name and first name. What is usually causing confusion is that sometimes, the Vietnamese first name can consist of two words, and when converting to the American way, they never knows which two words are the first name and which is the middle and most of the time just ended up butchering them. 

 

[cyclone27 710]

Viet Embassy can add the married notation in the passport in the correct western order.  We did this for my wife when we officially changed her name via court order. 

 

Then once we applied for 10yr card we changed her last name outright in comparison to the 2yr card.

 

We’ve traveled to Vietnam few times and never had an issue with airline tickets or order of the names.

[Lowkeygt 13]

Dealing with the same thing...went to AOS interview (rescheduled-need interpreter) and they said you have to wait till you receive the green card. Then you can go back to SSN and they will correct the name. You MIGHT be able to go to SSN and use your marriage certificate to have them EDIT the name because of marriage. It would have worked for us but the visa stamp expiration date was less then 2 weeks and the system wouldn't take the change. 

[trucphong 24]

On 7/7/2019 at 10:50 AM, WandY said:

Speaking from experience, the name order doesn't make any difference to people in the U.S. My wife's name has been messed-up numerous times, but it never matters to Americans. However, it can be a headache when traveling overseas. Just a few weeks ago, my wife was stopped by Vietnamese officers in the Hanoi airport. Her China Southern ticket didn't have the same name order as her VN passport. They made her go to the China Southern ticket counter and get a stamp - we had no idea what "get a stamp" meant. However, the ticket agent stamped her ticket with a "Priority Class" stamp and that was good enough. The stamp had nothing to do with proving her identity. We traveled in several countries and the only hassle we received was in Vietnam. I guess we should have slipped the guy 200,000 dong. We're not going to straighten out her name until citizenship and her U.S. passport. And with a U.S. passport, she won't get pushed around (as much).

What did your wife fill out a question in N-400 Part I question 3 “Other names you have used since birth”? 

 

Did she have any issue for Naturalization with incorrect name?

 

Thanks.

 

 

Edited February 16, 2023 by trucphong