Sunday, 20 December 2009

Passport Name Change - It Shouldn't Be A Hard Thing To Do

By Ben Pate

If you've had your name changed because of a court order or if you're a woman who has recently been married, then you will need to have a passport name change. What is a passport name change? This is basically just a procedure you need to go through to have the name in your passport changed from your former to your new one. You have several options of going about this, which will depend on the date when your passport was issued, and the presence of legal documents that prove your name change. We'll talk about them more in this article.

Before you apply for a passport name change, you first need to verify when your passport was issued. That's because the type of procedure you'll follow will depend on the date of issuance of your passport. To verify the date, all you need to do is check your passport where your personal details are found.

From there, let's discuss your first option. If your pass port was issued less than a year ago, you will have to fulfill the following requirements: your current and valid passport, two recent color passport photos, and the legal documents that prove your name change. These documents are either your marriage contract or a court order. In addition to these, will also need to accomplish Form DS-5504, which is used when applying for a passport name change.

You won't have to pay any fees when going through this type of application. This is unless you choose to have your application expedited, which does come with a fee. An expedited passport application is the option you need if you want to cut the processing time of your passport from four to six weeks to just two to three.

Now let's talk about the other option you have. If your passport was issued more than a year ago, here are the things you need to submit: your current and valid passport, two recent color passport photos, the legal document that shows your change of name (again, your marriage contract or a court order). You will notice that these are basically the same documents required in the first option.

However, instead of the DS-5504, you will submit form DS-82. This is the form that you use when applying for a passport application by mail. Also, you will need to pay the applicable fees to have your passport processed.

There are times when those applying for a passport name change don't have the legal documents to prove it. If you're in a similar situation, you'll need to submit a different set of requirements: your current and valid passport, two recent color passport photos, the completed Form DS-11, and pay the applicable fees. In place of the legal document normally required, you will need to submit three public records with your date and place of birth and that indicates the exclusive use of your new name for at least five years. You will then have to submit these requirements in person once you accomplish them.

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