Ask For A U S Passport Name Change If You Recently Got Divorced
By Advisor. Filed in Florida |
There are several different reasons why you may chose to legally change your name, perhaps you just got married, or you like it for a professional reason. Regardless of the reason, you need to change your name on legal documentation, including your passport. There are steps you will need to take when conducting a passport name change.
You’re required by law to change your name on your legal documents at any point that you change your name. A passport name change is necessary as well, as part of this process. When doing this you’ll need to verify with proper documentation that you’ve changed your name.
You do not, however, want to get rid of your old documents. You might need these at a later time, such as processing a license in another say if you relocate. Several says make it necessary to provide documentation of your previous name when applying for a license in that say.
A passport name change can occur different ways. The method that you choose will be governed by the time it has been since you obtained your passport and whether you’ve legal documentation supporting your name change. The period of time that has transpired since you first filed for your passport will also determine whether you owe a fee for a passport name change.
In the case that it has been less than a year since you received your original passport, you might process the name change with a form DS-5504. This form will need to be absolutely filled out and mailed in to the proper address along with a certified copy of your marriage certificate or decree for a name change. In some cases it may be necessary to provide two recent photos.
The DS-5504 will need to be mailed in along with your original passport and the other documentation. This form gets mailed to the National Passport Processing Office, PO. Box 90107, Philadelphia, PA, 19190-0107. Verify that you have all necessary paperwork before submitting the application.
If more than a year has transpired since your original passport was issued then you will need to mail your current passport, a filled out DS-82, the applicable fees, and a copy of your marriage certificate or name change decree. You’ll also need two recent color pics. This all should be mailed to the address on the back of Form DS-82.
Keep in mind that all of your documentation for processing a name change needs to be certified copies. This means that Photostatted copies that have been notarized will not be accepted by the passport department. Consequently if you don’t have the proper documentation, you will need to obtain documentation prior to sending in the proper application.
You can typically obtain this information from the clerk’s office for the county court in the county you were married in. The USA passport name change process will typically take three to four weeks. It is possible to try to rush this, but it will require an additional fee. If necessary you can contact your says congressional office to help rush the US passport process.
