A recent IT post on the June 1st implementation of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative
that ups the ante on what documents U.S. citizens returning from travel
to Canada, Mexico, and the Caribbean are now required to show prompted the
following question from a reader:
Q: I am planning on going on a cruise this August with my husband. My passport is in my maiden name. Would that be sufficient documentation or do I have to change it? Where would I change it and how long will it take?
A: First off, congratulations on your recent marriage! I'm assuming you're heading off on a cruise this August to Mexico or perhaps one of the 17 nations categorized as the Caribbean by Customs and Border Protection. If you're returning to the U.S. by air, you'll need a valid passport. If you're heading back by sea or land, you'll need a valid passport or passport card.
Also, you should change the name listed on your passport to your married name. Also, be sure your tickets for travel (the cruise, any flights involved) are reserved under your married name (to match your new passport). I'd work with your airline and cruise company to be sure your tickets match your new passport and list your married name.
Now, the nitty gritty of changing your name on your passport: If your old passport, the one that lists your maiden name, was issued less than one year ago, you need to send your valid passport, form DS-5504, a complete copy of your marriage certificate, and two recent photos to the National Passport Processing Center in Philadelphia whose address is listed on form DS-5504. There is no fee to change your name on a passport issued less than a year ago unless you need to expedite it.
Q: I am planning on going on a cruise this August with my husband. My passport is in my maiden name. Would that be sufficient documentation or do I have to change it? Where would I change it and how long will it take?A: First off, congratulations on your recent marriage! I'm assuming you're heading off on a cruise this August to Mexico or perhaps one of the 17 nations categorized as the Caribbean by Customs and Border Protection. If you're returning to the U.S. by air, you'll need a valid passport. If you're heading back by sea or land, you'll need a valid passport or passport card.
Also, you should change the name listed on your passport to your married name. Also, be sure your tickets for travel (the cruise, any flights involved) are reserved under your married name (to match your new passport). I'd work with your airline and cruise company to be sure your tickets match your new passport and list your married name.
Now, the nitty gritty of changing your name on your passport: If your old passport, the one that lists your maiden name, was issued less than one year ago, you need to send your valid passport, form DS-5504, a complete copy of your marriage certificate, and two recent photos to the National Passport Processing Center in Philadelphia whose address is listed on form DS-5504. There is no fee to change your name on a passport issued less than a year ago unless you need to expedite it.
If your current passport was issued more than one year ago, you'll need
to send in your valid passport, form DS082, a copy of your marriage
certificate, two photos, and pay the applicable $75 fee. You'll need to
send all of this to the center in Philly listed on the form. Please
note that the two different forms must go to different P.O. boxes at the
same processing center. Also, if you're requesting expedited service,
your application packet will need to be directed to yet another
distinct P.O. box. All addresses are listed clearly on the appropriate
forms.
Routine delivery, for which you don't have to pay any extra fees, takes between four to six weeks. If you send in all that's required now and depending on when exactly in August you're leaving for your cruise, I bet you don't need to pay to expedite your application. Expedited delivery costs an additional $60, on top of the regular passport application fees, and doesn't include overnight delivery costs. It takes between two to three weeks.
The State Department lists all of this info in detail on its website and you can find the appropriate forms to download here.
Good luck!
Got questions? Ask IT!
Routine delivery, for which you don't have to pay any extra fees, takes between four to six weeks. If you send in all that's required now and depending on when exactly in August you're leaving for your cruise, I bet you don't need to pay to expedite your application. Expedited delivery costs an additional $60, on top of the regular passport application fees, and doesn't include overnight delivery costs. It takes between two to three weeks.
The State Department lists all of this info in detail on its website and you can find the appropriate forms to download here.
Good luck!
Got questions? Ask IT!
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When I did that, all they did was type/emboss a notation with my new name on the next-to-last page of my existing passport. (This was a few months before Sept. 11, so maybe it's changed since then?)
So sometimes I get hassled at the airport until I point out the change. Though often they never even notice it's not the right name up front.
If you bring your original marriage certificate, and your passport in your madien name you'll be okay. I did this when I went to London in 2006, but I got a new one with my married name before a trip to China in 2008.
Of course, you are not obliged to change your name upon marriage. What's wrong with using your passport in your maiden name and making sure the airline ticket and everything else is also in your maiden name? When you feel like changing your name on your passport, you can do so.
It depends on where you are traveling, but in some countries if a woman does not have her husband's last name on her travel documents they may run into trouble trying to room together. I have heard of this occurring in Italy.
And when I got my name change done in 2003, they didn't charge me and they simply put the name change on the back page with an embossed stamp. I have traveled internationally several times since then and not encountered any problems.
Passport and visa expediter providing fast processing of passport applications, new passports, renewing passports, travel passports, emergency passports.
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