Changing wife's last name to mine before or after

[freshka 0]

My wife and I got married in Korea and before we start the process we wanted to see if it was better to change her last name to mine now or after the process. Has anyone had any experience with this? I know if we wait we will need to have to wait for her SSN to be issued so we can go through the name process change but that seems like a lot more work. I also know on my son's birth certificate her maiden name is on there and I'm assuming it will be better to get that corrected when we change her last name but I don't know how much of an issue it will be if we do not.

Any advice is much appreciated thanks in advance!

[Jon and Fangfang 4]

I don't have a suggestion, but we decided to just leave my wife's name the same, and not change it long term. I don't know about Korea, but in China they don't always change last names when they get married, in fact from the people I have talked to, it is uncommon to change last names. We decided it would probably be easier to leave her last name as is and not change it. That way, all the documents, passports and everything are easily identified as her.

I hope someone else can give you advise based on experience.

Jon

[3rd 84]

If you're going to have her married name in the long term, it's best to start all that now. It'll save you a headache changing everything when you could have done it once from the beginning.

As for your son's birth certificate, it shouldn't matter if her maiden name is on there. Your marriage certificate proves her new married name and original maiden name, USCIS can put two and two together. I've also never heard of a birth certificate being changed.

[slycordinator 6]

If you put your wife's maiden name on your i-130 and the other paperwork, then from what I read she will not be able to change her name until she becomes a citizen (if she ever does so).

But if you change the name now, everything will be changed when you arrive.

But, as mentioned, it's not a big deal leaving her name the same. Koreans usually keep their name and your marriage certificate proves you all are married.

Although since Korean marriage certs have something that referenced the family relation certificate, it's a good idea to have both.

[NikLR 13,220]

If you want her green card in married name without paying $450 for it, I suggest changing her passport before interview.

[3rd 84]

If you want her green card in married name without paying $450 for it, I suggest changing her passport before interview.

My passport is still in my maiden name but I have my Green Card with my married name. I always carry a copy of my marriage certificate with me alongside my passport and Green Card. I'll get it changed eventually, but paying for it seems silly when it's only a year old.

[mallafri76 1,012]

My passport is still in my maiden name but I have my Green Card with my married name. I always carry a copy of my marriage certificate with me alongside my passport and Green Card. I'll get it changed eventually, but paying for it seems silly when it's only a year old.

That's because you adjusted status. When you do the CR/IR-1 visa, the green card will be issued according to the passport name.

OP, if your wife wants to change her last name, I suggest you do it before hand. Like NLR said, if you want to change it later, you're gonna have to pay the $450 fee to change the green card. Personally, I think it's a waste of money if you know already now that she's gonna want your name.

Edited May 3, 2016 by mallafri76