USCIS won't recognize Name Change (State of MN)

[jlcro 0]

Hello everyone.

An Overview fo my case.

I am a Male(That seems to matter a lot in this case). I got to US on a fiance visa on April 30th. Got married on May 26, and filed for AOS on June 22nd. My case then was transferred to California to "Speed Up" processing on July 27th.

Now some background. When we got married my wife and I decided We were going to use my second last name as Family name. So to do that I'll have to drop my first last name. Turns out in Minnesota you can legally change your name just with your marriage license (certificate) you don't need anything else.

So we did, we both adopted my second last name as family name.

After doing that, we called the USCIS and asked how should we fill the forms and what to include, we were told to file under my new name and include the marriage certificate. We followed their instructions.

Later on we went to the DMV and changed my name on my driver's permit (driver's license now), and then we went to the social security office and changed my name there too. I didn't have trouble at all changing my name using the marriage ceritificate.

One week ago we got a call from an immigration officer from CSC, who told us she was working on our case. She told me that I needed a court order for my name change to be valid (because I'm male) and that a marriage certificate is worth nothing regarding that matter. I explained that in the State of Minnesota a marriage certificate is a legal way of changing your name if you're either a man or a woman. She said that she needed a court order and gave us a fax number to fax the court order when we had it.

So we called the court district and we were told that in MN a marriage certificate is a valid document for all kind of purposes including immigration. We talked to an immigration lawyer and his answer was that in Minnesota statutes that's a legal way of changing your name therefore a the USCIS can not ignore state laws.

Then we made an Infopass appointment ant talked to an Immigration Officer in the St. Paul Office. Her answer was the same. A marriage certificate is a valid document and a lawful way to change your name if you're male and there should be no problem. She told us to write a letter to the immigration officer explaining the statute in Minnesota and sending a copy of the statute with the letter. And she also told us that since our case was transferred from the field office to CSC that means that they reviewed the case and found everything right so they transferred the case.

Well we wrote the letter, attached the statute and faxed it to the immigration officer. Well today we got a call from the officer and she told me that that doesn't matter that a marriage certificate is not valid for her in order to move forward with our case. That she needs a court order. PERIOD.!!!!

Well at this point we don't know what to do. We called the court district and they told us that we can apply for a court order but we may not be granted a court order since my name has already been legally changed. And that one of the requirements is being a resident of the State of Minnesota for at least 6 months. Well I've been a resident for 5 months so I'll have to wait one month to apply and the process can take one month. And we're not even sure we are gonna be able to do it.

I've been trying looking at the Federal Regulations governing Name Changes and the USCIS but is really hard to find any information regarding that. Everywhere it says "Submit valid proof of your name change (such as a court order, marriage certificate)" but they don't specify what you will need if you're a man.

The only thing I found regarding name changes is about the process of naturalization and says the following:

"(1) If you present proof that you have already changed your name according to the legal requirements that apply to persons living in your State, USCIS can issue the Certificate of Naturalization with your new name. Such proof might include a marriage certificate or divorce decree showing that you changed your name when you married or divorced. It might also include some other State court order establishing that you changed your name."

That's the only document I have found that says that you can change your name according to legal requirements in your state. But that's for naturalization, I don't know if the same applies for AOS and I can't find anything.

Well if anyone has some ideas regarding my case , I'll be really thankful.

Thanks for your time, and sorry about the inconvenience of the long post.

[Saddle Bronc 124]

If you wish to apply for naturalisation, you can then do a legal name-change through USCIS.

[Darnell 8,478]

You might have some luck with a LETTER done on COURT LETTERHEAD, signed by a judge, stating WHY you don't need to file a 'legal name change' in his/her court.

Get that, fax it in - see wot happens.

Be prepared to pay an honorarium to the judge, as well.

[jlcro 0]

Thank you for your responses.

I just got off the phone with a Immigration Officer from USCIS.

Basically she told me that Immigration Officers process cases based on their previous knowledge. So if an immigration officer is not aware of the Minnesota Laws she/he wont decide according to this.

She suggested to send a letter to the officer to try to get her to understand that the law in Minnesota works in a different way. And that holding an application because of that it's not the right way to proceed.

You might have some luck with a LETTER done on COURT LETTERHEAD, signed by a judge, stating WHY you don't need to file a 'legal name change' in his/her court.

Get that, fax it in - see wot happens.

Be prepared to pay an honorarium to the judge, as well.

Thanks for your suggestion, I think it's a good way to proceed the problem is I don't know if I would be able to get such document.

[Darnell 8,478]

Thanks for your suggestion, I think it's a good way to proceed the problem is I don't know if I would be able to get such document.

Time to befriend a local judge. To start - pick a court that handles these things, locally.

Then talk with the clerk of the court, whenever the court is open, tell them what you need, specifically, bring a draft of some letter to give to the clerk.

Good Luck !

[Anh map 2,098]

I would make another InfoPass appointment and ask the officer (hopefully the same that you spoke with before) to contact the adjudicating officer at CSC to clarify/verify the legality of the name change. That might make the trip to the judge unnecessary.

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

It sounds like the IO isn't familiar with Minnesota law. I'm surprised an IO in California would do this, since California would have also allowed this.

In addition to the marriage certificate and copy of the Minnesota statute, try including copies of the new drivers license and Social Security card to prove that other agencies in both the state and federal governments have recognized the name change as being valid and legal.

[VanessaTony 3,567]

does your marriage certificate list your name before and after marriage like this: http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/217995-name-change-after-filing-for-aos-ead-ap/page__view__findpost__p__3822559 if so then they should accept it.

If not, what does yours look like?

I would respond with the lawyers letter, and I would ask to speak to her supervisor because if it's your State law then they need to accept it.

[payxibka 10,044]

does your marriage certificate list your name before and after marriage like this: http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/217995-name-change-after-filing-for-aos-ead-ap/page__view__findpost__p__3822559 if so then they should accept it.

If not, what does yours look like?

I would respond with the lawyers letter, and I would ask to speak to her supervisor because if it's your State law then they need to accept it.

MN marriage certificate has the before and after names for both parties to the marriage listed on it...

[Noel194 53]

This sound like an excellent chance for a US Senator from the Great State of MN to serve their public. Perhaps a call from that office would help.

[J.Ro 1]

jlcro,

My husband and I are in Minnesota and we had the same problem; we gave up trying to use his new name (for now).

Like most Latinos, my husband has a two part last name, which leads to no end of confusion. So when we got married, he dropped his 2nd last name. Our marriage certificate shows his old name and his new name. So he got a his learner's driving permit with his new name, our daughter's birth certificate listed his new name, and we filed 2008 taxes with his new name. We notified USCIS of his name change in writing, with supporting documents, when we adjusted status AND at biometrics. Nonetheless, his GC arrived bearing his old, 2 part name. At that point he was obliged to go back to using his 2 part last name. A person's name in the federal government system seems to trump their name in the state government system, the people at the driver's license said as much. So now his permanent driver's license lists his old name, our son's birth certificate lists his old name, and we filed 2009 taxes with his old name.

I was worried that his multiple names on various documents would lead to problems with Lifting of Conditions, but it didn't. We included all the documents and a cover letter explaining why they show 2 different names. His permanent GC arrived in the mail last week, less than 3 months after we filed to lift conditions, no interview required.

At this point, we hope to try and change his name again during the Naturalization paperwork. I understand this is possible but I don't know the details.

My suggestion would be to just go back to using your original 2 part last name. It's just not worth the trouble you're going through, and (for us anyway) doesn't seem to hinder the process. You can change it at Naturalization.

Let us know what you decide!

J.Ro

[VanessaTony 3,567]

MN marriage certificate has the before and after names for both parties to the marriage listed on it...

Well in that case that's just bull... Wow. I mean it's not rocket science, it says it right there... geez :S

[jlcro 0]

Well so far thanks everyone for your suggestions.

J. Ro. Thank you for sharing your case. I understand that even with the name change your case went throught the AOS part without any problem?

The problem is that my case is stuck there, and the officer wont recognize the marriage certificate as a "valid" document for name change. In which case I was told, either I'll have to get a court order (which is really hard right now) or cancel my application and file everything again with my old name.

I've talked since with a couple of immigration officers from USCIS, they recognized they've dealt with cases like this before, and certainly a marriage certificate is a valid document and I should not be having to deal with this problem. Lately I was told again the only thing I could do is get the Officer to recognize how the law in Minnesota works.

On my last call to the officer she asked Why did I change my name? Because she believed that a man shouldn't change his name under any circumstances. I felt tempted to tell her to try and fill a government form with two last names.

I also went to the court district to find out if i could get a court order, and they said that i could apply for one but since my name has already been legally changed the Judge may not grant me a court order.

Well the next steps on this adventure are: Going to another InfoPass appointment and try to get some sort of letter or communication from them acknowledging that my name change is totally legal and valid for immigration purposes, and fax that to the officer.

And contacting a MN congressman/woman and let them know about my case.

On the last call from our officer we got her to give us her direct phone number. I've been tempted to call her and ask to speak to her supervisor, but I don't know if that would be appropriate.

What do you think of that guys?

[J.Ro 1]

jlcro,

I'm not 100% certain, but I think my husband and I used his original, 2 part name on the AOS paperwork, since that was the name on his visa. But we definitely included a letter explaining that his name had in fact been changed and to please change it in the USCIS system. They ignored that request but he got his GC (with his original name) with no red flags or obvious delays.

Obviously this situation happens all the time for women; I don't see why it would be any different for men.

It sounds like you were following instructions given to you in using your new name in AOS filing. What you're going through is absurd, but I guess we all know the USCIS does not operate logically. I would say just re-file, EXCEPT for the issue of the filing fee ... if you cancel your original AOS application, is the fee cancelled as well? If not, can you get the fee waived if you re-file?

I don't know how much trouble it would be to try and contact a congressperson, but after what you've been through already, it couldn't hurt to give that a try.

J.Ro

[Nik+Heather 121]

I think my husband and I used his original, 2 part name on the AOS paperwork

Well, that explains why the GC came in that way. They use the name on the I-485.

My personal opinion is that you shouldn't deal with this officer on your own any more. You don't know anything about them or their personality, and I would be afraid that if you continue to challenge her, she might just deny you out of spite.

I would get into contact with both of your senators and your congressperson's offices and talk to their immigration liaison - chat with them all about your situation, and try to get a feel for how helpful/knowledgeable they are, then select one and do the privacy paperwork and write a letter formally requesting that they look into the matter for you. You may suggest that a more favorable solution would be to request that the file be transferred back to the MN field office and volunteer for the interview. Yes, it's more hassle, but then you'd be dealing with someone like the person who did your infopass, a local who is familiar with your marriage certificate and state name change laws.

Edited September 29, 2010 by Nik+Heather