Changing name due to marriage in NJ after green card issued

[LanF 4]

Subject: Changing name due to marriage in NJ after green card issued

 

Hi Everyone,

 

I got married and I need to have my last name changed on my driver license as quick as possible.

 

I went to DMV in Freehold yesterday (01/04/21) to have my last name changed on my driver license. I was waiting outside in the freezing cold from 9:30am to 2:30pm and finally they called my number and let me in. 

 

I brought these following 6-point documents with me:
1. Marriage certificate showing my maiden last name N and my husband last name F
2. Driver license with my last name N
3. 10-year green card with my last name N
4. Social security card (SSC) with last name F 
5. Saving account statement with my last name N

 

This lady at the DMV called my number and asked for my documents. After I gave her, she took them and went away for 2 minutes, then came back and told me she couldn’t change my last name. She said I have to change my last name on green card first before I can change it on my driver license. 

 

My question:

CAN I CHANGE MY LAST NAME ON DRIVER LICENSE FIRST BEFORE I CHANGE IT ON MY GREEN CARD?

 

WITH A MARRIAGE CERTIFICATE, DRIVER LICENSE AND SOCIAL SECURITY CARD, SHOULD IT BE LEGALLY ENOUGH FOR ME TO HAVE MY LAST NAME CHANGED?? 

 

IS THERE ANY LEGAL SOURCE THAT I CAN USE TO REPRESENT MY CASE???

Edited January 5, 2021 by LanF

[Dashinka 23,248]

I am not familiar with NJ, but going through their DMV website, it appears that they require proof of legal presence (GC) which you do have, but it is in a different name.  You might try talking to a supervisor, but I know my wife's experience in MI was that she could not change her DL name until the GC name showed her new married name.  In our case she applied for her GC in her married name, so once she got that, she was able to update the DL.  I assume you already had your GC from another source before you got married since it is the 10yr variety, so did you file an I90 to change the name on the GC?

 

I am not sure there is an legal recourse.

 

Good Luck!

[SalishSea 16,774]

1 hour ago, LanF said:

Subject: Changing name due to marriage in NJ after green card issued

 

Hi Everyone,

 

I got married and I need to have my last name changed on my driver license as quick as possible.

 

I went to DMV in Freehold yesterday (01/04/21) to have my last name changed on my driver license. I was waiting outside in the freezing cold from 9:30am to 2:30pm and finally they called my number and let me in. 

 

I brought these following 6-point documents with me:
1. Marriage certificate showing my maiden last name N and my husband last name F
2. Driver license with my last name N
3. 10-year green card with my last name N
4. Social security card (SSC) with last name F 
5. Saving account statement with my last name N

 

This lady at the DMV called my number and asked for my documents. After I gave her, she took them and went away for 2 minutes, then came back and told me she couldn’t change my last name. She said I have to change my last name on green card first before I can change it on my driver license. 

 

My question:

CAN I CHANGE MY LAST NAME ON DRIVER LICENSE FIRST BEFORE I CHANGE IT ON MY GREEN CARD?

 

WITH A MARRIAGE CERTIFICATE, DRIVER LICENSE AND SOCIAL SECURITY CARD, SHOULD IT BE LEGALLY ENOUGH FOR ME TO HAVE MY LAST NAME CHANGED?? 

 

IS THERE ANY LEGAL SOURCE THAT I CAN USE TO REPRESENT MY CASE???

"Represent your case"?  Like a lawyer?  The state DMV can specify which forms of ID are required for a name change on the documents they issue.  If that is their rule, no lawyer can force them to make an exception for you.

[Ed&Midori1031 330]

2 hours ago, LanF said:

Subject: Changing name due to marriage in NJ after green card issued

 

Hi Everyone,

 

I got married and I need to have my last name changed on my driver license as quick as possible.

 

I went to DMV in Freehold yesterday (01/04/21) to have my last name changed on my driver license. I was waiting outside in the freezing cold from 9:30am to 2:30pm and finally they called my number and let me in. 

 

I brought these following 6-point documents with me:
1. Marriage certificate showing my maiden last name N and my husband last name F
2. Driver license with my last name N
3. 10-year green card with my last name N
4. Social security card (SSC) with last name F 
5. Saving account statement with my last name N

 

This lady at the DMV called my number and asked for my documents. After I gave her, she took them and went away for 2 minutes, then came back and told me she couldn’t change my last name. She said I have to change my last name on green card first before I can change it on my driver license. 

 

My question:

CAN I CHANGE MY LAST NAME ON DRIVER LICENSE FIRST BEFORE I CHANGE IT ON MY GREEN CARD?

 

WITH A MARRIAGE CERTIFICATE, DRIVER LICENSE AND SOCIAL SECURITY CARD, SHOULD IT BE LEGALLY ENOUGH FOR ME TO HAVE MY LAST NAME CHANGED?? 

 

IS THERE ANY LEGAL SOURCE THAT I CAN USE TO REPRESENT MY CASE???

Did you receive the GC after going through the K1 route or the CR1 route?  Just curious. 

[Crazy Cat 39,261]

3 hours ago, LanF said:

CAN I CHANGE MY LAST NAME ON DRIVER LICENSE FIRST BEFORE I CHANGE IT ON MY GREEN CARD?

Probably not.  Depends on state law. In some states, your Green Card is the source document which even authenticates you legal presence.  I can understand why the DL might have to follow the name on the Green card.  You might try another DMV office.

[LanF 4]

2 hours ago, Dashinka said:

I am not familiar with NJ, but going through their DMV website, it appears that they require proof of legal presence (GC) which you do have, but it is in a different name.  You might try talking to a supervisor, but I know my wife's experience in MI was that she could not change her DL name until the GC name showed her new married name.  In our case she applied for her GC in her married name, so once she got that, she was able to update the DL.  I assume you already had your GC from another source before you got married since it is the 10yr variety, so did you file an I90 to change the name on the GC?

 

I am not sure there is an legal recourse.

 

Good Luck!

Thank you Dashinka for your helpful information and for sharing your specific situation. I’ll try to go to the DMV one more time and may ask to talk to a supervisor if I need to. Before I do so, I’d like to learn, research and collect as much useful information as I can to show them to convince my case. 

 

I read this following source saying most states do not require new name changed on green card first before someone can change it on DL, if I understand it correctly!? 

See it here: https://info.legalzoom.com/article/can-you-change-your-name-after-getting-green-card

 

Unfortunately, they didn’t mention the rule in NJ, which I really need to know right now.

 

I got married through K1 process. After I got married, I didn’t change my name when I applied for green card. I obviously didn’t know what i was doing at the time! :(((   

 

Now when I’m going to take a real estate exam and apply for a real estate license, I realize I have to have my name changed as nobody knows how to say my name and it’s miserable!!!

 

If I can’t change my name on my DL (I still hope it will not be the case 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻), I have to file either I-90 or N-400 (application for citizenship), which will take much longer to achieve.

 

My question:

How long did it take for your wife to receive her new GC since she filed I-90? I assume the waiting time for N-400 takes longer than I-90? I will apply for N-400 at some point but right now I desperately need a quick solution.

 

[LanF 4]

57 minutes ago, Lucky Cat said:

Probably not.  Depends on state law. In some states, your Green Card is the source document which even authenticates you legal presence.  I can understand why the DL might have to follow the name on the Green card.  You might try another DMV office.

Will try another DMV. Thanks!

[LanF 4]

1 hour ago, Ed&Midori1031 said:

Did you receive the GC after going through the K1 route or the CR1 route?  Just curious. 

I received my GC after K1 process but didn’t change my name at the time. I didn’t know what I was doing.

[Dashinka 23,248]

2 minutes ago, LanF said:

Thank you Dashinka for your helpful information and for sharing your specific situation. I’ll try to go to the DMV one more time and may ask to talk to a supervisor if I need to. Before I do so, I’d like to learn, research and collect as much useful information as I can to show them to convince my case. 

 

I read this following source saying most states do not require new name changed on green card first before someone can change it on DL, if I understand it correctly!? 

See it here: https://info.legalzoom.com/article/can-you-change-your-name-after-getting-green-card

 

Unfortunately, they didn’t mention the rule in NJ, which I really need to know right now.

 

I got married through K1 process. After I got married, I didn’t change my name when I applied for green card. I obviously didn’t know what i was doing at the time! :(((   

 

Now when I’m going to take a real estate exam and apply for a real estate license, I realize I have to have my name changed as nobody knows how to say my name and it’s miserable!!!

 

If I can’t change my name on my DL (I still hope it will not be the case 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻), I have to file either I-90 or N-400 (application for citizenship), which will take much longer to achieve.

 

My question:

How long did it take for your wife to receive her new GC since she filed I-90? I assume the waiting time for N-400 takes longer than I-90? I will apply for N-400 at some point but right now I desperately need a quick solution.

 

In my wife's case, she did not have to file the I90 as she applied for her GC during the AOS with her married name.  As to the time it takes to process an I90, the published time by USCIS is 5-12.5 months, so who knows.  As to the N400, I do expect that it would also be longer, but that is dependent on your local office as well as all the Covid stuff.  Personally, I would get the I90 filed as soon as you can, but if you want to save money, get the N400 filed (assuming you meet all the qualifications) and you can avoid the multiple fees since I think changing the GC name is $540.

 

Good Luck!

[LanF 4]

2 hours ago, Jorgedig said:

"Represent your case"?  Like a lawyer?  The state DMV can specify which forms of ID are required for a name change on the documents they issue.  If that is their rule, no lawyer can force them to make an exception for you.

I think I made you confused. I’m looking for legitimate sources to show and convince the DMV to have my name changed without having to change it on my GC first, which will take much longer to have.

[LanF 4]

6 minutes ago, Dashinka said:

In my wife's case, she did not have to file the I90 as she applied for her GC during the AOS with her married name.  As to the time it takes to process an I90, the published time by USCIS is 5-12.5 months, so who knows.  As to the N400, I do expect that it would also be longer, but that is dependent on your local office as well as all the Covid stuff.  Personally, I would get the I90 filed as soon as you can, but if you want to save money, get the N400 filed (assuming you meet all the qualifications) and you can avoid the multiple fees since I think changing the GC name is $540.

 

Good Luck!

Thank you for clearing some of the important questions that I have. 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

[Dashinka 23,248]

1 minute ago, LanF said:

Thank you for clearing some of the important questions that I have. 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

What is your local office relative to an N400 application?

[Mollie09 1,543]

I changed my name on everything except my green card, then applied for naturalization and had 0 issues. In my case though, my name change document (marriage certificate) had a date later than my green card issue date, so I presented the green card and the marriage certificate and was able to get a new DL, SSC, etc.

[LanF 4]

16 minutes ago, Mollie09 said:

I changed my name on everything except my green card, then applied for naturalization and had 0 issues. In my case though, my name change document (marriage certificate) had a date later than my green card issue date, so I presented the green card and the marriage certificate and was able to get a new DL, SSC, etc.

Which state did you file for your name change?

 

My marriage certificate was issued before my green card issued date. Is this time frame order an important consideration to DMV?

 

I went to local social security office before DMV and had no problem changing my last name. However, when I showed this lady at DMV my green card, marriage certificate and driver license, she said I had to change my name on green card first. I don’t feel I should trust her for this important matter of my life!

[Ed&Midori1031 330]

54 minutes ago, LanF said:

I received my GC after K1 process but didn’t change my name at the time. I didn’t know what I was doing.

Gotcha.  After my wife and I were married, we changed her name on her SS card ASAP.  When we applied for AOS, we obviously put her new name on the I-485 application.  Did you not do that?