SelfTitled

I just took a closer look.  Right before we submitted it, we caught some mistakes and reprinted two or three pages.  Those pages, including the first page, I accidentally printed from the old form.  The rest are current.  If they accepted it, hopefully I'm good...?

Forgive me if this answer exists somewhere else.  I could not find it.  I just discovered that the I-751 my wife and I submitted in February is the old expired form (expired November 2017).  I don't know how we overlooked this, but it's done now.  I called USCIS, who said it will be denied, and I can just submit the correct one after that.  We have already received the NOA.  Does anyone have any experience with this?  Is it as simple as they say?

20 minutes ago, dahlia0811 said:

I had my Greencard on Dec.2015 with my First Name, Maiden Name and Husband Last Name.  Until now I did not change my name in my SSN card yet which I'm not sure what will happen.

 

I guess it depends which State you are in.  It is really a big issue for us Filipinos.  I reported my married to the Philippine Embassy in San Francsico with my First Name, Last Name, and Husband Name so there's already discrepancy there.  And I still have my passport in my Single Name and Last  Name which will expires on August 2018.  While my Citizenship need to be filed on October 2018.  So there's a lot of confusion on my side too.  So i just decided to dismiss the idea of changing my name at the moment until I get my Citizenship card and I was told you can change your name for FREE and however you want it.

 

I'm just hoping, we could here from our fellow Filipinas who had the same experience.

 

Sorry I am not a big help right now.

Cheers,

 

 

 

For what it's worth, the SS card is the one area where we did run into some problems, but only because we applied for it before the AOS went through.  The first card we were issued was in the form of "First1 First2 MiddleInitial Maiden Last."  Convoluted and, well, wrong.  Also, the first card had restrictions because she was not yet eligible to work. Once we received the green card, we were able to get it corrected and restrictions removed.  However, it took six months for the change to go through and for the new card to be issued.  I suspect this has to do with the unusual name on the first SS card, which did not exist in any other documentation.  Because yours is a more "normal" name change due to marriage, I would hope that it would be quicker.  I'm glad it sounds like the Green Card came out correctly.  Since your Green Card has the correct name format, along with the marriage certificate, you should have what you need for SS.  For the RoM, I think you are in good shape.  They request maiden name and husband's name, then use that information to register your married name in the correct format with Manila.  In which case, if you decide to renew your passport, just make sure you thoroughly read the requirements for your consulate.  We had no problems, but there were other couples at Consular Services at the same time who did not have the required paperwork, and they were not happy!

28 minutes ago, jereza said:

When I sent my application for aos last month, I used the same way as what we do in the Phils, that is, first name, middle name (maiden name), last name of husband. When I did my biometrics yesterday in Tennessee, they told me I couldn't use my maiden name as my middle name. Instead, I should retain my old middle name (mother's maiden name) coz that's how it is in the US. They said I could change it to whatever I want to whenever I become a USC.  I'm so confused right now coz I already have my SSN and it uses my maiden name as my middle name. And I have to renew my PH passport next yr. Anyone who's having the same dilemna? Thanks guys

I'm confused, too.  What part of Tennessee are you in?  We are in Nashville, and had no problems.  As long as the first name doesn't change, you should be able to change the middle name as normal.  We had no issues following that method, including updating her passport several months ago.

On a side note, as far as "that's how do things in the US:" that line is total nonsense, and someone up the USCIS chain of command really needs to start calling these people out.  Basically, they're saying, "That's how my family does things."  I know PLENTY of non-Fiilipino, non-Latino Americans who changed their middle name to their maiden name upon marriage.  It's really not that uncommon.  I don't know if there is the option to appeal that decision at all.  If there is, I would ask around before you do.  I think odds are pretty good there are some Americans in your circle of friends or acquaintances you can cite as evidence.  Regardless, if that's how you submitted it on your paperwork, that should be what they use.  If there is any doubt, I would call USCIS to follow up.  I'll bet they can straighten it out.

On 12/13/2016 at 3:33 PM, Jessica V.A. said:

Hi there. What happened to your AOS application? I'm from the Ph and will file my AOS soon and now facing the middle name issue.

We ended up going with the normal Philippines naming convention.  We had no problems.

Any feedback on whether or not using the Phillippine naming convention for married names is causing issues with AoS?

In California, you're legally allowed to specify the Phillippine-style name on the Marriage License with no problem.

Really stressed about this now.

I don't think I ever updated here, but we were able to complete the AoS without any issues using the Philippines naming convention. After all the stress, that process ended up going very smoothly. This may still vary state-to-state. My understanding is that Tennessee allows changing the middle name upon marriage, but some states may not. I do not know if this has any bearing on acceptability of the name.

Hi,

I just encountered the same problem today, the IO will follow US rules or law and she said I have to go to the court to have it name change. I understand how the US law however, as you said this cannot be applied to Philippine documents.

I have to wait for my Green card and go to the court. I rather deal with this problem here rather than deal it in the Philippines as it will cause a lot of money there and time.

Thank you for your input….. it is very helpful and clear. I can't even sleep as I want have this settled for my peace of mind.

Cheers!

This is the part I'm worried most about. My understanding is that there is no "US law" governing name changes, and that the law varies from state to state and sometimes county to county. The whole "this isn't how we do things in the US" statement is total nonsense, since I have five American friends just off the top of my head who did exactly that when they got married. Currently, we filed using the naming convention of taking the maiden name as the new "middle" name. Does anyone have any experience or suggestions for politely calling out our IO if he says something along the lines of what Dahlia experienced?

One thing this thread introduced me to is the Filipino "Report of Marriage Abroad." Neither I nor my wife had heard of this form previously, and I believe it allows the Philippines to log the name change on their end. Does anyone know if filing that would provide USCIS what they would need for that name change, if the above situation occurs?

And also in Philippines government, a married woman who used her husband's last name, should use her last name when she was single as her maiden name..

Yeah, was wondering about this, too. Is that the only naming convention they'll accept if we need to update her passport following a name change?

I was smiling when I was reading this. My husband wants to do the same with my name. Split my two first names to be my first and middle name. Honestly, I don't know how to take out the middle name completely but what I know (VJ members, correct me if I am wrong). She can only make her second name her middle name once she is a USC (or applying to be a USC). Then if she has to be a dual citizen, her name on her passports will not be the same and has to be supported by a document saying they are the same person.

That's probably what we'll have to do...wait until naturalization to get everything the way she would like it. Out of curiosity, what are you doing in the meantime? Are you making any changes, or just keeping your maiden name until naturalization?

My apologies if this has been covered before. I've been searching for an hour, and haven't seen another situation quite like this one.

My wife is applying for AoS after arriving under a K1 visa, getting married, etc. She is Filipina, and has a name that follows Filipino traditions: two first names, a "middle name" that is her mother's maiden name, then her last name (now maiden name). What we WANT to do is change the last name to mine, which I understand should not be an issue, but then completely eliminate the middle name so she only has three names. In other words, for example, going from Mary Ann Samuel Maiden to Mary Ann Terwilliger, creating a blank space on the forms under "middle name." I have seen other posts that say if she wants to change her middle name to her maiden name, she is probably fine, but nothing about completely eliminating her middle name. Does anyone know if this is allowable? We'll also be filing I-765 at the same time, and I'm worried that someone there will get confused, since the blanks are less defined.

Ideally, we would split her first name into "first" and "middle," but my understanding is that USCIS will not allow that without going through much more involved name change procedures than our state will allow at this point.

Thanks in advance!

- David

Thank you, Hank! That's disappointing to hear about the assets, but very useful information nevertheless. Do you have a recommendation as far as which number I can put in the income line on the I-134? Am I stuck with that $13K (1040 line 22) number, or can I boost it based off the other documents?

Hi everyone. Long time listener, first time caller.

As you can guess from the topic, we're nearing the final stage of our K1 visa application process, and I (the sponsor) am self-employed. I've seen a number of people state that, for income, line 22 of the Form 1040 is used. I'm wondering: is this a hard and fast rule? It's not mentioned anywhere in the I-134 instructions, and it could greatly affect our case.

A little background: last year was my first year as full-time self-employed. As such, my line 22 shows a little over $13K, well below the needed threshold (just shy of $20K). However, I have 1099s from last year that add up to very close to the needed amount (within a couple hundred), close enough that, with my assets (almost $25K in cash and easy-to-liquidate stock/mutual fund investments), I believe I might be fine. I could provide bank statements that show that I'm more than on pace to exceed the income the threshold for this year, but I realize that "on pace" is no guarantee. Previous tax returns show plenty of income, but largely from a job I left to pursue my own business. I also currently live with my brother in a house we co-own, and he would have no problem proving the level of income needed. He has agreed to fill out an additional I-134 for joint sponsorship. Unfortunately, we have to go through one of the toughest embassies to prove finances: Manila. What really sucks is that she works for an American-based company who has a guaranteed job for her once she's able, so with everything considered, there's near-zero chance of her becoming a public charge, but I know they won't take that into consideration.

So, in short, three questions:

1. Could I show income based off my 1099s (which is also the amount stated at the top of the Schedule C), or would they look at line 22 and consider my entry fraud?

2. If I put line 22, would my assets carry me?

3. If none of the above, I know cosponsors are very difficult, but from what I've read, I'm in one of the better situations here. Do I have a chance with this, if all else fails?

Thanks in advance!