theneriea

Thank you so much, this clears it all up for me. All my names match all that. I'm relieved that the AKA field doesn't apply based on what you've said. Have a good one!

Hi, CR1 applicant here and recently changed my name on my passport. I am in the process of obtaining my interview requirements. Since my NBI Clearance expired I obtained a new one a couple of hours ago and came across issues. According to the embassy's explicit instructions, we're to add our maiden name in the AKA field. I filled in the AKA field except with my new MARRIED name since my maiden name was what I registered with. But when I was at the NBI branch, the official rejected and removed my married name from the AKA field since I didn't have proof that it was required. He also explained that since all the names on the NBI clearance already included my married name (there was a field called HUSBAND'S SURNAME that he said should suffice), it would not be an issue. I want to try again - this time I will print out the embassy's instructions and try to be more insistent and convince them to add my married name back into the AKA field. My concern is that, the instructions say to add the MAIDEN name and not implicitly the MARRIED name. I am afraid I would still be rejected because I am trying to add my MARRIED name and not my MAIDEN name. How do I convince them with the instructions above? I already called customer service at the embassy and all they said was to follow the instructions, and if NBI doesn't let you include the AKA field, to disclose that at the interview. And I had asked, wouldn't that be risking my getting rejected because of that missing field? She said yes but to disclose that to the interviewer anyway. But I am not willing to take that risk. Now, I opted to request my NBI Clearance with my original NBI account (with the maiden name) and update the information to show that I am married. It then let me add my husband's surname. However, the Family Name field still showed my Maiden name and not my New Last Name. It did have a field showing Husband's Surname which the NBI guy said should count as one of my names (also why he didn't want to add the same names to the AKA field). That is why I wanted to add my married name in the AKA field instead of the maiden name. I have noticed online that some other applicants mentioned they opted to do the opposite, which is register on the NBI site with a new account in the married name, and then add their maiden name in the AKA field. Which sounds like it would at least pass if I presented the instructions from the embassy above. I don't know if those applicants were on an old version of the online NBI application form though, because when I tried to register my new name, it would still show my maiden name as my last name and the information (before submitting a request for an appointment) would look similar to my old account with my maiden name. If this is still an option, please let me know what step by step instructions I could try. The most recent information from a comment on Reddit around 10 days ago mentioned that when they called customer service about it, they were told to update their info on their existing account so that's what I followed. It just doesn't mention what they did with the AKA field. To summarize - I'd like to know how to convince NBI to include my married name in the AKA field; and - I'd like to know whether there are other acceptable steps to follow that will lead to the embassy accepting my NBI clearance (Is skipping the AKA field an option? Should I attempt to register a new account with my new name instead, and if so, how?) I have scoured online and am not finding consistent and recent information so would appreciate hearing from recent applicants who've had their interviews this year. Thanks in advance!