Learn How To Produce A Passport Name Change   by Ben Pate

in Travel / Travel Tips    (submitted 2011-07-10)

When booking a flight, the information on all your passports must match your identification card. If you change your name because of marriage or divorce, you will have to make the adjustment on your passport and your identification. The expedited U.S. passport name change can be done through the mail, in person, or online.

To request an adjustment by mail, your American passports must be in your possession, must have been issued after your sixteenth birthday, and not be more than fifteen years old. In addition, there are a few legal documents that are needed in support of your request. Locate the address to where the documents are to be mailed.

To make the adjustment to passport documents, the correct application needs to be filled out. Check to see which application is appropriate for your situation. To request the modification you will have to provide the current travel document. If the passport is more than three months old, you must supply a new photo.

There are different applications that are used depending on how old the original travel document is. When travel documentation is older than one year, a different form is needed than if it is less than one year old. Be sure to obtain the correct form for your needs. If the travel document is under one year old, modifications are free of charge. The appropriate legal documentation in support of the change request must be supplied. This documentation includes a divorce decree, marriage certificate, or a court order.

For those who are not qualified to apply by mail, an in-person request must be made. Visit a passport acceptance facility or your local post office to make the modification in person. The same legal documentation of the name change is required when making the application in person. In addition, you will need to bring other identifying documentation.

The identifying documents include the expired travel documentation or a driver's license. In addition, take along your birth certificate, naturalization certificate, citizenship certificate, or an expired travel document as proof of your citizenship. You must also bring a current photograph of yourself and the required fee in a check or money order. You will receive the form needed to apply for the adjustment to be completed and then signed in front of an agent.

Adjustments to travel documentation can now be completed online. There are Internet agencies that have been approved by the US government to help you make the adjustment. In a little as twenty-four hours, the document can be modified and returned to the individual. With the expert third party agency it is possible to have the modification completed quickly.

About the Author

An increase is the security of airports has made it important to make certain that our identification is consistent with the information used when booking travel and our new passports. When a name is changed because of divorce or marriage, or any other reason, there are steps that need to be taken to make the modification legal. A U.S. passport name change should be completed as soon as time will allow to prevent any trouble when you travel.