Passport name change?

[sudomaster]

I'm relatively new here... I am a Canadian (living in Canada) and my wife is in the Philippines. We are starting the immigration process soon - just getting all the forms and backup documentation together. We have a question, though, that I'm hoping someone here can answer:

Is there any requirement for my wife to have her passport changed to reflect her new married name before submitting the documents for processing?

There is currently about a two-month waiting period in the Philippines just to get an appointment at DFA to see about renewing her passport and, if it's not required, it seems like a waste of time...

Any help would be appreciated! In addition, if there is anyone out there who has in the same situation (Canadian with wife/husband in the Philippines), who has gone through or is going through the spousal sponsorship process AND has some advice, we'd love to hear from you!

 

[Rinnerz]

Is there any requirement for my wife to have her passport changed to reflect her new married name before submitting the documents for processing?

Nope, no requirement whatsoever. Plenty of people get married but don't take on their spouse's name; it won't matter. Just realize that if she changes her mind and wants to change it later, it's best to wait until after the entire PR process is finished (i.e. she has her PR card and is done), because changing it mid-process can cause delays and mix-ups.

In addition, if there is anyone out there who has in the same situation (Canadian with wife/husband in the Philippines), who has gone through or is going through the spousal sponsorship process AND has some advice, we'd love to hear from you!

You might also want to take a peek into the official "SPOUSE / FAMILY CLASS timeline MANILA Visa Office PHILIPPINES" thread on here. It looks like a lot of the posts aren't in English, but there are probably a lot of members in that thread who can give you some insight into their experiences with the Manila visa office.

 

[melouttamegacity]

So how about the other way around? I'm the soon-to-be wife who lives in Canada, and my husband is abroad. My passport will be expiring after 6 months into our marriage, so I will have to renew. Should I put my husband's last name on it or my maiden name? I'm wondering if I should legally change my last name altogether or just assume my husband's last name. Honestly, I think it will be a big hassle to legally change everything so I don't want to do it. I'm lazy. But if it would help the immigration process, maybe I should just suck it up and do it.

 

[cdngrl]

@melouttamegacity - there's no requirement for you to change your name to your soon to be hubby's... it will not affect the immigration process in anyway. Just make sure that your name is consistent on all the documents you submit.

Good Luck!

 

[CharlieD10]

So how about the other way around? I'm the soon-to-be wife who lives in Canada, and my husband is abroad. My passport will be expiring after 6 months into our marriage, so I will have to renew. Should I put my husband's last name on it or my maiden name? I'm wondering if I should legally change my last name altogether or just assume my husband's last name. Honestly, I think it will be a big hassle to legally change everything so I don't want to do it. I'm lazy. But if it would help the immigration process, maybe I should just suck it up and do it.

There isn't a requirement to legally change your name when you're married. You "assume" your husband's last name, by presenting to whomever the proof of your marriage. To change my name with the tax and passport authorities, I simply presented my old tax registration and passport, filled out the required forms, submitted them along with my marriage solution and voila, my last name changes to his. Legally changing your last name means you get a new birth certificate with everything else. My birth certificate remains as is.