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Topic: British passport question  (Read 431 times)

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British passport question
« on: November 03, 2019, 08:39:45 AM »
Hi all!
I have finally obtained British citizenship! ;D

I have a question about applying for the British passport now, though.

I have kept my American passport in my old last name as per the advice given to me here. (I planned to update the last name when the passport needed renewing.)

However, I really do not want to receive my new British passport in my old surname.
But my American passport and Certificate of Naturalisation are in the old surname. (As is the Life in the UK test certificate.)

Am I able to ask for my British passport to be issued in my current (actual) surname if I provide the wedding certificate proving the name change?

Or do I have to first obtain the British passport in the old surname and then apply for a name change?

Thanks again for all the help you guys have given through the years.


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Re: British passport question
« Reply #1 on: November 03, 2019, 10:14:05 AM »
Your names will have to match is my ubderstanding (just gone through this process myself). They need your US passport and certificate to make sure your UK passport matches the name used on your US passport. To my knowledge, i dont think just showing a marriagw certificate can chsnge this, but would be interested to see if anyone else has experienced otherwise. Ultimately, they dont want you travelling around the world with two passports that have different names as it looks dodgey

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My, how time flies....

* Married in the US and applied for first spousal visa August 2013
* Moved to the UK on said visa October 2013
* FLR(M) applied for  May 2016. Biometrics requested June 2016. Approval given July 2016.
* ILR applied for January 2019 (using priority processing). Approved February 2019.
* Citizenship applied for May  2019
* Citizenship approved on July 4th 2019
* Ceremony conducted on August 28th 2019

'Mommy, Wow! I'm a legit Brit now!'


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Re: British passport question
« Reply #2 on: November 03, 2019, 12:10:57 PM »
Don't know the answer to your question, just wanted to say congratulations!!
Dual USC/UKC living in the UK since May 2016


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Re: British passport question
« Reply #3 on: November 03, 2019, 01:14:24 PM »
Congratulations! You survived the trials and tribulations to get here and finalized.  ;D

I don't have a UK passport, but I do have a USA and an Irish one. I had changed my name a few years back in the USA, but kept using my old name professionally, so didn't get anything official changed over for a number of years. I finally changed my USA passport name about a year before moving over here, once we had decided we were going to make the move. (Had to provide the court order, no big deal.) The Irish, unfortunately, have a thing where you have to have been using the new name for a set number of years before they will allow you to change your passport to it if you are not changing your name due to marriage. So, for a couple of years I had two passports in different names. 

When applying for anything related to the UK, I had to use my Irish passport as I am here as Irish.  Once I was here and established, I was able to change my name by deed poll and have everything (all the utilities, etc.) switched over to that new name by showing the deed poll. 

Travel was interesting - leaving or entering the USA you are required to use a USA passport if you have one. So I had to always book everything related to USA travel in my USA name. I'd get on the plane USA passport, arrive in the USA on the USA passport, return leave on the USA passport, but land on the Irish one. I'm sure that's messed up someone's report somewhere, but I had no problems. I was always waiting to get pulled into a little room and grilled by ICE, but that never happened.  ;D

Anyway, changing your name by deed poll is quick, cheap, and works - at least it worked for the Irish government eventually so I would assume that having a deed poll with your new name on it might work for UK? Something to check out?
« Last Edit: November 03, 2019, 01:42:24 PM by Nan D. »


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