Passport question

emweaver

Hi,

We're hoping to travel to France end of March but I just realised my passport is in maiden name. Ive been maried 5 years but my passport has never been used so it didnt occur to me to change it.

Does anyone know if I can travel to France with this passport or will I need a new one?

I read on the passport service site some countries allow you to providing you take your marriage certificate with you but wasnt sure if France was one of these countries?

AngelaOU

Isn't it about time you get a new one anyways (being that it's 5+ years old)?

moonrakerz

It doesn't really matter. If your passport says you are Miss Smith rather than Mrs Jones, then you are Miss Smith !

Just make sure that any tickets you buy are in your maiden name.

Nordictat2

moonrakerz wrote: »

It doesn't really matter. If your passport says you are Miss Smith rather than Mrs Jones, then you are Miss Smith !

Just make sure that any tickets you buy are in your maiden name.

No true! Atleast with me. I got married some yrs ago and I didn't change my passport til last yrs actually. It avoids quite a few problems like IF you get stopped by customs they can ask you..if you are married how come you don't have your husbands's name and all that other B.S!
When i went to renew my pass as it was getting close to exp. they told me I NEEDED to have my married name on there and they also said it would avoid future problems.

BernadetteN

Nordictat2 wrote: »

No true! Atleast with me. I got married some yrs ago and I didn't change my passport til last yrs actually. It avoids quite a few problems like IF you get stopped by customs they can ask you..if you are married how come you don't have your husbands's name and all that other B.S!
When i went to renew my pass as it was getting close to exp. they told me I NEEDED to have my married name on there and they also said it would avoid future problems.

What!

I spend my life looking at passports. In 14 years neither I nor any of my colleagues have ever asked someone who is married why they did not change the name on their passport. It's an intrusive question and if someone asked me, without reason like travel docs in a different name, I would hit the roof. If I asked that question, without reason, in my job and someone made an official complaint, I would expect quite a ticking off.

It's only essential to have passports and tickets in the same name, be it a maiden name or married name.

I would just like to point out that use British are in a minority in the world in that the majority of women change names when married and it is becoming increasingly common for married women in the UK to keep their maiden name or use maiden and married names in different circumstances - I am one of them and after 11 years of marriage and passport in maiden name and travelling to work in France several times a week, not once has anyone asked why my passport does not contain my husband's surname.

PS Married French females rarely change their surname -instead it is usual to have it marked "spouse of husband's surname" after their surname in their passports - therefore it is highly unlikely that anyone in France would ask you why you have a different surname in your passport.

impy78

Thanks for that.

I can't afford to change my passport again, and my mate is getting married in Belgium, so it's either change the passport, or go to her wedding!!! I actually split from OH 5 years ago, just before I went to New Zealand, but I didn't change my name back until last year. I'm not divorced, I changed it by deedpoll - so does that make a difference??

nej

No need to change it at all. You can have whatever name you like. You don't need to change your name when you get married anyway!

When we travel it'll be me and my son with my surname, my wife with her maiden name (she goes by my surname, but there's no point in shelling out to change the passport), and my step-daughter has her father's surname, even though she also goes by my surname.

When they expire we'll change them to new names, but I'm not wasting the money until then. It's never been a problem before (last time we went abroad my son wasn't born so it was the 3 of us all with different names!) and I don't expect it to be now.

Just book the tickets in the names that match your passports.

emweaver

Thanks all. I was a bit worried if I got stopped and asked for ID and all my ID is in married name, Never been abroad before so this is new to me!

I cant afford to renew it especially as my husband has expired and I need to get my daughter one. Ive still 4 years left on mine anyway

emweaver

On a childs first passport, are the parents names shown on there? As on her application I put my married name

nej

emweaver wrote: »

Thanks all. I was a bit worried if I got stopped and asked for ID and all my ID is in married name, Never been abroad before so this is new to me!

I cant afford to renew it especially as my husband has expired and I need to get my daughter one. Ive still 4 years left on mine anyway

Just tell the truth. The passport was still valid so you didn't want to waste lots of money on changing it to your married name. It's not against the law that I know of!

The only issue I can think of for us is I'll probably put my wife as a driver on the car when we goto the states later in the year and her drivers license will be in one name and her passport the other. But I still don't think it'll be a problem.

emweaver

We wont be hiring any cars, were going by ferry and then to disneyland

Does anyone know if theres a helpline I can ring ? I dont want to spend £500 on a short break only not to be allowed in the country lol