Questions for Canadians

[Blndiebby25]

Hello my fellow Canadians!

Have a quick question (hopefully). My father is being a little paranoid (in my opinion). He is worried that because my name on my drivers licenses is different than my birth certificate (was married but now divored and haven't gotten around to change my name) that this is going to be a problem. I pointed out this is the same with my mother and my SIL but I guess their husbands are going with them so he is not worried.

Is this going to be a problem or am I right in thinking that my father is just being paranoid? I mean we are just going to the States not overseas or something.

As a side note, I was planning on getting a passport when I got back from this trip as I am planning on a cruise next year. Maybe I should just get one before this trip but it will just be a hassle because I want to change me name back to my maiden name before getting my passport.

 

[rmulvy]

You can get a passport in your maiden name with your birth certificate. You can call yourself whatever you want as long as you are not personating someone. I had the same thing happen a while ago and I had no problem getting new i.d. in my maiden name while some was still in my married name. We went on a US cCruise on Sept 30, 01 so security was extremely tight and I had I.D. in 2 names. Just take your marriage certificate as an extra precaution and I am sure you'll be fine.

 

[Blndiebby25]

Don't have my marriage certificate because I am now divorced. My lawyer needed the original so she could get me divorced.

Thanks for the advice though. How long did it take you to get your passport?

 

[ChisJo]

A passport can take anywhere from 1 week to 6 weeks. I had brought mine down to the passport office and had it within 1 week, but now that the states is implementing a mandatory passport for access to the US starting January 2006, they may be backlogged with applications.

I would call the immigration office and asked them what to do. I had a situation that I needed to call them for, and they were extremely helpful. They provided me with all the information that I needed as well as the places I needed to go in my province.

Just a side note - My name isn't the same on my birth certificate as it is now (mom remarried after my birth, and never changed my BC). I have never had problems with it. When you apply for a passport, it specifically asks your birth name and then your current name. I personally do not think it should be a problem, but then, I would still call immigration to ensure it.

Jo

 

[LUVCINDERELLY]

I would definately call the passport office on this one just to be sure! There are 5 of us going on our trip and between us we have 3 different last names! Just to make things easier, we all got passports done. I was even advised not to mail the ones for the kids to Ottawa, but to specifically go in to the office so I could talk to someone face-to-face and answer any questions that came up. Good thing I did, as our divorce was done in BC (I'm in Alberta) and the papers are totally different! The gal had to speak to three different people before they would accept them as legitimate!

Not sure if this applies to you or not, but if you are taking any children with you, you will need a notorized letter from their 'absent parent' that they are aware you are taking "child A to the United States on date B and will return to Canada on date C". You will need this letter whether or not you are married or divorced and have full custody or not. You may not be asked to show it, but it would sure save a lot of hassle if you were asked!

My friend ran into troubles when she went to see family in the states and DH couldn't go due to work. She literally had to call him from the airport because they wouldn't let her take the kids out of the country without confirming that he was aware of it!

Also, you can get a passport done fairly quickly if you take it to an office yourself and are prepared to pay extra for it. My dad did this a few weeks ago when a spur-of-the-moment trip came up to go to Thailand! From the time he took his application in to the time he had it in his hands was 4 days...but it did cost him extra $$!

Hope this helps somewhat!

 

[disneychrista]

I would get a Passport. I have heard that starting in the future us Americans will even need a Passport to enter Canada or Mexico, so I am guessing the opposite might also be true. Meaning Canadians and Mexicans would need one to enter the US.

 

[PrincessSitka]

Are you driving?
I came back through Canada they asked me for my passport. I didnt have one I had Birth cer. drivers lic. I had no problems but yes they are getting stricker going through custom. I came through Canada to Alaska. My birth cer had my maiden name on it and drivers lic has married name on it. They took that

 

[Blndiebby25]

I ended up calling US Customs, they said that as long as I have my divorce decree it shouldn't be a problem that my name on my driver's license is different than the one on my birth certificate. Since this is fine for this trip I am not going to worry about getting a passport at the moment. When I get back from Disneyland I will change over my name on my id back to my maiden name and get a passport for my cruise next year.

Thanks everyone for your comments and advice!