Passport maiden, Ticket married
 

Hi,
I have seen this same question posted on other forums with mixed answers. My wife and I are flying to Canada via Delta. I booked her ticket using her married name, but her passport is still under her maiden name. Since this is an international flight, the passport name needs to match the ticket name. Some forums have said a marriage certificate at check-in will suffice, others have said this will be a major issue and we need to pay Delta a fee to change the name on the ticket to her maiden name. Anyone know the answer to this?

Why can't she get a new passport? Can be done in a week or less in person.

I think I would bring my marriage certificate or license to the airport and try that.

I don't know about name change fees

There are two issues here

1 getting through TSA and CATSA....the cert will do that.

2 convincing DL to let you board...they are on the hook to bring you back from Canada if you are refused entry, do they are careful.

If the marriage cert shows your name change, you will be all set.

There is no particular fee for a name change. Name changes are not allowed, so you will have to cancel the ticket and rebook, paying the cancellation penalty and any change in fare.

Honestly, I would try to get a new passport. It is the best route and you'll at least have it for future travel.

Call Delta and explain the situation, they will document the PNR. Marriage certificate is enough (in my experience) for CBP and TSA.

This question comes up regularly. The majority opinion has been to get the names to match -- either by getting a new passport or by cancelling & buying a new ticket (name on a ticket cannot be changed).

The OP's problem is not so much the TSA, but the Delta check-in agent.

The easiest solution is simply to get the new passport. Depending on where OP lives and when the travel is, this can be done in as little as one business day (meaning that if you are flying out Monday night and live near a Passport Agency, you can physically go to the office with the forms and proof of travel and sit around while the passport is issued).

As others note, it is likely the case that the existing passport + marriage license (make sure it's the official one with the locality's seal or whatever) will most likely be good enough.

For the purposes of others. Don't do this. Book tickets under the name which will be in the passport on the date of travel. All it takes is one over-zealous airline, security or border officer in some country and you've got yourself a problem. Not worth it.

The above is the best course of action but by far most just take a copy of their marriage certificate showing the name change, along with identification showing both maiden (passport) and married names (Driver's license).

I always wonder why people do this - book a ticket in a name other than the name on the ID. Did they just not think about it earlier? Did they think they might have been able to get the passport changed but didn't? Did they think they couldn't fly under their maiden name after getting married even though the ID still showed the maiden name? Maybe being frequent flyer skews our perception, but it seems so easy to some of us!

This. With the increased security I would not take the chance. Passport and ticket have to match.
Again I can't understand why anyone would book an internal all flight with different name from PP.
if you do opt to get a new PP make sure you have proper documentation. This means something with a proper seal and generally that does not include the "certificate" you get from the preacher. Be sure your documentation is appropriate or you will waste a trip

I have to agree with this. Trying not to be hard on OP - but gee whiz.

I don't understand why women switch names on official documents after marriage anyway. It seems so much easier to keep everything in your own name and just use the married name socially if you wish or perhaps to deal with kids' schools.

Exactly.

Definitely helps when the divorce comes around. Lot less paperwork to deal with then.


But yes, people do stupid stuff when they get married and don't think things out. Booking tickets for the honeymoon is one of them.

OP, we has this issue back in May flying to Europe. Not a big deal. As noted above, call DL and ask them to put a note in the reservation and bring a copy of the marriage license and certificate and present them at check-in.

Also, when you fill out paperwork at customs and immigration when you land, use the name that matches the passport. When we landed in the UK the agent there did give us some flack because I put both names (Maiden-Married) since that was on the plane ticket rather than just her maiden name that was on the passport. Silly me and everything worked fine but a lesson learned.