Middle name issue - how best to resolve for TSA Precheck / GE?
 

Hi, I could use some advice on the best way to move forward with this issues. Here are the details.

Birth Certificate and NC Real ID drivers license show my middle name.

Passport and ALL my frequent flyer accounts (+/- 1M miles over 8-9 programs) don't show my middle name.

I want to apply for TSA Precheck and possibly Global Entry but don't know what name to use. I could do it now with just my passport (no middle name) but...

My passport expires in two years, I am thinking I need to reapply vs renew to add my middle name then (or sooner?) but will I loose any of my miles or can I update the name / combine accounts?

If I do precheck now with no middle name and then reapply for a new passport with middle name in two years, I am guessing I would loose precheck and have to reapply but am worried they may then deny it. This seems like a real mess over a middle name, appreciate any thoughts or data points on personal experiences.

From what I've seen of GE members who have a middle name on passports but don't ticket with any middle name -- and don't even load any middle name into Secure Flight fields on ticketed PNRs because some ID may or may not have the middle name(s) -- I would say that PreCheck comes just fine on their boarding passes most of the time. The few exceptions at times are increasingly limited to international flights bound to the US, but that usually is not an issue over a middle name showing or not showing somewhere.

Forgive me for asking this again after 2 years (!), as this saga continues for me. (I had went to the Bowling Green location in NYC for my Global Entry renewal a few months ago, but the officer refused to update my name correctly listed in the US passport section on my TTP profile.)

Previously, you mentioned that the Secure Flight name fields should match my trusted traveler profile. When you say trusted traveler profile, are you referring to the "Account Profile" section, or the "Update Documents" section, specifically under "Passport - UNITED STATES"?

The reason I ask is because my name is correct in the Account Profile section, but it's not correct in the "Passport - UNITED STATES" document section (my middle name is combined into the First Name field). I'm wondering which part of the Trusted Traveler program section that the Secure Flight fields match to, if you know the answer! That might save me a trip to JFK airport, which is pretty far away from me (as I'm trying to resolve this for the 4th time).

FWIW: not in my experience.
I have flown several times recently with a ticket under my now legal name, not remembering when I booked it that my Nexus card (hence TT number) had my old name. I entered my TT number as usual, got Pre-Check as usual. The first three times I flew I showed my Nexus card at the TSA check *not* realizing it did not match name on ticket. No one blinked and I didn't notice. Forward a few flights months later and I realized they didn't match (to be fair: one is a double barreled name including the other). So I used my old DL that has my current name, matching my ticket, and again no problems with Pre-Check etc. I thought it was all very odd, and would like to get my current legal name on everything but it looks like I cannot for the foreseeable... I am sure you can call me just lucky, but that's at least 8 flights without any issues so far, and 6 different airports.

Amtrak is next and no worries there. :-)

I have the same problem. Sun Country and Delta have an apostrophe in my last name, but it isn't there when they print the boarding pass. TSA has an apostrophe in my last name. So when Sun and Delta get rid of the apostrophe on the boarding pass, it doesn't match with TSA. I have spent HOURS trying to get this fixed. You need to contact TSA and tell them the problem is theirs, not the airlines. They need to remove the apostrophe from your last name. I am in the process of getting it removed, but it is not easy, and it takes 45 days.

I can't believe no one at TSA understands what is going on with the apostrophe with the last name. You can never get TSA Precheck as long as TSA has an apostrophe in your last name. NEVER. The software for the boarding passes does not allow apostrophes. It is the boarding pass that gets matched to the name TSA has for you. And you cannot get TSA to understand the process.

To say it is frustrating is putting it mildly.

United will not spell my name correctly
 

I have an Irish maiden name and when I got married over 20 years ago, I hyphenated my name. (O'H***-C****) My passport and GE match my legal name. United airlines refuses to put the apostrophe or the hyphen in my profile, instead running it all together. This means that my name will not match exactly my GE. Up until my last trip, I never had an issue with this. I always got precheck. Every other airline spells my name correctly but UA refuses. Does anyone have any tips on how to proceed?

Check TSA Pre-Check Name Formatting
 

Hello everyone!

I have a NEXUS pass and I need to figure out how to get into TSA pre-check and figure out how my name is formatted there. The reason for this: I have a unique name with a long, hyphenated last name. Some years ago, I discovered that certain airlines would recognize my pre-check and certain ones wouldn't, usually due to how my name is formatted and if it matches the system, which can vary from company to company. NEXUS doesn't have my hyphens (my first name also has one), for example, but the TSA website shows that they DO accept hyphens. The problem is that I can't use my name to check the status on TSA's website directly because it doesn't match the formatting of what is in their system, and that's what I'm trying to figure out. I literally don't care how it's formatted, I just need to know what it is so that I can format my name accordingly when purchasing tickets so that my pre-check links properly to the ticket. I also do not have a UE ID since I signed up for NEXUS years ago and simply did a renewal last time. The website does not appear to use KTNs to look up records for some reason.

Has anyone else had this issue before? Thank you!

I also have a potential problem with name formatting. We were due to fly LHR-DTW-MCO, then DL changed our leg to Orlando with a 7-hour layover in DTW. I was able to change it to VS on a non-stop itinerary, much better. But when I got confirmation from VS, they had combined our first and middle names on our booking. VS told me I needed to call DL, since they originally made the booking. DL said there is no problem, as the ticket matches out passports.

Later, I found that the secure traveler info for our flight in DL's site also combined our first and middle names, although the names in our profile, containing the GE number, are correct. It's only the GE info on this specific booking that is wrong. DL had a number to call if pax names don't match the secure traveler names. That agent told me there would not be any problem.

I don't believe that - I think there might be a problem at check in, or GE will not work when we arrive, but I don't know what else I can do. We are flying on Sunday.

And in addition, I couldn't check in online with VS, and they said that I may have been "randomly" selected for additional screening. IOW, not only was my name screwed up, but my redress number did not get to VS (and I couldn't add it to their records). A few years ago, I started to get "randomly" selected about 75% of the time I flew back to the USA. I eventually applied for a redress number; TSA claimed they couldn't see any reason why I was being selected, but they said they could do something anyway, and gave me a redress number. After that, I was only "randomly" selected 25% of the time.

Hello all,

We are having a problem with TSA Pre and name matching due to a foreign passport having both maiden and married name. My long-time wife is a greencard holder and has global entry. We've traveled many times and never had issue, except she doesn't get PreCheck on international flights. The issue is that like many foreign countries, hers doesn't issue passports with married names, but only adds a 2nd line when married. Passports stay maiden names for ever. But even though the passport hence displays both married and maiden name, the mechanical scan only returns the maiden name. Gobal Entry however is as mandated on her married name, as that is what the greencard, driver license, etc has.

For domestic flights, we can just book in her married name and use greencard, global entry card or driver license as ID and for TSA.
For international flights airlines prefer a passport. We then so far used the maiden name, as not all representatives look at the 2nd line in the passport when the mechanical scan only returns the maiden name. But of course this then causes the TSA Pre to be omitted.

In the past she would just join us anyway in the TSA Pre lines and that was never an issue. But the last time we were send back and had to stand in line with our young children in the very long regular line.

Since this must affect hundreds of thousands, I'm wondering what I should do?

As I can see, there are only two options:
1) Book in her US legal name (which is the married name) anyway, and just 'fight' with any airline representatives that is being difficult. And then just use greencard/global entry card at TSA. I'm guessing in practice we should be fine, but I'm just iffy that an overzealous ticket counter representative will say silly things like "names on passport must match" and is not actually willing to look at the passport.
2) Get a separate TSA PreCheck on her maiden name and use that KTN. Is that even possible though?

I'm guessing (1) is the right way, but if others have experience with this scenario that would be great.

I was just behind a guy whose name didn't match because his friend bought him his ticket and had made the reservation for Chris instead of Christopher. The counter agent did not budge and told him he had to buy a new ticket or get the friend to re-issue it in a hurry because the flight was departing. Further, the agent could not process the new ticket purchase herself and told Chris he had to do it online. (news to me). Chris didn't have money to buy a new ticket and could not reach his friend. I then went into a different line, and I don't know how he made out. But the main point is to always be certain that all your docs have the same name. I think most of us on this forum know this, but just a reminder to tell your friends. Especially when a friend buys a ticket for you. :)

No need to “fight” with the airline, as 1 works by booking in name shown on GE card, and using GE card to deal with check-in and with TSA. If it’s for an international flight, that can still work as the passport info loaded into the record and to be used for travel need not match the name as listed initially on the ticketed booking; and that passport info can be loaded into the record to meet the international travel documentation requirement for cross-border flights. Frequent flyer program number and benefits (not) working is the main problem that my travel party members encounter in such situation where the names on US-issued ID is not a match with what the MRZ read or other scan of a foreign passport kicks up. But in the case of international travel, try to have the record pulled up by record locator and name on shown GE card before handing over the passport to the check-in agent.

Thank you!

I was not aware that the passport info does not need to match the ticket booking. I always assumed the airline check-in webpage would mandate that. I'm still a bit iffy, as airlines can get fines from European countries if they transport people without proper ID/paperwork, and hence make it their business to check passport/visa etc.. But we'll then just hand my wife's greencard and only when asked hand over the passport too. That should also already 'educate' the person at the ticket counter that her US official/legal name is the one on the greencard. And in case of questions, we can just point to the 2nd line on the passport where that same married name occurs, despite the first line and scan name are the maiden name.

Returning to the US I expect no issues, as the foreign country is used to this name mismatch, and US customs only cares about the greencard anyway.

Moderator's Note
 

For indexing and search purposes, please keep the focus of this discussion on name matching between identification documents and airline reservations/tickets for PreCheck proposes.

If you wish to discuss matching names for purposes of airline reservations, please do so in the following thread in the "Practical Travel Safety and Security Issues" thread:TWA884
Travel Safety/Security co-moderator

P.S. Yes, I am aware that the concern here is a mismatch between the name on the foreign passport and the name on the Green Card, however, for airline reservations/ticketing purposes, the procedure should be the same.

I was only referring to how to check in so as to get PreCheck and PreCheck screening for US-origin flights (domestic and international) when the passport/ID doesn’t “match” the ticket booking’s name with regard to all the relevant characters in the names and/or name order. An automatic scan of an ID by the TSA or by the airline can mean a slow down in such cases even when a PreCheck boarding pass is already in hand. But as any US-issued ID works to get PreCheck, present to the airline and/or TSA whichever ID works easiest to deal with the airline and TSA in the US for getting a PreCheck boarding pass and PreCheck screening at the TSA screening checkpoint.

There are many US-only citizens where the name on the US passports are different — or even in reverse order — than on state-issued ID and on the Social Security Admin records. [Our passport applications ask about what other names have been used by a passport applicant, even as the SSN is required on the applications too if having a SSN.]. They may pick whichever valid ID they think makes life easier for them given their priorities. In some cases the priority is what is easier with regard to PreCheck; but in others it’s to make getting the FFP benefits flow easiest. If they choose the latter, there is a greater risk of more inconvenience than if choosing the former. You’re in sort of the same boat as these US-only citizens with PreCheck name-matching issues.