# Dual Citizenship



## dallasteacher (Dec 29, 2013)

I have a question about dual citizenship and different names. My husband had his name changed during the naturalization process. He decided to go with a much shorter name instead of the super long one he was given at birth. 

His Mexican passport has his given name. Does he need to change this or can he keep one name there and use his other name here? 

Is a legal name change possible in Mexico with out much hassle? 

He did the name change to make things easier on him here. Most financial institutions or any place to be honest, would slaughter his name. They would either leave out the second part of his first name or randomly choose a last name to use. It was just turning into a big head for everyone involved. 

Now we are worried about him having two passports with different names and living in Mexico. Has anyone had experience with this?

Thanks!


----------



## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

dallasteacher said:


> I have a question about dual citizenship and different names. My husband had his name changed during the naturalization process. He decided to go with a much shorter name instead of the super long one he was given at birth.
> 
> His Mexican passport has his given name. Does he need to change this or can he keep one name there and use his other name here?
> 
> ...


I don't have personal experience with this problem (all my life I have had the same two-part name), but I have heard that Mexican government bureaucrats have given people who have different names on different pieces of official paper lots of trouble.


----------



## TundraGreen (Jul 15, 2010)

Isla Verde said:


> I don't have personal experience with this problem (all my life I have had the same two-part name), but I have heard that Mexican government bureaucrats have given people who have different names on different pieces of official paper lots of trouble.


I have been told the same thing. When I moved to Mexico, it was suggested that I pick one version of my name and use it consistently for everything. So I use my middle name here which I almost never did in the US. But it is on my passport, so I use it on visas, for IMSS, etc.

I would think it would not be a problem if the name was different in the different countries since there is not a lot (no?) overlap between the bureaucracies. If you are a non-citizen in one of the countries, both will look at the passport. But if you have dual citizenship and two passports, where is the overlap.

I also use my middle name because people and forms here expect you to have four names. Having only three is kind of weird, but having only two would really be beyond the pale.


----------



## Hound Dog (Jan 18, 2009)

Name variance can be a problem in Mexico and probably a lot of other places around the globe . For instance, my wife´s name in her native France is a four part name that was modified when she married me in Alabama in the 1970s by adding my last name with the term "epouse" under French law and then my last name which indicated that she was married to me. The term "ep", meaning "epouse" becomes "de" in Mexico and the terminology means nothing in the United States where she simply adopted my last name upon having married me. This can become a complex problem in Mexico, especially for foreign women. This is often simply a minor problem for males in Mexico but I wouldn´t fool around with it if I were you or your husband, however, it sounds as if the decisión has been made and I wish you luck.


----------



## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

TundraGreen said:


> I also use my middle name because people and forms here expect you to have four names. Having only three is kind of weird, but having only two would really be beyond the pale.


Though in the past, I was often asked for my second last name (segundo apellido) when doing things like opening a bank account and applying for a residence visa, in recent years it hasn't been a problem just using my two-word name: first name and family name. That's how I'm identified on my INAPAM card. For the record, I don't have a middle name.


----------



## emilybcruz (Oct 29, 2013)

I have a friend who's family changed the spelling of their name sometime during WWII to protect themselves. When she was in high school she became very passionate about her lineage and legally changed her name back to the original spelling as a way to honor her family. She has had serious issues in Mexico because the spelling on her birth certificate does not match the rest of her documents. 

Immigration is dealt with by INM while citizenship is actually dealt with through an entirely different government organization, SRE. SRE passed a law years ago that your name needs to match the name on your birth certificate in order for you to become a Mexican citizen.

It makes no sense at all to me, but because of this law, she isn't able to become a citizen unless she is willing to change her name back to spelling on her birth certificate. Which she's not. So she has Residente Permanente status.


----------



## citlali (Mar 4, 2013)

II will get you back with the name of the paper you need but I spoke to a notary about having 3 different names and was told it was no problem and that I need to bring a list of all my names, bring 2 witnesses who will attest that I am the same person and the notary will notorize an attestation that those are all my legal names..

Legally you do not have two last names in Mexico. This ws confirmed to me by a notario and the SRE. I am a nturalized citizen with one last name only.


----------



## citlali (Mar 4, 2013)

By the way my two passports do not have the same name but it is not a problem as I cannot use my French passport in Mexico or my Mexican passport in France.
It is illegal to claim dual citizenship in Mexico if you are naturalized. I had to sign a paper renouncing my French citizenship while in Mexico so having two passports and two different names is not an issue.


----------



## citlali (Mar 4, 2013)

Tundragreen
I have two first names but Mexico does not recognize hyphens in names so I have 3 first names and one last name and it is not a problem . Think about it kids who have no recognized father do not have two names, I just dropped my mother´s name but that is not an issue.


----------



## PanamaJack (Apr 1, 2013)

dallasteacher said:


> I have a question about dual citizenship and different names. My husband had his name changed during the naturalization process. He decided to go with a much shorter name instead of the super long one he was given at birth.
> 
> His Mexican passport has his given name. Does he need to change this or can he keep one name there and use his other name here?
> 
> ...


There is no problem whatsoever. I am a dual citizen born in the U.S. but moved to Mexico at the age of 10. In my U.S. passport I use my first, middle and last name as everyone does. In my Mexican passport I have my first, middle and last name as well as my mother's maiden name. Two differnt names two different passports BUT no overlap. When I leave Mexico I exit with my Mexican passport and when I enter the U.S. I enter with my U.S. Passport. Both countries do not know I am a citizen of both countries, nor do they have to. My children are exactly the same. They were born here in Mexico and registered in the U.S. Embassy and only have their first, middle and last name on the U.S. passport and the four names in their Mexican passport. When I am in Mexico I NEVER use my U.S. Passport unless I go to the embassy and likewise when I visit the U.S. I never have a need for my Mexicon passport. I would not worry one bit about the different names. My father was a career diplomat for the U.S. and I think he would have been concerned for his children if he thought we were doing something out of the ordinary.


----------



## dallasteacher (Dec 29, 2013)

Thanks for all the replies. I was just concerned with the passport issue, but you are right he would never have to show them both. In the U.S.A they make it hard for people with super long names. My husband has a two part first name and they could never get it right. The second part always became his middle name, which is not his middle name. 

I just wanted to make sure we didn't have to change his name in Mexico. I don't really want to deal with that headache. 

We changed his name without thinking of the Mexican consequences. (He is the Mexican citizen). I know we won't have any problems with my name. When I was living in Querétaro and had to give my name they always expected more to come. I only have a first name and a last name nothing more. After, I would tell them that was my whole name they were fine with it. 

I would assume they are getting use to shorter names. I wish the USA would get use to longer names. 

After I got married and tried to change my name they made a big deal about the two last names. They said I had to take either both fraternal and maternal last names or just the fraternal last name. I didn't want to do either so I kept my last name, at least for now.


----------

