Social Security Name Change - QUICKLY!

TigerGirl : EASY PEASEY!  I finally went yesterday to change my name, and was literally in and out in under 10 minutes!  WHY oh WHY was I putting this off?  =)

Steps for Quick Service:

1) Make sure to go during "off" hours - I would suggest staying away from 11:00AM - 1:00PM - I went at 2:00pm.

2) Bring all the required documents - Photo ID, Marriage Certificate, and old Social Security Card.  They will keep your old card, but give you a reciept saying that you have ordered a new one.  Bring this form with you.  They said this was my huge time saver. 

3) Make sure when you use the self check-in to use the right option.  Here it is was option 2, "Get a replacement card (including name change)" then it spits out your ticket number.

I barely had enough time to scan the cover of a magazine before they called my number, and then I was only with the person (are they agents? tellers?) for a brief moment.  Name changes, since they are so quick, seemed to get bumped to the front of the line, since there were other people waiting, and I got called right away.  HTH's ladies!

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MountainBride: Once you get called up it's a 10 minute process as long as you have your paperwork filled out.

If you are in a busy city, go on a Tuesday or Wednesday. . .or consider travelling a bit to a smaller suburb location.  That will also cut down on some of the wait - I live in a suburb of Denver and waited about 20 minutes to get called up.  If I had gone into Denver who knows how long the wait might have been!

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meanyprice: When I went, there was no option to pick...only if you have an appt or don't.  If you don't, you get a number.  I couldn't wait as long as it was going to take (I would guess about 4 hours judging by the number of people and how slowly they were calling numbers) so I left.  I still haven't done mine yet.  I think this varies a lot by area.

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Yosemitebride: Here is the biggest tip I can give you...if you live in a large metro area, see if you can do the name change in an outlying area. For some people this is not feasible. But I am on my honeymoon in Tuolumne County (I live in L.A. County), and I did all my name change stuff up here. The county clerk's office let me bring in my signed and witnessed marriage license myself, so the Monday after the wedding that's what I did. I got my certified copy in about 10 minutes. Then I drove up the road to Social Security, and I was thru SS in another 10 minutes. A short drive to the DMV, and I was done (with no appointment) in about a half hour. I even went to the bank, to change my bank accounts and bank credit card, and did this in another 15-20 minutes. I know that in L.A. I would have spent many, many long hours accomplishing all of this.