The name in a Vanuatu passport: transliteration and matching other documents

The name in a Vanuatu passport: in brief

In brief: a Vanuatu passport repeats the Latin spelling of your current passport. The spelling is checked before filing across all the family’s documents: bank, visa, diplomas and translations, because any discrepancy later has to be explained at every bank and consulate.

A second passport is needed to fly, open accounts, get visas and prove identity. All these systems compare the name letter by letter. If the Vanuatu passport says Andrei, the old passport Andrey and the bank Andrej, an automated check sees three different people, and the officer at the desk or in compliance reacts by the book: asks for additional documents.

The task is solved calmly and in advance. The family chooses the reference spelling, checks documents against it, and the translator and lawyer carry the names through the whole application by this reference. How the passport itself works and its place in rankings is covered in the Vanuatu passport and its place in rankings, and the programme as a whole in Vanuatu citizenship by investment.

Where the Latin spelling of the name comes from

In brief: Vanuatu does not transliterate names afresh. The first name and surname are taken from the current passport attached to the application, and its data page becomes the reference for all other documents.

The first document of the application for the FIU check is a notarised copy of each member’s passport data page, with no translation. The spelling of names in police clearances, birth and marriage certificates, diplomas, bank documents and programme forms is checked against this page. If a translator spells the name their own way, the package is returned for correction, so translations are done strictly by the passport.

• First name and surname. Carried over from the passport exactly as they appear on the data page.
• Patronymic. Not shown separately in the passport’s Latin fields; on forms it is stated as the form requires.
• Date and place of birth. Checked as strictly as the name: the date format and the Latin name of the city must match throughout the package.

Some countries, Russia for example, issue a domestic ID written in Cyrillic, and it too goes into the application: it is translated as the second identity document for each member aged 18 or over. The name in this translation follows the passport, not the translator’s habit, otherwise one package ends up with two Latin variants.

Hence a simple rule: the Vanuatu passport will be as consistent as the name in the passport you file with. So checking the name is the first step of preparation, together with the background pre-check. The document list is covered on documents of a Vanuatu citizen.

Where the spelling is checked: airline, border, bank, consulate

In brief: the name is checked letter by letter when buying a ticket and boarding, at passport control, when opening an account and when applying for a visa. A one-letter discrepancy turns into a request for additional documents.

• Airline. The name on the ticket must match the passport the passenger flies on. A ticket for Sergey with a passport for Sergei is a reason to refuse boarding.
• Border. The border service checks the name in the passport against the visa, booking and databases.
• Bank. Compliance screens the client against lists and documents. Two passports with different spellings look like an inconsistent identity and require explanations.
• Consulate. A visa is tied to a specific passport and spelling and does not carry over to another document.
• Notary and registrar. A diploma, driving licence or property documents in another spelling require proof that it is the same person.

How banks and border services view the Vanuatu passport is covered in how banks and borders treat the passport. A single spelling removes most everyday questions before they arise.

The letters on which Cyrillic names diverge

In brief: the most variants come from the short i, yo, yu, ya, kh, shch, and the soft and hard signs. Recent passports apply the ICAO table, while old documents, visas and bank records often carry earlier variants.

• Short i. Under the ICAO table it becomes I: Andrei, Nikolai, Evgenii. Older documents have Andrey, Nikolay, Evgeniy and Evgeny.
• Yo (e with two dots). Rendered as E: Fedor, Semen. Older documents and visas have Fyodor and Semyon.
• Yu and ya. Under ICAO IU and IA: Iuliia, Natalia. Earlier variants are Yulia, Julia, Natalya.
• Kh, zh, ts. KH, ZH, TS: Khabibullin, Zhuravlev, Kuznetsov. Older documents may have H and J.
• Shch. SHCH: Shcherbakov. Earlier variants are Scherbakov and Shcherbakoff.
• Soft and hard signs. The soft sign is not rendered: Igor. The hard sign becomes IE: Podieiachev. An apostrophe in place of the sign in one document and none in another is also a discrepancy.

If a first name or surname contains even one of these letters, assume the documents already have two spellings. They are found and brought to the reference before filing, not after the passport is issued.

One spelling before filing: five steps

In brief: list all spellings, choose the reference, check banks and visas against it, do translations strictly by the reference and complete the programme forms in the same Latin spelling for the whole family.

1. List of spellings. Write out the Latin first name and surname from the current and previous passports, bank agreements and cards, valid visas, diploma, driving licence, property and company documents.
2. Reference. The current passport is the reference: its spelling will carry over to the Vanuatu passport, and the family travels on it.
3. Banks and visas. These are the points where a failure costs most. If the bank holds the client under an earlier spelling, it is notified of the new document in advance.
4. Translations. The translator receives the reference and writes names only that way. Notarisation is done after the check.
5. Programme forms. Forms are completed for each member and cross-checked against each other before going to the agent.

If the current passport itself contains an outdated spelling, the decision is made before filing: keep it as the reference and bring the other documents to it, or first obtain a new passport. When replacing a passport, some countries, Russia among them, allow the previous spelling to be kept if it is confirmed with documents such as a visa or the previous passport. Which passport to use when travelling is covered in which passport to fly on.

Name checks at each stage of the application

In brief: the spelling is checked three times: when preparing the FIU package, during translation and certification, and before the programme forms go to the agent. Each stage relies on the passport data page.

The order under the procedure is: a pre-check in 1-2 working days, the first-stage package in 3-5 working days, the FIU check up to 7 working days, personal and family documents in 1-2 weeks, translation and certification with a name check in 3-5 working days, and programme forms and a cross-check in 8-10 working days. Completed forms must be with the agent no later than 5 days before the sitting of the Commission, which meets twice a month.

The check covers more than the name. Dates, addresses, company names, employment periods and amounts must also match across all documents: letters and forms describe only what the papers confirm. This is the same discipline that keeps the processing time at roughly 2-3 months without relocating.

A discrepancy in documents: the one and the same person affidavit

In brief: if different spellings already exist and cannot be corrected quickly, a one and the same person affidavit helps: a notarised statement that the name variants belong to one person. It explains the discrepancy but does not remove it.

The affidavit lists all name variants with a link to documents: the Vanuatu passport, the other passport, a bank account, a visa. The document is signed before a notary, and for use abroad an apostille and a certified translation into the language of the country where it is presented are added. Some institutions ask for confirmation from witnesses who know the person personally.

• Bank. Presented when opening an account or updating client details.
• Consulate. Attached to a visa application if previous visas are in another spelling.
• A transaction. Shown to the registrar if ownership is registered under an earlier variant.

Each institution assesses an affidavit by its own rules, so it is kept as a back-up tool. The main route is one: bring documents to the reference before filing, and then no affidavit is needed.

Visas and travel: one name across the whole chain

In brief: for a trip one passport is chosen and the whole chain is run on it: ticket, booking, insurance, visa and passport control. Then the spelling matches everywhere, and no questions arise at the desk.

A Vanuatu passport opens 46 countries without a visa, and another 42 give a visa on arrival. For the Schengen area and the UK, Vanuatu citizens obtain a visa, and on the visa application the name is written strictly as in the passport applied with. The booking, insurance and invitation are issued in the same spelling. The list of destinations is collected in where the Vanuatu passport takes you.

• One passport per trip. You enter and leave on one document, and the ticket is bought on it.
• Visas in the old passport. A visa in a passport for Andrey does not carry over to a Vanuatu passport for Andrei: you travel on it with the old passport.
• Home country. You enter and leave your first country of citizenship on its own passport, as a Russian citizen does with Russia.

Vanuatu citizens start living in Europe through Greek residence, and the same rule applies there: names on the residence application, the property contract and bank documents follow the Vanuatu passport. Documents for both applications are prepared once.

Names of children and parents in one application

In brief: the application can include a spouse, children under 25 and parents over 50, and each has their own reference: the member’s passport. The family surname is spelled the same for everyone who bears it on their documents.

For a child under 18 the package is shorter: a passport copy, a birth certificate with a translation and a medical certificate. The birth certificate also serves as an identity document, so the Latin spelling of the child’s and parents’ names in its translation must match their passports. If the spouses have different surnames, or the child has one parent’s surname, this is shown in the certificate translation in full.

Children born after citizenship is granted acquire it by descent without a contribution. A newborn’s name is written in Latin letters from the start exactly as it will appear in their other passport, so that the Vanuatu passport and the documents of the country of birth match. Who can be included in the application is covered in Vanuatu citizenship for a family.

The cost of Vanuatu citizenship

In brief: under the DSP the turnkey total is $135,000 for one person and $185,000 for a family of four; under the CIIP fund $165,000 for a family of up to four, of which $50,000 is returned after 5 years. Beyond the contribution, the only payment to the state is the FIU fee: $5,000 under the DSP and $8,000 under the fund, per application.

The DSP contribution grows with the family: $130,000 for one, $150,000 for a couple, $165,000 for a family of three, $180,000 for a family of four. A single applicant or a couple does better with the DSP, a family of three or more with the fund. The contribution is paid after Commission approval; before the decision only the FIU fee is paid, and translation and certification are paid as invoiced.

Against this background checking names costs almost nothing, while a name mistake costs blocked payments, postponed trips and affidavits. The total for your family is shown by the budget for your family, and all cost items in how much Vanuatu citizenship costs for a family.

Common mistakes and a checklist before filing

In brief: name mistakes repeat: filing with a passport that has an old spelling, translating “by ear”, different date-of-birth formats, forgotten bank accounts under an earlier spelling.

1. Assuming it is the same everywhere. The check reveals that the bank holds the client under the spelling of a passport from ten years ago.
2. Translating by ear. The translator spells the name by their own rule, and the package is returned for correction.
3. Double names and hyphenated surnames. The hyphen, space and order of parts must match in all documents.
4. Date and place of birth. The date format and the Latin name of the city differ between a clearance and a certificate.
5. The family without a check. The family surname in the children’s documents is spelled differently from the parents’ passports.

After receiving the passport: renewal and new documents

In brief: a Vanuatu passport is valid for 10 years. On replacement and renewal the spelling is kept the same, and new documents the family obtains after citizenship is granted are written from the start as in the Vanuatu passport or the other passport they are used with.

When the main passport is replaced, check that the new spelling matches the previous one, otherwise a discrepancy will appear between two passports of one person. The bank is notified of the new document, and visas left in the old passport are used together with it.

If after citizenship is granted a person changes surname, for example after marriage, the main document is changed first, then the Vanuatu passport, so that both passports match again, and banks receive copies of both documents with the new spelling.

The replacement procedure is covered in Vanuatu passport renewal, and a citizen’s rights and duties in rights and duties of a citizen.