USCIS recognizes her hyphenated legal surname but allows secure cards to omit the hyphen, so she should have the DMV verify her unexpired green card in its no-hyphen form through SAVE and use civil name-linking evidence if she wants the license to show the hyphen.
“My spouse is a lawful permanent resident with a hyphenated surname on her passport. Her green card and SSN were printed without the hyphen because the DS-260 didn't allow it. USCIS denied our I-90 applications to correct it. Now her driver's license application was denied because her green card doesn't match her passport. What is the actual USCIS policy on hyphenated names on green cards, and how can she get a driver's license with this document mismatch?”
Summary
The missing punctuation is a documented USCIS system limitation, not proof that her permanent-resident status is defective. She can pursue the license without first obtaining another green card, although the state controls whether the license itself can show the hyphen.
There are separate routes for obtaining the license now and, only if the underlying immigration record is actually wrong, challenging the I-90 denial.
For a application, use the unexpired as the federal identity and lawful-status source and enter the surname without the hyphen, exactly as it appears on the green card and SSN card. Federal rules accept an unexpired I-551 and require DHS verification through and SSN verification through SSA (Sources 5 and 6).
If the state permits the license name to differ from the source document, it must require evidence connecting the names. Present the hyphenated passport together with a government-issued marriage certificate, court order, or other state-accepted government record, and request the state’s written exceptions process if it has adopted one (Source 5).
If the state offers non-REAL-ID licenses, federal regulations permit it to issue one that is clearly marked as unacceptable for federal official purposes. This can bypass some REAL ID document rules, but federal law does not require every state to offer this option (Source 13).
This is useful only if the underlying USCIS name record is wrong or USCIS misapplied its policy—not merely because the card-production system dropped punctuation. An I-90 denial allows a Form I-290B motion, not an appeal; use a for new facts and evidence or a for an incorrect application of law or policy (Sources 10 and 11).
USCIS recognizes hyphenated married names, but it also expressly anticipates secure documents printed without hyphens. The I-90 instructions reserve the no-fee DHS-error category for incorrect data caused by DHS, so the physical omission alone does not create a guaranteed free-correction route (Sources 1, 2, and 4).
Because driver licensing is administered by the state, federal law supplies the acceptable immigration document and verification framework but does not determine the state’s fee, appointment method, or final printed-name format.
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Next steps
These steps separate the DMV verification problem from the narrower question of whether USCIS’s underlying name record is wrong.
Before returning to the DMV
Assemble a two-name document packet
Keep the green card and SSN card together as the matching no-hyphen set; use the passport and civil record to explain why the legal surname also appears with a hyphen. The exact state fee, appointment channel, and acceptable civil-document list cannot be specified because the state was not provided.
Requirements
At the DMV counter
Reapply using the green card as the primary source
Ask the DMV to treat the unexpired as the identity and lawful-status source authorized by 6 CFR 37.11. Enter the surname without the hyphen in the fields sent to DHS and SSA, matching the green card and SSN card; present the passport as corroborating name evidence rather than as a conflicting immigration-status document (Sources 5 and 6).
Requirements
If the first verification does not confirm
Request SAVE Additional Verification
Ask the DMV supervisor to create or review the case using the first name, no-hyphen surname, date of birth, A-number, and card identifier exactly as shown on the I-551. If SAVE prompts for Additional Verification—or your spouse requests it—the DMV must submit that stage and may upload the front and back of the card; it may not deny solely from the initial response (Sources 7 and 8). Ask the DMV for the SAVE case number and a written statement of any remaining reason for denial.
Requirements
If SAVE confirms status but the name remains disputed
Use the name-proof or exception route
Request issuance in the hyphenated legal name under the state’s name-difference procedure. If ordinary processing still fails, request the state’s written exceptions process; if the state has not adopted one, request a standard non-REAL-ID license if that state offers it. The exception cannot substitute for the green card as LPR lawful-status evidence (Sources 5 and 13).
Requirements
Within 30 days—or 33 days if USCIS mailed the denial
File Form I-290B only if the motion route fits
Do not file this as an appeal: USCIS allows an I-90 motion but not an appeal. Mail by USPS to USCIS, Attn: I-290B, P.O. Box 21100, Phoenix, AZ 85036-1100; for FedEx, UPS, or DHL, use USCIS, Attn: I-290B (Box 21100), 2108 E. Elliot Rd., Tempe, AZ 85284-1806. A motion makes sense only if the underlying USCIS record is wrong, new evidence changes the case, or the denial misapplied existing law or policy; it cannot force a technical card-production system to print a character that USCIS policy says may be omitted (Sources 1 and 10–12).
Requirements
Legal sources
This answer is grounded in the USCIS Policy Manual and form instructions, the State Department Foreign Affairs Manual, SSA’s POMS, USCIS SAVE instructions, and DHS REAL ID regulations.
USCIS Policy Manual Vol. 11, Pt. A, Ch. 2
USCIS expressly anticipates that technical character limits can remove hyphens from secure documents.
Chapter 2, Legal Name
Certain USCIS electronic systems have character limitations which could result in a shortened name (if the name is too long) or a name without hyphens on USCIS-produced secure documents.
USCIS Policy Manual Vol. 1, Pt. E, Ch. 5
USCIS recognizes a hyphenated married surname as a possible legal married name.
Section C, Legal Name After Marriage
A married person may retain their pre-marital name or use a different legal married name (such as a spouse’s surname or a hyphenated name combining the pre-marital name and spouse’s surname).
9 FAM 504.10-2(C)
The State Department expects consistent spelling among the DS-260, immigrant visa, and passport during visa processing.
9 FAM 504.10-2(C)
You must assist DHS by ensuring that the names of visa applicants are spelled the same on their Forms DS-260, IVs, and passports.
Form I-90 Instructions
The I-90 instructions distinguish a no-fee DHS error from incorrect data not caused by DHS.
Part 2, Reason for Application
Select this reason if your card has incorrect data and the error was caused by DHS. NOTE: If the error was not caused by DHS, this reason does not apply; instead, you must file using reason “2.e.” (My name or other biographic information has been legally changed since issuance of my existing card). You may also select this reason if your card has incorrect data and the error was not caused by DHS.
6 CFR 37.11
An unexpired green card is a federal REAL ID source document; name-linking proof and written exceptions depend on state procedures.
§ 37.11(c)(1)(iv), (c)(2), and (h)
( iv ) Valid, unexpired Permanent Resident Card (Form I-551) issued by DHS or INS. ( 2 ) Where a State permits an applicant to establish a name other than the name that appears on a source document, the State shall require evidence of the name change through the presentation of documents issued by a court, governmental body or other entity as determined by the State. ( h ) Exceptions process. A State may choose to establish a written, defined exceptions process for persons who, for reasons beyond their control, are unable to present all necessary documents and must rely on alternate documents to establish identity or date of birth. Alternative documents to demonstrate lawful status will only be allowed to demonstrate U.S. citizenship.
6 CFR 37.13
States verify DHS immigration documents through SAVE and Social Security numbers through SSA.
§ 37.13(b)
States must verify documents issued by DHS (including, but not limited to, the I-94, I-551, I-766, and the U.S. passport) through the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE), or alternate methods approved by DHS, except that if two DHS-issued documents are presented, a SAVE verification of one document that confirms lawful status does not need to be repeated for the second document. States must verify SSNs with the Social Security Administration (SSA) or through another method approved by DHS.
USCIS SAVE Verification Process
When SAVE prompts for another verification stage, the DMV must submit it to obtain SAVE’s response.
Additional Verification
If the user agency receives a prompt to request additional verification, they must submit the case for additional verification to receive a SAVE response.
USCIS SAVE Additional Verification
A DMV may not deny from the initial SAVE result when another verification is required or the applicant requests it.
Additional Verification
User agencies may not rely on an initial SAVE response to deny an application for benefits where additional verification is required by SAVE or requested by the applicant.
SSA POMS RM 10212.001
SSA treats the name on a foreign-born person’s immigration document, including its hyphens, as the legal name absent a later legal change.
RM 10212.001(B)
A foreign-born person’s legal name is the name shown on the presented immigration document (includes hyphens and apostrophes).
Form I-290B Eligibility
USCIS permits a motion, but not an appeal, from an I-90 decision.
Appeal/Motion Eligibility Table
Form | Can I appeal? | Can I file a motion? I-90 | NO | YES
Form I-290B Instructions
The I-290B instructions provide the filing deadline and distinguish reopening from reconsideration.
When To File
For all other cases, you must file your appeal or motion within 30 calendar days (or within 33 calendar days if we mailed the decision to you). A motion to reopen must state new facts and must be supported by documentary evidence demonstrating eligibility for the required immigration benefit at the time you filed the application or petition. A motion to reconsider must establish that the decision was based on an incorrect application of law or policy, and that the decision was incorrect based on the evidence in the case file at the time of the decision.
Form G-1055 Fee Schedule
The general Form I-290B filing fee is $800.
Form I-290B
I-290B Notice of Appeal or Motion General Filing $800
6 CFR 37.71
A compliant state may choose to offer a standard license that is not acceptable for federal official purposes.
§ 37.71
(a) Except as otherwise prohibited by law, a State that is in compliance with the Act and these regulations may issue driver's licenses and identification cards that are not acceptable by Federal agencies for official purposes. (b) A State that issues driver's licenses and identification cards that are not acceptable by Federal agencies for official purposes must clearly state on the face of the noncompliant card that the card is not acceptable for official purposes and incorporate a unique design or color indicator that clearly distinguishes them from compliant licenses and identification cards.
USCIS Form I-290B Addresses
These are USCIS’s direct-mail addresses for an I-290B motion involving Form I-90.
Form I-290B Filing Addresses
U.S. Postal Service (USPS): USCIS Attn: I-290B P.O. Box 21100 Phoenix, AZ 85036-1100 FedEx, UPS, and DHL deliveries: USCIS Attn: I-290B (Box 21100) 2108 E. Elliot Rd. Tempe, AZ 85284-1806
These are the official rules as published on the cited dates; agency rules, fees, addresses, and state procedures can change.
This is general information about official processes, not legal advice; SettleKit is not a law firm.
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