Official Expert Answer
This comes up constantly and is almost always solvable. What authorities need is a clear paper trail that both names belong to the same person:
• The simplest fix is a Namensgleichheitsbescheinigung or an equivalent confirmation from your embassy or the issuing university, stating that both spellings refer to you.
• If the difference comes from a marriage or a legal name change, submit the marriage certificate or the name change decision, translated and certified.
• Make sure the sworn translation reproduces the name exactly as it appears on the original and does not silently correct it. A translator who fixes the spelling for you creates a second problem.
Send the explanation with the file from the start rather than waiting for them to ask. It usually turns a rejection risk into a one line note in your file.
• The simplest fix is a Namensgleichheitsbescheinigung or an equivalent confirmation from your embassy or the issuing university, stating that both spellings refer to you.
• If the difference comes from a marriage or a legal name change, submit the marriage certificate or the name change decision, translated and certified.
• Make sure the sworn translation reproduces the name exactly as it appears on the original and does not silently correct it. A translator who fixes the spelling for you creates a second problem.
Send the explanation with the file from the start rather than waiting for them to ask. It usually turns a rejection risk into a one line note in your file.