Immigration records are an essential part of family history research. They provide a wealth of information about an individual's journey to the United States and their steps to become a citizen. But what exactly are immigration records? How can you access them? And what do they tell you?Immigration and nationality records have changed over time, so there is no single set of instructions to guide family history research. Existing records and how to find them depend entirely on when the immigrant arrived and whether, when, or how they became a citizen of the United States.
The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Office of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) allows transparency in accordance with the law and policy of the Department of Homeland Security by overseeing and managing the implementation of the FOIA by ICE (5 U. S. C.). ICE proactively publishes hundreds of documents online, including statistics, inspection reports, contracts, and other frequently requested documents.
Request individual immigration records from the U. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) National Records Center (FOIA, Division P. O. Box 648010 Lee's Summit, MO 64064-5570).
A files are a series of records that are kept about a person and that document their immigration history. The A files contain records provided by federal agencies such as ICE, CBP and USCIS. These agencies consult and share A files within the federal government to make decisions about immigration benefits and carry out law enforcement actions. Keep in mind that ICE generally doesn't charge fees. If ICE anticipates that fees will be charged to process your request, they will contact you.
You can learn more about the fee structure and FOIA exemptions on the DHS Fee Structure and FOIA Waivers web page. Visa files, the official record of arrival of immigrants admitted as permanent residents between July 1, 1924 and March 31, 1944, are available through the USCIS Genealogy Program. Among the billions of historical records found in the National Archives across the country, researchers can find information related to immigrants from the late 18th century to the early 2000s. As with most genealogical searches, you can start looking for documentation of your immigrant ancestor at home. With so much information available, these records are rightly coveted by researchers with immigrant ancestors who arrived in this time period. Naturalization was a goal for many immigrants and a source of pride for some families, although never required. The records in this collection document the journey of your immigrant ancestor and his steps to become a citizen of his new country. Most Americans can trace their family history back to immigrants, whether they arrived on the Mayflower, a Boeing-737, or sometime in the intervening centuries.
Perhaps the most consistent type of immigration record is the passenger list, which documents an individual's arrival at a U. port. Requesting an individual's immigration record is easy with our online FOIA system. You can request your own immigration record or someone else's immigration record or information other than from a file such as policies, data etc. It is important to be aware that fraudsters may try to collect sensitive information from you by falsifying the call number to the ICE FOIA Office. The ICE FOIA Office does not call people directly to obtain personal information, facilitate transactions or demand money. If you believe that ICE's determination about your FOIA request was wrong you can file an appeal resolution letter or file a lawsuit in federal district court.
You can file (where you live), (where your main place of business is located (if any), (in the District of Columbia) or (where the records are located, if they are not in the District of Columbia).Requesting an individual's immigration record is easy with our online FOIA system. You can request your own immigration record or someone else's immigration record or information other than from a file such as policies, data etc. Exploring immigration records is an essential part of family history research as it helps uncover valuable information about an individual's journey to America and their steps to become a citizen. With our online FOIA system you can easily access these records and discover when and where your immigrant ancestors arrived in the United States.