Questions and answers
Short answers about what the organiser does, what it does not, and where your family's records live.
Frequently asked questions
Is Rootdossier legal advice?
No. It is an organiser for your own paperwork. It shows the rules as we read them, with their sources, but it does not decide whether you qualify and it does not file anything. Rules change: confirm your route with the consulate or a lawyer.
Where are my family's records stored?
In this browser, on this device, in the browser's own IndexedDB storage. There is no server and no account, so nothing you type is uploaded. Clearing this site's data deletes your cases, so keep a backup file.
Do you store scans of my documents?
No. The register records each document's status, reference, issuing office, cost and where the paper is. Files and scans are never stored or uploaded.
Which countries and routes does it cover?
Germany (the section 5 declaration, restoration under Article 116(2) and section 15, ordinary descent), Ireland (the Foreign Births Register through a grandparent, and automatic citizenship through a parent born in Ireland), Poland (confirmation through unbroken descent), Canada (descent beyond the first generation since 15 December 2025) and Italy (the routes left after Law 74/2025, marked as narrowed, plus a legacy module).
Where do the rules come from?
Each rule is our paraphrase of a named source: a statute, an official information sheet or an official web page, with its edition and the day we read it. Where we could not open the primary source, the rule is shown as a setting with a note on what to confirm.
How does the discrepancy check work?
For each person, it compares the name, birth date and birth place recorded on every pair of documents, and lists each mismatch with the two documents it comes from: accents, spelling variants, married names, day and month swaps, dates a year or two apart, and places known under an old and a new name.
Can I use it for two countries at once?
Yes, as two cases, one per route. Every case is free.
Is this free?
Yes. Everything here is free: every case, every printed report and export with an optional passphrase. There is no account and nothing to buy.
Is Rootdossier connected to a government, consulate or law firm?
Rootdossier is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to any government, consulate, embassy, ministry, court or law firm, including the German, Irish, Polish, Canadian and Italian authorities that decide citizenship cases.
More answers
The guides cover grandparent claims, the German declaration, the Irish register, Polish confirmation, Canada after 2025, Italy's 2025 law, apostilles and translations, and name discrepancies. To start, open your cases.