# Rootdossier, full text > A private organiser for citizenship by descent: map the line from you to the parent, grandparent or great-grandparent, list every document the route needs, track each one and catch name and date mismatches. In your browser. Organiser, not legal advice. Rules change: confirm with the consulate or a lawyer. 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. Everything below is our own paraphrase of the named sources; the official pages win if they differ. Site: https://rootdossier-web.pages.dev/ # Rules by country Last reviewed: 28 September 2026. URL: https://rootdossier-web.pages.dev/countries/ ## Germany Three routes: the section 5 declaration for people the old sex-discriminating rules left out (deadline 19 August 2031), restoration for descendants of people persecuted from 1933 to 1945, and ordinary descent through an unbroken line. Read the current official page: the federal statute database and the federal office's citizenship pages, https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/stag/ ### Declaration under section 5 of the Nationality Act (open) For people born after 23 May 1949, and their descendants, who missed German citizenship because of the old rules that treated mothers and fathers differently. The declaration must be received by 19 August 2031. Rules: - People born after 23 May 1949 who could not become German at birth, or lost it, because of the old rules that treated mothers and fathers differently may become German by declaration: a German mother married to a foreign father (born before 1 January 1975); a German father not married to the mother (born before 1 July 1993, paternity recognised before 23); a mother who lost citizenship by marrying a foreigner before 1 April 1953; loss through legitimation before 1 April 1953; and the descendants of any of these. (Source: [Information sheet: acquisition of German citizenship by declaration, for persons living abroad](https://www.bva.bund.de/SharedDocs/Downloads/DE/Buerger/Ausweis-Dokumente-Recht/Staatsangehoerigkeit/Einbuergerung/Ermessen/EER_Merkblatt_englisch.pdf?__blob=publicationFile&v=5), PDF, page 1 dated July 2024 and pages 2 to 7 dated October 2025, read 28 September 2026.) - The declaration right can be used only within ten years after the provision came into force. It is closed to anyone convicted with final effect of one or more intentional offences to a prison or youth sentence of two years or more, or placed in preventive detention at the last conviction, or where an exclusion ground under section 11 applies. (Source: [Nationality Act (StAG), section 5](https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/stag/__5.html), current consolidated text, read 28 September 2026.) - Not entitled to declare: a person who held German citizenship after birth (or after losing it through legitimation by a foreigner) and then gave it up, lost it or rejected it, and a descendant born or adopted after that; and a person who could acquire German citizenship through a timely birth registration under section 4(4) sentence 2 but did not, or still can. (Source: [Nationality Act (StAG), section 5](https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/stag/__5.html), current consolidated text, read 28 September 2026.) - The declaration must reach the federal office by 19 August 2031. What counts is the day it is received there, not the day it is posted or handed to a mission abroad. (Source: [Information sheet: acquisition of German citizenship by declaration, for persons living abroad](https://www.bva.bund.de/SharedDocs/Downloads/DE/Buerger/Ausweis-Dokumente-Recht/Staatsangehoerigkeit/Einbuergerung/Ermessen/EER_Merkblatt_englisch.pdf?__blob=publicationFile&v=5), PDF, page 1 dated July 2024 and pages 2 to 7 dated October 2025, read 28 September 2026.) - With the declaration: a copy of your passport or identity card, your birth certificate, your marriage certificate if married, the birth certificate of the parent or grandparent your right comes from, your parents' (and if needed grandparents') marriage certificates, proof of that ancestor's German citizenship, and any adoption, divorce, paternity or name change papers. (Source: [Information sheet: acquisition of German citizenship by declaration, for persons living abroad](https://www.bva.bund.de/SharedDocs/Downloads/DE/Buerger/Ausweis-Dokumente-Recht/Staatsangehoerigkeit/Einbuergerung/Ermessen/EER_Merkblatt_englisch.pdf?__blob=publicationFile&v=5), PDF, page 1 dated July 2024 and pages 2 to 7 dated October 2025, read 28 September 2026.) - A police clearance certificate from your country of residence, covering the whole country, no more than six months old, sent as the original. (Source: [Information sheet: acquisition of German citizenship by declaration, for persons living abroad](https://www.bva.bund.de/SharedDocs/Downloads/DE/Buerger/Ausweis-Dokumente-Recht/Staatsangehoerigkeit/Einbuergerung/Ermessen/EER_Merkblatt_englisch.pdf?__blob=publicationFile&v=5), PDF, page 1 dated July 2024 and pages 2 to 7 dated October 2025, read 28 September 2026.) - Documents go in as originals or as copies certified by a notary, the registrar that made the entry, or a German authority. Foreign public documents need legalisation or an apostille unless they come from an EU state or Switzerland. Foreign-language documents need a translation by a sworn translator. (Source: [Information sheet: acquisition of German citizenship by declaration, for persons living abroad](https://www.bva.bund.de/SharedDocs/Downloads/DE/Buerger/Ausweis-Dokumente-Recht/Staatsangehoerigkeit/Einbuergerung/Ermessen/EER_Merkblatt_englisch.pdf?__blob=publicationFile&v=5), PDF, page 1 dated July 2024 and pages 2 to 7 dated October 2025, read 28 September 2026.) - The federal office charges no fee for the declaration. Costs for obtaining documents, translations and certifications are not refunded. (Source: [Information sheet: acquisition of German citizenship by declaration, for persons living abroad](https://www.bva.bund.de/SharedDocs/Downloads/DE/Buerger/Ausweis-Dokumente-Recht/Staatsangehoerigkeit/Einbuergerung/Ermessen/EER_Merkblatt_englisch.pdf?__blob=publicationFile&v=5), PDF, page 1 dated July 2024 and pages 2 to 7 dated October 2025, read 28 September 2026.) - A child born abroad does not become German at birth through a German parent who was born abroad after 31 December 1999 and has their habitual residence abroad, unless the child would otherwise be stateless. The child does become German if an application to record the birth in the German birth register is made within one year of the birth; an application that reaches the competent German mission abroad within the year also counts. Where both parents are German, the cut-off applies only if both meet those conditions. It does not apply to claims under Article 116(2) of the Basic Law or section 15, or to descendants of people who became German, or could have, under either. (Source: [Nationality Act (StAG), section 4](https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/stag/__4.html), current consolidated text, read 28 September 2026.) Documents: - Birth certificate: Birth certificates link each generation to the next. - Marriage certificate: Marriage certificates of you and of the parents in the line. - Name change record: Name change papers tie the old name to the new one. - Proof of citizenship: Proof that the ancestor your right comes from was German. - Photo ID (certified copy): Your own identity document. - Police clearance certificate: Police clearance from your country of residence, at most six months old. - Application form (official): The official declaration form and its annex, from the federal office. Dates: - Declaration must be received by: 19 August 2031 ### Restoration under Article 116(2) of the Basic Law and section 15 (open) For descendants of people persecuted between 30 January 1933 and 8 May 1945 who were deprived of German citizenship, lost it or were shut out of it. There is no fixed document list; the chain and the persecuted ancestor's records carry the case. Rules: - Former Germans deprived of citizenship on political, racial or religious grounds between 30 January 1933 and 8 May 1945, and their descendants, are to be naturalised again on application. (Source: [Basic Law, Article 116](https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/gg/art_116.html), current consolidated text, read 28 September 2026.) - People who, in connection with persecution on the grounds in Article 116(2) of the Basic Law between 30 January 1933 and 8 May 1945, gave up or lost German citizenship before 26 February 1955; were excluded from acquiring it by law through marriage, legitimation or collective naturalisation; were refused naturalisation after applying, or were excluded from a naturalisation otherwise open to them; or gave up or lost their habitual residence in Germany where it began before 30 January 1933 (or, for a child, after that date too), and their descendants, are entitled to naturalisation on application. Not for anyone convicted of intentional offences to two years or more, or placed in preventive detention. Not entitled: a person who acquired German citizenship after 8 May 1945 and then gave it up or lost it (other than by marrying a foreigner or by legitimation by a foreigner), and a descendant born or adopted after that loss. (Source: [Nationality Act (StAG), section 15](https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/stag/__15.html), current consolidated text, read 28 September 2026.) - Article 116(2) covers people formally deprived of citizenship by the regime. Section 15, in force since 20 August 2021, covers those who lost it or never gained it in other ways because of persecution. (Source: [What distinguishes naturalisation under Article 116(2) of the Basic Law from section 15 of the Nationality Act](https://www.bva.bund.de/EN/Services/Citizens/ID-Documents-Law/Citizenship/116GG_15StA.html), undated page, read 28 September 2026.) - There is no fixed document list; each case differs. Applicants use the application for adults and the annex on ancestors. Translations of English documents and apostilles on US documents are generally not needed, but section 15 applicants in the US are asked for a federal background check with an apostille. (Source: [Naturalization for individuals whose families were persecuted by the Nazi regime](https://www.germany.info/us-en/service/03-citizenship/2479490-2479490), last updated 1 July 2023, read 28 September 2026.) - A child born abroad does not become German at birth through a German parent who was born abroad after 31 December 1999 and has their habitual residence abroad, unless the child would otherwise be stateless. The child does become German if an application to record the birth in the German birth register is made within one year of the birth; an application that reaches the competent German mission abroad within the year also counts. Where both parents are German, the cut-off applies only if both meet those conditions. It does not apply to claims under Article 116(2) of the Basic Law or section 15, or to descendants of people who became German, or could have, under either. (Source: [Nationality Act (StAG), section 4](https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/stag/__4.html), current consolidated text, read 28 September 2026.) Documents: - Birth certificate: Birth certificates link each generation to the persecuted ancestor. - Marriage certificate: Marriage certificates explain name changes and parentage. - Name change record: Name change papers tie the old name to the new one. - Proof of citizenship: Proof the ancestor was German: old passports, citizenship cards, registration records. - Emigration or passenger record: Records of emigration or flight show the loss or the persecution. - Naturalisation record: A later foreign naturalisation shows how German citizenship was lost. - Photo ID (certified copy): Your own identity document. - Police clearance certificate: Section 15 cases from the US are asked for a background check with an apostille. - Application form (official): The application for adults and the annex on ancestors. ### Ordinary descent from a German parent (open) You may already be German if a parent was German when you were born. The chain must be unbroken: an ancestor who lost citizenship before the next birth ends the line, and a generation cut-off applies to parents born abroad after 1999. Rules: - A child becomes German at birth when one parent is German. Where only the father is German, his paternity must be recognised or established before the child turns 23. (Source: [Nationality Act (StAG), section 4](https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/stag/__4.html), current consolidated text, read 28 September 2026.) - A child born abroad does not become German at birth through a German parent who was born abroad after 31 December 1999 and has their habitual residence abroad, unless the child would otherwise be stateless. The child does become German if an application to record the birth in the German birth register is made within one year of the birth; an application that reaches the competent German mission abroad within the year also counts. Where both parents are German, the cut-off applies only if both meet those conditions. It does not apply to claims under Article 116(2) of the Basic Law or section 15, or to descendants of people who became German, or could have, under either. (Source: [Nationality Act (StAG), section 4](https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/stag/__4.html), current consolidated text, read 28 September 2026.) - A German who applied for and acquired another citizenship before the 2024 reform usually lost German citizenship, which ends ordinary descent through that person for children born after the loss. Exceptions existed. The app flags a naturalisation in the chain before this date. (Source: [Nationality Act, former section 25 (loss on acquiring a foreign citizenship)](https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/stag/), text before the 2024 reform, not opened.) Setting to confirm: Loss on naturalisation applies before: 2024-06-27. Not opened at the primary source in this pass. Confirm the former section 25, its exceptions and the reform date on the current statute and the federal office's pages before relying on it. - Documents go in as originals or as copies certified by a notary, the registrar that made the entry, or a German authority. Foreign public documents need legalisation or an apostille unless they come from an EU state or Switzerland. Foreign-language documents need a translation by a sworn translator. (Source: [Information sheet: acquisition of German citizenship by declaration, for persons living abroad](https://www.bva.bund.de/SharedDocs/Downloads/DE/Buerger/Ausweis-Dokumente-Recht/Staatsangehoerigkeit/Einbuergerung/Ermessen/EER_Merkblatt_englisch.pdf?__blob=publicationFile&v=5), PDF, page 1 dated July 2024 and pages 2 to 7 dated October 2025, read 28 September 2026.) Documents: - Birth certificate: Birth certificates prove each parent and child link. - Marriage certificate: Parents' marriage bears on descent through a father for older births. - Name change record: Name change papers tie the old name to the new one. - Proof of citizenship: Proof the ancestor was German. - Naturalisation record: A foreign naturalisation before the next birth may have ended the line. - Photo ID (certified copy): Your own identity document. Dates: - Birth registration for children of parents born abroad after 1999: within one year of the child's birth ## Ireland A parent born on the island of Ireland makes you Irish already. A grandparent born there opens the Foreign Births Register, and you become Irish on the day you are entered. Read the current official page: the Irish government's Foreign Births Register page, https://www.ireland.ie/en/dfa/citizenship/born-abroad/registering-a-foreign-birth/ ### Foreign Births Register through an Irish-born grandparent (open) Born abroad with a grandparent born on the island of Ireland: you become Irish once you are entered in the register. Documents are for three people: you, your parent in the line and the Irish-born grandparent. A great-grandparent does not qualify; a child born before the parent was entered in the register is not entitled through that parent. Rules: - Born abroad with a grandparent born on the island of Ireland, or with a parent who was an Irish citizen (not born in Ireland) when you were born: you can become an Irish citizen through the Foreign Births Register. (Source: [Registering a foreign birth (Foreign Births Register)](https://www.ireland.ie/en/dfa/citizenship/born-abroad/registering-a-foreign-birth/), undated page, read 28 September 2026.) - If an expectant parent is not on the Foreign Births Register when the child is born, the child is not entitled to Irish citizenship through that parent: children born after the parent's entry can apply, children born before it cannot. So a great-grandparent does not qualify on the grandparent route; only if your parent was entered in the register before you were born can you register through that parent. (Source: [Registering a foreign birth (Foreign Births Register)](https://www.ireland.ie/en/dfa/citizenship/born-abroad/registering-a-foreign-birth/), undated page, read 28 September 2026.) - You are an Irish citizen once you are entered in the Foreign Births Register, and can then apply for a passport. (Source: [Registering a foreign birth (Foreign Births Register)](https://www.ireland.ie/en/dfa/citizenship/born-abroad/registering-a-foreign-birth/), undated page, read 28 September 2026.) - Originals of the civil birth certificate (showing parents) and civil marriage certificate or other name change document for you, your parent and your Irish-born grandparent; a certified copy of photo ID for your parent and grandparent, or a civil death certificate; for you, a certified copy of photo ID, two original proofs of address, four photographs and the signed, witnessed application. (Source: [Registering a foreign birth (Foreign Births Register)](https://www.ireland.ie/en/dfa/citizenship/born-abroad/registering-a-foreign-birth/), undated page, read 28 September 2026.) - Where the grandparent was born before Irish civil birth registration began in 1864, a baptismal certificate is accepted instead. (Source: [Registering a foreign birth (Foreign Births Register)](https://www.ireland.ie/en/dfa/citizenship/born-abroad/registering-a-foreign-birth/), undated page, read 28 September 2026.) - A certified copy or translation is signed and dated as a true copy or translation of the original by a recognised person or body: the issuing organisation, a solicitor or barrister, a notary, a commissioner for oaths or the post office service. They write that it is certified to be a true copy of the original seen by them, print their name, add their occupation, address and telephone number, and attach a stamp or seal, a business card or their professional register number. (Source: [Registering a foreign birth (Foreign Births Register)](https://www.ireland.ie/en/dfa/citizenship/born-abroad/registering-a-foreign-birth/), undated page, read 28 September 2026.) Documents: - Birth certificate: Original civil birth certificate showing parents. For a grandparent born before 1864, a baptismal certificate. - Marriage certificate: Original civil marriage certificate, or another name change document. - Name change record: Accepted in place of a marriage certificate to show a change of name. - Photo ID or death certificate: Certified copy of photo ID if living, or the civil death certificate. - Photo ID (certified copy): Certified copy of your photo ID, certified by your witness. - Proofs of address: Two separate original proofs of address. - Photographs: Four colour photographs, two of them witnessed. - Application form (official): The completed, signed and witnessed online application. ### Automatic citizenship through a parent born in Ireland (open) If a parent was an Irish citizen born on the island of Ireland when you were born, you are Irish already and nothing is registered. The dossier is the proof for a first passport. Rules: - If one of your parents was an Irish citizen born on the island of Ireland when you were born, you are already an Irish citizen and do not need to register. (Source: [Registering a foreign birth (Foreign Births Register)](https://www.ireland.ie/en/dfa/citizenship/born-abroad/registering-a-foreign-birth/), undated page, read 28 September 2026.) - Automatic citizens prove citizenship with a first passport application, usually with your birth certificate, your Irish-born parent's Irish birth certificate and ID. Treated as a working list. (Source: [Applying for a first Irish passport from abroad](https://www.ireland.ie/en/dfa/passports/), not opened, not opened.) Setting to confirm: Document list for the automatic route: working list. The passport application page was not opened in this pass. Check the current first-passport document list before ordering documents. Documents: - Birth certificate: Your birth certificate naming the parent, and the parent's Irish birth certificate. - Marriage certificate: Explains a change of name between the records. - Photo ID or death certificate: The parent's ID if living, or the death certificate. - Photo ID (certified copy): Your own identity document. ## Poland Confirmation of citizenship through unbroken descent: no ancestor in the line may have lost Polish citizenship before the next birth, and under the 1920 Act a father's loss extended to his minor children. Applications in Polish, translations by a sworn translator. Read the current official page: the Polish government's page on confirming citizenship, https://www.gov.pl/web/usa-en/confirming-polish-citizenship-or-its-loss ### Confirmation of Polish citizenship through unbroken descent (open) A decision confirming you are Polish because citizenship passed down the line without a loss. Every link needs civil records, and the ancestor's Polish documents carry the case. Translations into Polish by a sworn translator. Rules: - If you hold no Polish passport or ID card, you can ask for a decision confirming that you hold Polish citizenship. It is decided by a provincial governor; from abroad you apply through the consul for your area, in person or by mail. (Source: [Confirming Polish citizenship or its loss](https://www.gov.pl/web/usa-en/confirming-polish-citizenship-or-its-loss), undated page, read 28 September 2026.) - Documents that help establish citizenship, in particular civil records and documents showing the Polish origin of your parents or grandparents (birth, marriage or baptism certificates, their old Polish documents); name change documents; your full birth certificate naming your parents; a record of your marital status; and your valid ID. (Source: [Confirming Polish citizenship or its loss](https://www.gov.pl/web/usa-en/confirming-polish-citizenship-or-its-loss), undated page, read 28 September 2026.) - The application is filled in in Polish. Copies are certified by a consul, or by a notary with an apostille. Foreign-language documents are translated into Polish by a sworn translator or a consul; some EU documents can carry an EU multilingual form instead. Non-EU documents need an apostille, or consular legalisation where the country is not in the apostille convention. (Source: [Confirming Polish citizenship or its loss](https://www.gov.pl/web/usa-en/confirming-polish-citizenship-or-its-loss), undated page, read 28 September 2026.) - Polish citizenship could be lost before 1 January 1999. Under the 1920 Act: by acquiring a foreign citizenship, taking up public office in a foreign country or enlisting in a foreign military without the Polish Government's consent. Under the 1951 Act: by acquiring a foreign citizenship without authorisation to change citizenship, or by being stripped of it for breaching Polish law. Under the 1962 Act: by acquiring a foreign citizenship after obtaining authorisation to change citizenship. Our note, not the source's words: A person born after an ancestor lost Polish citizenship was not born to a Polish citizen through that ancestor, so a loss before the next birth in the line usually ends the line there. The source lists the losses; it does not state this consequence. (Source: [Confirmation of possession or loss of Polish citizenship](https://www.gov.pl/web/mswia-en/confirmation-of-possession-or-loss-of-polish-citizenship), undated page, read 28 September 2026.) - Under the 1920 Act the loss of Polish citizenship extended to the person's spouse and to minor children under the age of 18. Our note, not the source's words: The source dates the next Act 8 January 1951. The chain check treats a naturalisation before that day as falling under the 1920 Act; check the exact dates for anything in early 1951. (Source: [Confirmation of possession or loss of Polish citizenship](https://www.gov.pl/web/mswia-en/confirmation-of-possession-or-loss-of-polish-citizenship), undated page, read 28 September 2026.) - A decision can be appealed to the Minister of the Interior and Administration, lodged through the provincial governor who issued it, within 14 days of the day it was delivered. (Source: [Confirming Polish citizenship or its loss](https://www.gov.pl/web/usa-en/confirming-polish-citizenship-or-its-loss), undated page, read 28 September 2026.) Documents: - Birth certificate: Birth or baptism records link each generation; yours must be the full form naming your parents. - Marriage certificate: Marriage records show name changes and your marital status. - Name change record: Name change documents. - Proof of citizenship: The ancestor's Polish documents: passport, ID, military or registration records. - Naturalisation record: The foreign naturalisation date decides whether citizenship was lost before the next birth. - Emigration or passenger record: Emigration records help show the ancestor's Polish origin. - Photo ID (certified copy): Your own identity document. - Application form (official): The application, filled in in Polish. Dates: - Appeal against a decision: within 14 days of delivery ## Canada Since 15 December 2025, citizenship by descent reaches beyond the first generation born abroad. Births before that date are automatic; later births depend on the parent's time in Canada. Read the current official page: the Government of Canada page on the 2025 rules, https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/canadian-citizenship/act-changes/rules-2025.html ### Citizenship by descent beyond the first generation (2025 amendment) (open) Since 15 December 2025, people born abroad in the second or a later generation before that date are citizens; later births need the parent's time in Canada. A citizenship certificate is the proof. Rules: - The 2025 amendment to the Citizenship Act took effect on 15 December 2025. (Source: [Change to citizenship rules in 2025](https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/canadian-citizenship/act-changes/rules-2025.html), date modified 24 December 2025, read 28 September 2026.) - People born outside Canada in the second or a later generation to a Canadian parent before 15 December 2025 became Canadian citizens automatically. (Source: [Change to citizenship rules in 2025](https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/canadian-citizenship/act-changes/rules-2025.html), date modified 24 December 2025, read 28 September 2026.) - For a child born or adopted abroad on or after 15 December 2025 in the second or a later generation, the Canadian parent who was born or adopted abroad must have spent a set number of days in Canada before the birth or adoption. (Source: [Change to citizenship rules in 2025](https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/canadian-citizenship/act-changes/rules-2025.html), date modified 24 December 2025, read 28 September 2026.) Setting to confirm: Days the parent must have spent in Canada: 1095 days. Kept as a setting at the spec's request. The page read on 28 September 2026 gives 1,095 days; how days are counted and proved can change, so confirm on the current page. - To be sure, and to have proof for a passport, you apply for a citizenship certificate. (Source: [Change to citizenship rules in 2025](https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/canadian-citizenship/act-changes/rules-2025.html), date modified 24 December 2025, read 28 September 2026.) - Genuine documents from the issuing authority for every generation back to the Canadian ancestor: birth certificates showing the parents, citizenship or naturalisation certificates, and hospital or baptismal records where no birth certificate exists. (Source: [Apply for a citizenship certificate (proof of citizenship)](https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/canadian-citizenship/proof-citizenship/apply.html), date modified 17 July 2026, read 28 September 2026.) - Documents not in English or French need a translation and an affidavit from the translator. A family member may not translate. (Source: [Apply for a citizenship certificate (proof of citizenship)](https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/canadian-citizenship/proof-citizenship/apply.html), date modified 17 July 2026, read 28 September 2026.) Documents: - Birth certificate: Birth certificates showing the parents, for every generation. - Name change record: Links a changed name to the earlier records. - Proof of citizenship: Citizenship or naturalisation certificates for each Canadian generation. - Proof of residence or days present: Born on or after 15 December 2025: proof of the parent's days in Canada before your birth. - Photo ID (certified copy): Your own identity document. - Application form (official): The citizenship certificate application. Dates: - 2025 amendment in force: 15 December 2025 ## Italy Narrowed by Law 74/2025: only a parent or grandparent who held Italian citizenship alone, or a parent who lived in Italy two years before your birth, still opens the route. Pending files and court cases sit in a legacy module. The 2025 limit itself is pending before the EU Court of Justice on a referral deposited on 23 July 2026. Read the current official page: the Italian consular network's citizenship by descent pages, https://conslosangeles.esteri.it/en/servizi-consolari-e-visti/servizi-per-il-cittadino-straniero/cittadinanza/citizenship-by-descent/ ### Parent or grandparent who held only Italian citizenship (narrowed by Law 74/2025) (narrowed) One of the routes still open after Law 74/2025: the parent or grandparent held Italian citizenship only. Great-grandparent lines are no longer recognised on this route. Rules: - Under Law 91/1992 as amended by Decree-Law 36/2025, converted into Law 74/2025, a person born abroad who holds another citizenship is recognised as Italian by descent only in the cases the law lists. (Source: [Citizenship by descent](https://conslosangeles.esteri.it/en/servizi-consolari-e-visti/servizi-per-il-cittadino-straniero/cittadinanza/citizenship-by-descent/), page with checklists dated 29 May 2026, read 28 September 2026.) - Referral to the EU Court of Justice (order 147/2026): pending since 23 July 2026. The 2025 limit (article 3-bis of Law 91/1992, added by Decree-Law 36/2025 as converted into Law 74/2025) is before the EU Court of Justice. On 23 July 2026 the Italian Constitutional Court deposited order 147/2026, asking whether articles 9 TEU and 20 TFEU on EU citizenship preclude that limit for people born abroad who hold another citizenship. The court restated its earlier view (judgment 63/2026) that the limit does not breach those articles. The referral is pending, and the limit applies until it is decided. (Source: [Press release on order 147 of 2026: referral on the 2025 limit to the EU Court of Justice](https://www.cortecostituzionale.it/uploads/release/6a61f20b04366.pdf), press release of 23 July 2026, the day order 147/2026 was deposited, read 28 September 2026.) - One listed case: a parent or grandparent who held only Italian citizenship (at the date of death, if deceased). (Source: [Citizenship by descent](https://conslosangeles.esteri.it/en/servizi-consolari-e-visti/servizi-per-il-cittadino-straniero/cittadinanza/citizenship-by-descent/), page with checklists dated 29 May 2026, read 28 September 2026.) - The application needs the Italian ancestor's complete civil records and those of each generation after: birth, marriage and death records, and naturalisation records. (Source: [Citizenship by descent](https://conslosangeles.esteri.it/en/servizi-consolari-e-visti/servizi-per-il-cittadino-straniero/cittadinanza/citizenship-by-descent/), page with checklists dated 29 May 2026, read 28 September 2026.) - At least one consular office books an appointment online and then takes the application by mail, with the appointment date counting as the filing date. Offices set their own procedures. (Source: [Citizenship by descent](https://conslosangeles.esteri.it/en/servizi-consolari-e-visti/servizi-per-il-cittadino-straniero/cittadinanza/citizenship-by-descent/), page with checklists dated 29 May 2026, read 28 September 2026.) Documents: - Birth certificate: Birth records for every generation from the Italian ancestor. - Marriage certificate: Marriage records for every generation. - Death certificate: Death records; for this route the ancestor's citizenship at death matters. - Record of no naturalisation: Shows the ancestor held no other citizenship. - Naturalisation record: A naturalisation record, with its date, for any ancestor who naturalised. - Name change record: Links changed names across the records. - Photo ID (certified copy): Your own identity document. Dates: - Law 74/2025 cut-off for earlier rules (11:59 pm Rome time): 27 March 2025 - Referral of the 2025 limit to the EU Court of Justice (order 147/2026), pending: 23 July 2026 ### Parent who lived in Italy two years before your birth (narrowed by Law 74/2025) (narrowed) A route still open after Law 74/2025: your Italian parent lived in Italy for two consecutive years after becoming Italian and before your birth. Rules: - Under Law 91/1992 as amended by Decree-Law 36/2025, converted into Law 74/2025, a person born abroad who holds another citizenship is recognised as Italian by descent only in the cases the law lists. (Source: [Citizenship by descent](https://conslosangeles.esteri.it/en/servizi-consolari-e-visti/servizi-per-il-cittadino-straniero/cittadinanza/citizenship-by-descent/), page with checklists dated 29 May 2026, read 28 September 2026.) - Referral to the EU Court of Justice (order 147/2026): pending since 23 July 2026. The 2025 limit (article 3-bis of Law 91/1992, added by Decree-Law 36/2025 as converted into Law 74/2025) is before the EU Court of Justice. On 23 July 2026 the Italian Constitutional Court deposited order 147/2026, asking whether articles 9 TEU and 20 TFEU on EU citizenship preclude that limit for people born abroad who hold another citizenship. The court restated its earlier view (judgment 63/2026) that the limit does not breach those articles. The referral is pending, and the limit applies until it is decided. (Source: [Press release on order 147 of 2026: referral on the 2025 limit to the EU Court of Justice](https://www.cortecostituzionale.it/uploads/release/6a61f20b04366.pdf), press release of 23 July 2026, the day order 147/2026 was deposited, read 28 September 2026.) - Another listed case: a parent, adoptive included, who was Italian and lived in Italy for at least two consecutive years after acquiring citizenship and before the child's birth or adoption. (Source: [Citizenship by descent](https://conslosangeles.esteri.it/en/servizi-consolari-e-visti/servizi-per-il-cittadino-straniero/cittadinanza/citizenship-by-descent/), page with checklists dated 29 May 2026, read 28 September 2026.) - The application needs the Italian ancestor's complete civil records and those of each generation after: birth, marriage and death records, and naturalisation records. (Source: [Citizenship by descent](https://conslosangeles.esteri.it/en/servizi-consolari-e-visti/servizi-per-il-cittadino-straniero/cittadinanza/citizenship-by-descent/), page with checklists dated 29 May 2026, read 28 September 2026.) Documents: - Birth certificate: Your birth record and your parent's. - Marriage certificate: Marriage records. - Proof of citizenship: When and how the parent became Italian. - Proof of residence or days present: Two consecutive years of residence in Italy before your birth. - Photo ID (certified copy): Your own identity document. Dates: - Law 74/2025 cut-off for earlier rules (11:59 pm Rome time): 27 March 2025 - Referral of the 2025 limit to the EU Court of Justice (order 147/2026), pending: 23 July 2026 ### Legacy: files from before the 27 March 2025 cut-off and court cases for the 1948 line (legacy) For people recognised by 11:59 pm (Rome time) on 27 March 2025, or applying after an appointment communicated by then, who follow the earlier rules, and for maternal-line court cases. A legacy module: keep the records straight, and take the current position from an Italian lawyer. Rules: - The earlier rules still apply to a person already recognised as Italian by 11:59 pm (Rome time) on 27 March 2025, by an administrative procedure or a court case, and to an application submitted after an appointment communicated by 11:59 pm (Rome time) on 27 March 2025. (Source: [Citizenship by descent](https://conslosangeles.esteri.it/en/servizi-consolari-e-visti/servizi-per-il-cittadino-straniero/cittadinanza/citizenship-by-descent/), page with checklists dated 29 May 2026, read 28 September 2026.) - Referral to the EU Court of Justice (order 147/2026): pending since 23 July 2026. The 2025 limit (article 3-bis of Law 91/1992, added by Decree-Law 36/2025 as converted into Law 74/2025) is before the EU Court of Justice. On 23 July 2026 the Italian Constitutional Court deposited order 147/2026, asking whether articles 9 TEU and 20 TFEU on EU citizenship preclude that limit for people born abroad who hold another citizenship. The court restated its earlier view (judgment 63/2026) that the limit does not breach those articles. The referral is pending, and the limit applies until it is decided. (Source: [Press release on order 147 of 2026: referral on the 2025 limit to the EU Court of Justice](https://www.cortecostituzionale.it/uploads/release/6a61f20b04366.pdf), press release of 23 July 2026, the day order 147/2026 was deposited, read 28 September 2026.) - Cases through a woman whose child was born before 1 January 1948 went to Italian courts rather than consulates. How Law 74/2025 treats such cases filed after 27 March 2025 is contested; the app keeps them in a legacy module only. (Source: [Court route for maternal line cases (children born before 1 January 1948)](https://www.esteri.it/en/servizi-consolari-e-visti/italiani-all-estero/cittadinanza/), not opened, not opened.) Setting to confirm: Court cases for the maternal line before 1948: legacy module. No primary source was opened for the court route in this pass. Take the current position from an Italian lawyer before filing. - The application needs the Italian ancestor's complete civil records and those of each generation after: birth, marriage and death records, and naturalisation records. (Source: [Citizenship by descent](https://conslosangeles.esteri.it/en/servizi-consolari-e-visti/servizi-per-il-cittadino-straniero/cittadinanza/citizenship-by-descent/), page with checklists dated 29 May 2026, read 28 September 2026.) Documents: - Birth certificate: Birth records for every generation. - Marriage certificate: Marriage records for every generation. - Death certificate: Death records. - Naturalisation record: Naturalisation records with dates, to show the line was unbroken. - Record of no naturalisation: Where the ancestor never naturalised, proof of that. - Proof of earlier filing or court case: Proof of the recognition, the appointment communicated or the court case by 11:59 pm (Rome time) on 27 March 2025. - Photo ID (certified copy): Your own identity document. Dates: - Law 74/2025 cut-off for earlier rules (11:59 pm Rome time): 27 March 2025 - Referral of the 2025 limit to the EU Court of Justice (order 147/2026), pending: 23 July 2026 # Citizenship by descent through a grandparent URL: https://rootdossier-web.pages.dev/guide/citizenship-by-descent-through-a-grandparent/ Last reviewed: 28 September 2026 You can claim citizenship through a grandparent in several countries, each on its own terms. Ireland registers anyone with a grandparent born on the island of Ireland in its Foreign Births Register. Germany and Poland pass citizenship down more than one generation when no one in the line lost it first. Canada, since 15 December 2025, reaches beyond the first generation born abroad. Italy, since Law 74/2025, only through a grandparent who held Italian citizenship alone. The proof is always a chain of documents: a birth certificate for each link, marriage or name change records where names changed, and proof of the grandparent's citizenship. You can map that chain free in [your cases](https://rootdossier-web.pages.dev/case/). ## Which countries allow it, and on what condition The routes Rootdossier organises, as their sources stated them when we last read them on 28 September 2026. Each row links to the country page, where every rule is listed with its source. Table: Descent routes through a grandparent | Country | Route | Condition in brief | | --- | --- | --- | | [Ireland](https://rootdossier-web.pages.dev/countries/ireland/) | Foreign Births Register | A grandparent born on the island of Ireland. You become Irish on the day you are entered in the register, not from birth. | | [Germany](https://rootdossier-web.pages.dev/countries/germany/) | Ordinary descent, or the section 5 declaration | Each parent in the line was German at the child's birth and did not lose it first; or the old rules on mothers and fathers left a parent out. | | [Poland](https://rootdossier-web.pages.dev/countries/poland/) | Confirmation of citizenship | Citizenship passed down without a loss, for example by a foreign naturalisation before the next birth. | | [Canada](https://rootdossier-web.pages.dev/countries/canada/) | Descent beyond the first generation | Automatic for people born abroad before 15 December 2025; later births depend on the parent's time in Canada. | | [Italy](https://rootdossier-web.pages.dev/countries/italy/) | Only-Italian grandparent (narrowed) | The grandparent held Italian citizenship alone. Great-grandparent lines no longer qualify on this route. | ## The paperwork is about three people A grandparent claim links three people: you, the parent through whom the line runs, and the grandparent. Each link needs a record that names both sides: your birth certificate naming your parent, and your parent's birth certificate naming the grandparent. Where a name changed, usually at marriage, the marriage certificate or a name change record joins the two names. Then comes proof of the grandparent's own status: an Irish civil birth record, an old German passport or citizenship card, a Polish identity document or civil record, a Canadian birth or citizenship certificate, an Italian birth record plus proof the person never took another citizenship. Some routes add papers about you alone, such as a police certificate for the German declaration or proofs of address and photographs for the Irish register. ## How a line breaks - A naturalisation abroad before the next child was born. For Poland and for ordinary German descent, a grandparent who took another citizenship before your parent's birth may have ended the line. - A generation limit. Italy now stops at the grandparent on its main route. Ireland's register stops at the grandparent too: a great-grandchild can register only through a parent who was entered in the register before the great-grandchild was born. - A date cut-off. Canada treats births before and after 15 December 2025 differently. - A missing record. Where a civil record never existed, a baptismal record may stand in: Ireland accepts one for grandparents born before 1864. ## Worked example: an Irish grandmother In the invented Irish sample, Maeve claims through her grandmother Bridget, born in Queenstown in 1931. The register lists 11 documents: five for Maeve, three for her father and three for Bridget. The discrepancy check compares what each of Bridget's documents says and finds 9 mismatches: three on her name, three on her birth date and three on her birth place. Two of those explain themselves. "Queenstown, County Cork" and "Cobh, Ireland" are the same town, renamed. The birth date reads 2 November 1931 on one record and 11 February 1931 on the other: the day and month were swapped. The rest need a note on how they were settled before filing. Open the sample from [your cases](https://rootdossier-web.pages.dev/case/) to see it. ## Common mistakes - Ordering short-form birth certificates. Most routes want the long form that names the parents, because that is what links one generation to the next. - Starting with the grandparent. Start with yourself: your own records are the quickest to get, and they tell you exactly what names to search for further back. - Ignoring a naturalisation date. For Poland and ordinary German descent, when a grandparent naturalised abroad matters as much as whether they did. - Assuming a great-grandparent counts. Ireland's register and Italy's narrowed route stop at the grandparent; in Ireland a child born before the parent was registered is not entitled through that parent. - Treating a guide as the rule. Rules change; read the current official page before you order documents, and ask the consulate or a lawyer when the case is unusual. ## Frequently asked questions **Can I get citizenship through a great-grandparent?** Sometimes. Germany, Poland and Canada can reach further back when the line was never broken, but Ireland's Foreign Births Register and Italy's main route after Law 74/2025 stop at the grandparent. In Ireland the one way further down is through a parent who was entered in the register before you were born. **Do I need my parent's documents if my parent is not applying?** Yes. Your parent is the link between you and the grandparent, so their birth record, and their marriage or name change record where a name changed, are part of your file on every route. **Is Rootdossier a citizenship service?** No. It organises your own paperwork: the chain, the documents each route lists, their status, costs and mismatches. It does not decide eligibility or file anything. Confirm your route with the consulate or a lawyer. ## Sources - [Registering a foreign birth (Foreign Births Register)](https://www.ireland.ie/en/dfa/citizenship/born-abroad/registering-a-foreign-birth/), Irish government, foreign affairs service, undated page, read 28 September 2026. Used for: Who can register through a grandparent, and the documents for each of the three people. - [Nationality Act (StAG), section 4](https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/stag/__4.html), German federal statute database (gesetze-im-internet.de), current consolidated text, read 28 September 2026. Used for: Descent from a German parent, and the generation cut-off for parents born abroad after 1999. - [Confirmation of possession or loss of Polish citizenship](https://www.gov.pl/web/mswia-en/confirmation-of-possession-or-loss-of-polish-citizenship), Polish government, interior administration pages (gov.pl), undated page, read 28 September 2026. Used for: How Polish citizenship could be lost before 1999. - [Change to citizenship rules in 2025](https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/canadian-citizenship/act-changes/rules-2025.html), Government of Canada (canada.ca), date modified 24 December 2025, read 28 September 2026. Used for: The 2025 rules for births abroad beyond the first generation. - [Citizenship by descent](https://conslosangeles.esteri.it/en/servizi-consolari-e-visti/servizi-per-il-cittadino-straniero/cittadinanza/citizenship-by-descent/), Italian consular network, Los Angeles office pages, page with checklists dated 29 May 2026, read 28 September 2026. Used for: The routes still open after Law 74/2025. # The German declaration route explained URL: https://rootdossier-web.pages.dev/guide/german-declaration-route-explained/ Last reviewed: 28 September 2026 The German declaration route, under section 5 of the Nationality Act, lets people born after 23 May 1949 become German by a simple declaration if the old rules that treated mothers and fathers differently kept them from citizenship at birth, and it extends to their descendants. Typical cases are a child of a German mother and a foreign father who were married, born before 1 January 1975, and a child of a German father not married to the mother, born before 1 July 1993. There is no fee, but the declaration must be received by the federal office by 19 August 2031. ## Make the declaration in six steps The steps as the federal office's information sheet describes them. Track each document in [your cases](https://rootdossier-web.pages.dev/case/) as you go. 1. **Find the entitled person.** Work out who in your line the old rules left out: usually a parent born between 1949 and 1975 to a German mother, or before 1993 to an unmarried German father. 2. **Map the chain.** List yourself, your parent and, if the entitlement sits higher up, your grandparent, with births and marriages for each. 3. **Gather the civil records.** Your birth and marriage certificates, the entitled ancestor's birth certificate, and your parents' and if needed grandparents' marriage certificates. 4. **Prove the German ancestor.** An old German passport, citizenship card, naturalisation certificate or similar document for the parent or grandparent your right comes from. 5. **Get a police certificate.** From your country of residence, covering the whole country, no more than six months old, sent as the original. 6. **Send the declaration in time.** Fill in the official declaration form and annex and make sure it reaches the federal office by 19 August 2031. Receipt counts, not posting. ## Who qualifies The federal office's information sheet gives a checklist. You may be entitled if you were born after 23 May 1949 and: - your mother was German at your birth, your father was not, your parents were married, and you were born before 1 January 1975; - your father was German at your birth, your mother was not, your parents were not married before 1 July 1998, you were born before 1 July 1993, and paternity was recognised before you turned 23; - your mother lost German citizenship by marrying a foreigner before 1 April 1953 and you were born after that loss; - you lost citizenship through legitimation before 1 April 1953; or - you descend from someone in one of these groups. It is closed to anyone who later acquired German citizenship another way and then lost it again, and to children of parents caught by the generation cut-off for births abroad after 1999. ## What form the documents must be in Send originals or copies certified by a notary, by the registrar who made the entry, or by a German authority. Foreign public documents need an apostille or legalisation unless they come from an EU state or Switzerland, and anything not in German needs a translation by a sworn translator. The office recommends sending certified copies, because originals come back only on request. See [apostilles and translations explained](https://rootdossier-web.pages.dev/guide/apostilles-and-translations-explained/). ## Worked example: a German grandmother In the invented German sample, Daniel's mother Ingrid was born in 1962 to a German mother, Hildegard, and a Canadian father who were married: exactly the first group on the checklist. Daniel claims as her descendant. The register lists 9 documents, four of them his own, and on 28 September 2026 the deadline was 1,786 days away. The discrepancy check finds one mismatch: Hildegard's birth record says "Breslau" and her old passport, as later copied, says "Wroclaw", the same city under its German and Polish names. If Ingrid's birth date were entered as 1948 instead, the chain view would warn: "Ingrid Weber was born before 24 May 1949; the declaration covers people born after 23 May 1949." ## Common mistakes - Waiting for the deadline. The declaration has to be received by 19 August 2031, and old records can take months to arrive and translate. - Posting originals you cannot replace. Send certified copies unless the office asks for an original. - Using a police certificate from one state or province. It must cover your whole country of residence and be no more than six months old. - Leaving out the ancestor annex. If your right comes from a grandparent, the office needs the grandparents' details to check the parent's entitlement. - Assuming it restores lost citizenship in every case. It is a remedy for the old rules on mothers and fathers; persecution cases use a different route. ## Frequently asked questions **Is there a fee for the German declaration?** The federal office charges no fee for the declaration itself. What you spend on documents, apostilles and translations is not refunded. **Do I have to give up my current citizenship?** Germany does not ask you to. Whether you keep your current citizenship is for your own country's law, which you should check before declaring. **When do I become German?** On the day the federal office receives the declaration, once it has confirmed you qualify. You then receive a certificate showing that date. **What if my ancestor was persecuted between 1933 and 1945?** That is the restoration route under Article 116(2) of the Basic Law or section 15 of the Nationality Act, which has its own forms and no deadline in the texts we read. ## Sources - [Information sheet: acquisition of German citizenship by declaration, for persons living abroad](https://www.bva.bund.de/SharedDocs/Downloads/DE/Buerger/Ausweis-Dokumente-Recht/Staatsangehoerigkeit/Einbuergerung/Ermessen/EER_Merkblatt_englisch.pdf?__blob=publicationFile&v=5), German federal office that handles citizenship cases from abroad, PDF, page 1 dated July 2024 and pages 2 to 7 dated October 2025, read 28 September 2026. Used for: Who is entitled, the deadline, the documents, their form, fees and the day citizenship begins. - [Nationality Act (StAG), section 5](https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/stag/__5.html), German federal statute database (gesetze-im-internet.de), current consolidated text, read 28 September 2026. Used for: The declaration right and its ten year limit. - [Nationality Act (StAG), section 4](https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/stag/__4.html), German federal statute database (gesetze-im-internet.de), current consolidated text, read 28 September 2026. Used for: The generation cut-off for parents born abroad after 1999. # Ireland Foreign Births Register document list URL: https://rootdossier-web.pages.dev/guide/ireland-foreign-births-register-documents/ Last reviewed: 28 September 2026 For the Foreign Births Register through an Irish-born grandparent you send documents for three people. For yourself: your original long-form civil birth certificate, your civil marriage certificate or name change document if your name changed, a certified copy of your photo ID, two original proofs of address, four photographs and the signed, witnessed application. For your parent and for your grandparent: the original civil birth certificate showing parents, the civil marriage certificate or name change document where relevant, and a certified copy of photo ID, or the civil death certificate if they have died. Track each one free in [your cases](https://rootdossier-web.pages.dev/case/). ## Who uses the register If a parent was an Irish citizen born on the island of Ireland when you were born, you are Irish already and do not register. The register is for people born abroad with a grandparent born in Ireland, or with a parent who was an Irish citizen, but not born in Ireland, at the time of their birth. You become Irish on the day you are entered, and can then apply for a passport. The register does not reach a great-grandparent. If a parent is not yet on the register when a child is born, that child is not entitled to Irish citizenship through that parent: children born after the parent's entry can apply, children born before it cannot. So a great-grandchild qualifies only when their parent was entered in the register before the great-grandchild's birth, and then applies through that parent, not through the great-grandparent. Rootdossier stops the register at the grandparent and warns when the chain goes further. ## The documents, person by person Table: Foreign Births Register through a grandparent: documents per person | Person | Documents | | --- | --- | | You | Original civil birth certificate showing parents; civil marriage certificate or name change document if applicable; certified copy of photo ID; two original proofs of address; four colour photographs, two witnessed; the signed and witnessed application. | | Your parent | Original civil birth certificate showing parents; civil marriage certificate or name change document if applicable; certified copy of photo ID, or the civil death certificate. | | Your Irish-born grandparent | Original civil birth certificate showing parents (a baptismal certificate if born before 1864); civil marriage certificate or name change document if applicable; certified copy of photo ID, or the civil death certificate. | Unless the page says otherwise, originals are sent. A certified copy is one signed and dated as a true copy by the issuing body, a solicitor or barrister, a notary, a commissioner for oaths or the post office service. They print their name, add their occupation, address and telephone number, and attach a stamp or seal, a business card or their professional register number. ## Worked example: the list for one family In the invented Irish sample, Maeve's chain has three people and the register builds 11 documents from the rules above: five for Maeve, three for her father Thomas (he married, so his marriage certificate is on the list) and three for her grandmother Bridget. Because Bridget has died, her line reads "Photo ID or death certificate" and the death certificate answers it. Part way through, the missing list shows 1 document checked, three received and waiting to be checked, one requested and still awaited, and six not yet requested. The costs so far total USD 104.00 and EUR 38.50, kept per currency and never converted. ## Common mistakes - Sending a short-form birth certificate. The register asks for the civil birth certificate showing parental details. - Sending church records for a grandparent born after 1864. Baptismal certificates are accepted in place of a civil record only for births before civil registration began. - Forgetting a name change. If a marriage changed your parent's or grandparent's surname, include the civil marriage certificate or another name change document. - Having the wrong person certify ID copies. Use someone from the witness list on the official page. - Mixing up the routes. If your Irish-born parent was a citizen when you were born, you are already Irish and apply for a passport instead. ## Frequently asked questions **Do I need an apostille for the Foreign Births Register?** The register's page we read asks for originals and certified copies, not apostilles. Check the current page before you order, because requirements can change. **Can I register through an Irish-born great-grandparent?** Not directly. The register reaches a grandparent born on the island of Ireland. A child born before the parent was entered in the register is not entitled through that parent, so the only way is through a parent who was registered before you were born. **Am I Irish from birth once I am registered?** No. Citizenship through the register starts on the day you are entered in it, not from your birth. **My grandparent was born before 1864. What replaces the birth certificate?** Irish civil birth registration began in 1864, so the register accepts a baptismal certificate for a grandparent born before then. ## Sources - [Registering a foreign birth (Foreign Births Register)](https://www.ireland.ie/en/dfa/citizenship/born-abroad/registering-a-foreign-birth/), Irish government, foreign affairs service, undated page, read 28 September 2026. Used for: Eligibility, every document per person, originals and certified copies, the 1864 exception, and when citizenship begins. # Polish citizenship confirmation document list URL: https://rootdossier-web.pages.dev/guide/polish-citizenship-confirmation-documents/ Last reviewed: 28 September 2026 To confirm Polish citizenship by descent you apply, through the consul for your area if you live abroad, for a decision that you hold Polish citizenship. You send the application filled in in Polish; civil records for each link in the line, including your full birth certificate naming your parents; documents showing your ancestor's Polish origin, such as old Polish passports, IDs, or birth, marriage or baptism records; name change documents; a record of your marital status; and your valid ID. Foreign documents need a sworn Polish translation and, outside the EU, an apostille. Map the line and the list free in [your cases](https://rootdossier-web.pages.dev/case/). ## What unbroken descent means The decision confirms that citizenship passed from your ancestor to you without a break. The break that matters most is a loss before the next person in the line was born. Before 1 January 1999, Polish citizenship could be lost under the 1920, 1951 and 1962 Acts: for example by acquiring a foreign citizenship, taking up public office in a foreign country or enlisting in a foreign military without the Polish Government's consent under the 1920 Act; by acquiring a foreign citizenship without authorisation to change citizenship, or by being stripped of it, under the 1951 Act; or by acquiring a foreign citizenship with that authorisation under the 1962 Act. Under the 1920 Act a loss also extended to the person's spouse and to minor children under 18. So a grandfather who naturalised abroad under that Act while his son was still a minor may have taken the son's Polish citizenship with him, even though the son was born Polish. This is the break people most often miss, and Rootdossier's chain view warns about it. So the dates matter: when your ancestor naturalised abroad, and when their child was born. A naturalisation before the child's birth may end the line. After the birth, it usually leaves the child's line intact, unless it fell under the 1920 Act while the child was under 18. ## The document list - The application for confirmation of possession or loss of Polish citizenship, in Polish. - Civil records for every link: birth, marriage, or baptism records for older generations. - Your full birth certificate naming your parents, and a record of your marital status. - The ancestor's Polish documents: passport, ID card, military or registration records, or copies of them. - Name change documents wherever a name changed. - Your valid ID, shown in the original. Copies must be certified by a consul, or by a notary with an apostille. Foreign-language documents are translated into Polish by a sworn translator or a consul; some EU documents can carry the EU multilingual standard form instead. Non-EU documents need an apostille, or consular legalisation where the issuing country is outside the apostille convention. ## Worked example: a grandfather who emigrated In the invented Polish sample, Katherine claims through her grandfather Jan Nowak, born in 1921, who emigrated in 1949 and naturalised in the United States in 1956, after his son Robert was born in 1952. The register lists 10 documents, five of them for Jan, because his emigration, naturalisation and name change each bring a record. The discrepancy check finds 3 mismatches between his Polish birth record and his naturalisation record: "Jan Nowak" against "John Novak", a day and month swap, and "Lwów" against "Lemberg, Poland", one city under two names. Had Jan naturalised in 1950, before Robert's birth, the chain view would say: "Jan Nowak naturalised abroad before Robert Novak was born. Under the rule this may have ended the line." ## Common mistakes - Skipping the naturalisation record. It is often the document that proves the line was not broken, because its date comes after the next birth. - Using an uncertified translator. Translations into Polish must be by a sworn translator or a consul. - Filling the application in English. It is completed in Polish only. - Forgetting the marital status record. You send one even if the case runs through a parent. - Missing the appeal window. A decision can be appealed within 14 days of delivery. ## Frequently asked questions **Who decides a confirmation of Polish citizenship?** A provincial governor in Poland. From abroad you apply through the Polish consul for your area, in person or by mail, and the consul forwards the application. **My grandfather served in a foreign army. Did he lose Polish citizenship?** Under the 1920 Act, service in a foreign army without consent was one of the ways citizenship could be lost. Whether it happened, and when, decides the case, so take the facts to the consulate or a lawyer. **Do EU documents need a translation?** Some EU civil documents can carry the EU multilingual standard form instead of a translation. Others need a sworn Polish translation and, if not covered by the EU rules, an apostille. ## Sources - [Confirming Polish citizenship or its loss](https://www.gov.pl/web/usa-en/confirming-polish-citizenship-or-its-loss), Polish government service pages for the United States (gov.pl), undated page, read 28 September 2026. Used for: Where to apply, the documents, the form of copies and translations, and the appeal window. - [Confirmation of possession or loss of Polish citizenship](https://www.gov.pl/web/mswia-en/confirmation-of-possession-or-loss-of-polish-citizenship), Polish government, interior administration pages (gov.pl), undated page, read 28 September 2026. Used for: How citizenship could be lost under the 1920, 1951 and 1962 Acts. # Canadian citizenship by descent after the 2025 change URL: https://rootdossier-web.pages.dev/guide/canadian-citizenship-by-descent-after-2025/ Last reviewed: 28 September 2026 Since the amendment to the Citizenship Act took effect on 15 December 2025, people born outside Canada in the second or a later generation to a Canadian parent before that date are Canadian citizens automatically. For a child born or adopted abroad on or after 15 December 2025, the Canadian parent who was also born abroad must have spent at least 1,095 days in Canada before the birth, or before the adoption for an adopted child. Either way, the proof is a citizenship certificate, and the application needs documents for every generation back to the Canadian ancestor. Track them free in [your cases](https://rootdossier-web.pages.dev/case/). ## What changed Before the amendment, citizenship by descent generally stopped at the first generation born abroad. The amendment extended citizenship to people born abroad beyond the first generation, and to remaining lost Canadians and their descendants, and set a substantial connection test for future births. Table: Born abroad beyond the first generation | Born or adopted | Rule | | --- | --- | | Before 15 December 2025 | Citizen automatically if born to a Canadian parent. | | On or after 15 December 2025 | Citizen if the Canadian parent born abroad spent at least 1,095 days in Canada before the birth or adoption. | Rootdossier keeps the 1,095 day figure as a setting with a source note, because how days are counted and proved can change. Check the current page before you rely on it. ## Proving it: the citizenship certificate Being a citizen and being able to show it are different things. The certificate is what a passport office and a border officer will ask for. The application wants genuine documents from the issuing authority for every generation: birth certificates showing the parents, and citizenship or naturalisation certificates for each Canadian generation. Where no birth certificate exists, hospital or baptismal records can help. Documents not in English or French need a translation with an affidavit from the translator, and a family member may not translate. ## Worked example: a grandfather born in Ontario In the invented Canadian sample, Olivia was born in Australia in 2012 to a father born in England, whose own father Raymond was born in Ontario. The chain view says: "Born before 15 December 2025: under the 2025 rules this generation became Canadian automatically; the certificate is the proof." The register lists 7 documents. Change Olivia's birth date to February 2026 and the register grows to 8 documents, because her father's days in Canada now need proof, and the chain view says: "Born on or after 15 December 2025: the parent born abroad needs 1095 days in Canada before your birth (a setting to confirm)." The discrepancy check also flags Raymond's birth place, written "Port Arthur, Ontario" on one record and "Thunder Bay, Ontario" on another: the same city after a merger and a new name. ## Common mistakes - Applying for a passport first. Get the citizenship certificate; the passport comes after. - Sending documents for only one generation. The application wants proof for every generation back to the Canadian ancestor. - Asking a relative to translate. Translations need a translator's affidavit, and family members may not do them. - Counting to the wrong day. The parent's days in Canada count up to the birth, or up to the adoption for a child adopted abroad, not up to the application. ## Frequently asked questions **I was born abroad in the second generation before 15 December 2025. Do I need to apply to become a citizen?** The 2025 rules made that group citizens automatically. You apply for a citizenship certificate to have proof, which you need for a passport. **Does the 1,095 day rule apply to me?** It applies to children born or adopted abroad on or after 15 December 2025 beyond the first generation, and it is about the Canadian parent's days in Canada before that birth, not yours. **Can I apply for the certificate online?** Some people can, depending on when they and their parents were born or naturalised; others must apply on paper. The official page sets out who can use each. ## Sources - [Change to citizenship rules in 2025](https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/canadian-citizenship/act-changes/rules-2025.html), Government of Canada (canada.ca), date modified 24 December 2025, read 28 September 2026. Used for: The in-force date, automatic citizenship for earlier births, and the test for later births. - [Apply for a citizenship certificate (proof of citizenship)](https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/canadian-citizenship/proof-citizenship/apply.html), Government of Canada (canada.ca), date modified 17 July 2026, read 28 September 2026. Used for: The citizenship certificate application, documents for every generation and translations. # What Italy's 2025 citizenship law changed URL: https://rootdossier-web.pages.dev/guide/what-italys-2025-law-changed/ Last reviewed: 28 September 2026 Italy's 2025 law, Decree-Law 36/2025 converted into Law 74/2025, ended open-ended citizenship by descent for people born abroad who hold another citizenship. They are now recognised only in listed cases, chiefly: a parent or grandparent who held only Italian citizenship, or an Italian parent who lived in Italy for two consecutive years after becoming Italian and before the child's birth. Recognition obtained by 11:59 pm (Rome time) on 27 March 2025, and applications made after an appointment communicated by then, follow the earlier rules. Great-grandparent claims through ancestors who also held another citizenship no longer qualify. The limit is not settled: on 23 July 2026 the Italian Constitutional Court deposited order 147/2026, referring it to the EU Court of Justice. That referral is pending, and the limit applies until it is decided. Check your line against the routes in [your cases](https://rootdossier-web.pages.dev/case/). ## Before and after Before the change, a person could be recognised through an Italian ancestor several generations back, provided the line was unbroken and the ancestor had not naturalised elsewhere before the next child's birth. The new text lists who is recognised instead. Among the cases the consular page we read lists are people born in Italy to an Italian parent, people who hold Italian citizenship only, people already recognised by 27 March 2025, a parent or grandparent who held only Italian citizenship, and a parent who lived in Italy two consecutive years before the birth. Table: Italian descent routes in Rootdossier after Law 74/2025 | Route | Status | Reaches | | --- | --- | --- | | Only-Italian parent or grandparent | Narrowed | Up to a grandparent | | Parent resident in Italy two years | Narrowed | A parent | | Legacy (pending or court case) | Legacy | Up to a great-grandparent | ## The pending referral to the EU Court of Justice Courts in Mantua and Campobasso challenged the new limit, article 3-bis of Law 91/1992. On 23 July 2026 the Italian Constitutional Court deposited order 147/2026, asking the EU Court of Justice whether articles 9 TEU and 20 TFEU, which make every citizen of a member state an EU citizen, preclude a rule that treats people born abroad with another citizenship as never having acquired Italian citizenship, unless one of the listed cases applies. The court restated its own earlier view (judgment 63/2026) that the limit does not breach those articles, but left the final reading of EU law to the Luxembourg court. Status: pending. Nothing changes until the EU court rules and the Italian court decides the cases in front of it, so the limit applies to new files today. Rootdossier shows the referral as a pending rule on the Italy page and in each Italian case's date log, with its date; the routes stay as they are until a decision is published. ## Files started before 27 March 2025, and court cases Applications made after an appointment communicated by 11:59 pm (Rome time) on 27 March 2025 are handled under the old rules, and recognition already obtained by then stands. Rootdossier keeps these, and maternal-line court cases for children born before 1948, in a legacy module. How the new law treats court cases filed after the cut-off is contested, and we have not verified it at a primary source, so the legacy module is a setting with a source note: take the current position from an Italian lawyer. Filing practice also moved. At least one consular office now books an appointment online and then takes the application by mail, with the appointment date counting as the filing date; offices set their own procedures. ## Worked example: an only-Italian grandfather In the invented Italian sample, Luke claims through his grandfather Giuseppe, born in 1934, who lived in Australia but never took another citizenship. The route asks for 6 documents, three of them for Giuseppe, including a record showing he never naturalised. The check flags his name as "Giuseppe Russo" on one record and "Joseph Russo" on another, and his birth place under its Italian and Croatian names. Add a great-grandparent to the same chain and the chain view warns: "This route looks for the Italian parent or grandparent 1 to 2 generations above you; the chain has 3." ## Common mistakes - Assuming an old great-grandparent claim still works. On the main route the line now stops at a grandparent who held only Italian citizenship. - Forgetting the ancestor's other citizenship. A grandparent who naturalised elsewhere does not open the only-Italian route. - Treating a pending file as new. If your appointment was communicated by 11:59 pm (Rome time) on 27 March 2025, keep proof of it. - Treating the 2025 limit as final. It is before the EU Court of Justice on a referral deposited on 23 July 2026; watch for the ruling. - Relying on blog summaries of court cases. The legal position after the law is contested; ask an Italian lawyer. ## Frequently asked questions **Can I still get Italian citizenship through my great-grandfather?** Not on the routes the 2025 law leaves open for people who hold another citizenship, unless you were recognised, or had an appointment communicated, by 27 March 2025. The limit is before the EU Court of Justice on a referral that is still pending. Take unusual cases to an Italian lawyer. **What does held only Italian citizenship mean?** The parent or grandparent had no other citizenship, at the date of death if they have died. A naturalisation abroad rules that ancestor out on this route. **Does Rootdossier support Italian cases at all?** Yes: the two routes still open, marked as narrowed, and a legacy module for files from before the 27 March 2025 cut-off and for court cases. ## Sources - [Citizenship by descent](https://conslosangeles.esteri.it/en/servizi-consolari-e-visti/servizi-per-il-cittadino-straniero/cittadinanza/citizenship-by-descent/), Italian consular network, Los Angeles office pages, page with checklists dated 29 May 2026, read 28 September 2026. Used for: The listed cases under Law 74/2025, the 27 March 2025 cut-off (11:59 pm Rome time), the documents and the mail filing practice. - [Press release on order 147 of 2026: referral on the 2025 limit to the EU Court of Justice](https://www.cortecostituzionale.it/uploads/release/6a61f20b04366.pdf), Italian Constitutional Court, press office, press release of 23 July 2026, the day order 147/2026 was deposited, read 28 September 2026. Used for: The referral of the 2025 limit to the EU Court of Justice, deposited 23 July 2026 and pending. - [Court route for maternal line cases (children born before 1 January 1948)](https://www.esteri.it/en/servizi-consolari-e-visti/italiani-all-estero/cittadinanza/), Italian courts, case law, not opened; not opened in the last review, treated as a setting. Used for: The court route for maternal-line cases, kept as a legacy setting. # Apostilles and translations for descent claims URL: https://rootdossier-web.pages.dev/guide/apostilles-and-translations-explained/ Last reviewed: 28 September 2026 An apostille is a certificate attached to a public document, such as a birth certificate, that confirms where it came from: the signature, the capacity of the person who signed and any seal. The convention gives it only those three points, so it does not vouch for what the document says. It is issued by an authority in the country that issued the document, and between states in the 1961 Hague convention it replaces the older chain of legalisation. A translation is separate: many routes want documents in their own language, done by a sworn or certified translator. Rootdossier tracks both as stages of each document in [your cases](https://rootdossier-web.pages.dev/case/). ## Who issues an apostille Only a competent authority in the country where the document was issued. A US birth certificate is apostilled in the United States, usually by the state that issued it; an English one in the UK; an Irish one in Ireland. The receiving country cannot apostille a foreign document. Some countries also issue electronic apostilles, with the same effect as paper ones. Order matters. Get the certified copy first, then the apostille on that copy, then the translation of both. A translation of a document without its apostille may have to be redone. ## Which routes ask for them As read on 28 September 2026. These are the defaults Rootdossier sets for each document; you can switch either off per document when the official page says it is not needed. Table: Apostille and translation defaults by route | Route | Apostille | Translation | | --- | --- | --- | | Germany: Declaration (section 5) | Usually, for foreign documents | Yes, sworn or certified | | Germany: Restoration (Art. 116(2), s. 15) | Not asked for on the page we read | Not for English documents | | Germany: Ordinary descent | Usually, for foreign documents | Yes, sworn or certified | | Ireland: Foreign Births Register (grandparent) | Not asked for on the page we read | Not for English documents | | Ireland: Automatic (parent born in Ireland) | Not asked for on the page we read | Not for English documents | | Poland: Confirmation (unbroken descent) | Usually, for foreign documents | Yes, sworn or certified | | Canada: Descent beyond the first generation | Not asked for on the page we read | Only if not English or French | | Italy: Only-Italian parent or grandparent | Usually, for foreign documents | Yes, sworn or certified | | Italy: Parent resident in Italy two years | Usually, for foreign documents | Yes, sworn or certified | ## Worked example: one record through every stage A document that needs both runs through 6 stages in Rootdossier: needed, requested, received, certified or apostilled, translated, checked. A document that needs neither skips two of them and runs through 4. In the invented German sample, the grandmother's birth record was requested in May, received in June, apostilled and then translated by a sworn translator in July, and waits to be checked. Switch the apostille off on a document already at that stage and it steps back to received, so the register never claims a stage the document skipped. ## Common mistakes - Translating before the apostille. The translation should cover the apostille too. - Asking the wrong country to apostille. Only the issuing country can. - Using a family member or yourself as translator. Canada forbids it outright, and sworn translation rules elsewhere rule it out in practice. - Apostilling documents that do not need it. Ireland's register page asks for originals and certified copies; Germany's restoration page says US documents usually need no apostille. - Assuming an apostille makes a document correct. It certifies the signature and seal, not the content, so a misspelled name stays misspelled. ## Frequently asked questions **Does an apostille prove my document is accurate?** No. It confirms the signature, the signer's capacity and any seal or stamp. The content of the document is not checked. **Can my own country's authority apostille a document from another country?** No. An apostille can only be issued by a competent authority in the country that issued the document. **What is a sworn translator?** A translator authorised by a court or authority to certify translations for official use. Germany and Poland ask for sworn translations into their languages. ## Sources - [Convention of 5 October 1961 Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents, full text](https://www.hcch.net/en/instruments/conventions/full-text/?cid=41), Hague Conference on Private International Law (HCCH), treaty text, articles 2, 3 and 5, read 28 September 2026. Used for: What an apostille certifies (articles 3 and 5) and who issues it. - [Apostille Section](https://www.hcch.net/en/instruments/conventions/specialised-sections/apostille), Hague Conference on Private International Law (HCCH), undated page on the Convention of 5 October 1961, read 28 September 2026. Used for: The apostille replacing legalisation between the convention's contracting parties. - [Information sheet: acquisition of German citizenship by declaration, for persons living abroad](https://www.bva.bund.de/SharedDocs/Downloads/DE/Buerger/Ausweis-Dokumente-Recht/Staatsangehoerigkeit/Einbuergerung/Ermessen/EER_Merkblatt_englisch.pdf?__blob=publicationFile&v=5), German federal office that handles citizenship cases from abroad, PDF, page 1 dated July 2024 and pages 2 to 7 dated October 2025, read 28 September 2026. Used for: Germany: apostille or legalisation, EU and Swiss exceptions, sworn translation. - [Confirming Polish citizenship or its loss](https://www.gov.pl/web/usa-en/confirming-polish-citizenship-or-its-loss), Polish government service pages for the United States (gov.pl), undated page, read 28 September 2026. Used for: Poland: certified copies, apostilles and sworn translations into Polish. - [Apply for a citizenship certificate (proof of citizenship)](https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/canadian-citizenship/proof-citizenship/apply.html), Government of Canada (canada.ca), date modified 17 July 2026, read 28 September 2026. Used for: Canada: translations with a translator's affidavit. # Fixing name discrepancies in old records URL: https://rootdossier-web.pages.dev/guide/fixing-name-discrepancies-in-old-records/ Last reviewed: 28 September 2026 Old records rarely agree. A grandmother is Bridget on her birth record, Bridie on her death record and Hanlan on her marriage record; a birth date is written day first in one country and month first in another; a town has changed its name. Most offices accept small differences that are clearly the same person, but each one should be listed, explained and, where it could raise doubt, fixed: by amending the record, by an affidavit from someone who knew the person, or by a declaration that the two names belong to one and the same person. Rootdossier's discrepancy check lists them for you in [your cases](https://rootdossier-web.pages.dev/case/). ## Deal with a discrepancy in five steps The order that keeps the fixes cheapest. 1. **Record what each document says.** For each document, note the name, birth date and birth place exactly as written, spelling mistakes included. 2. **List every mismatch.** Compare each pair of documents for the same person and write down every difference with the two documents it comes from. 3. **Sort them by kind.** Accents and case, word order, spelling variants, married names, swapped day and month, drifting dates, renamed places, and genuine differences. 4. **Choose the fix.** An explanation for the obvious, a same person declaration or affidavit for variants, an amendment at the issuing office for a real error. 5. **Note how each was resolved.** Keep the resolution beside the mismatch, and put the supporting paper in the document register. ## The kinds of mismatch - Accents and case: Łukasz and Lukasz. Usually no fix needed. - Spelling variants and translated first names: Nowak and Novak, Giuseppe and Joseph. Common after emigration; a same person declaration usually settles it. - Married names: a woman's surname changes at marriage. The marriage certificate is the link. - Day and month swapped: 2 November against 11 February. One record was written month first. - Date drift: a birth year a year or two off, often from an age given at marriage or death. - Renamed places: Queenstown and Cobh, Lemberg and Lwów, Port Arthur and Thunder Bay. A historical note, not an error. - Genuine differences: a different name or place altogether. Check you have the right person before anything else. ## The usual fixes An amendment or correction at the office that issued the record is the strongest fix, and the slowest. An affidavit, sworn by someone who knew the person, explains a variant without changing the record. A one and the same person declaration states that two names belong to one individual. Which of these an office accepts varies by country and by office, so ask before you pay for one. ## Worked example: three records for one grandmother In the invented Irish sample, Bridget's birth, marriage and death records produce 9 mismatches. "Bridget Hanlon" against "Bridget Hanlan" is a spelling variant. "Bridget Hanlon" against "Bridie Carter" is a married name, linked by the marriage certificate. The birth date 2 November 1931 against 11 February 1931 is a day and month swap, and "Queenstown, County Cork" against "Cobh, Ireland" is a renamed town. In the Polish sample the same check finds 3 mismatches for the grandfather: spelling variant, day and month swapped, place renamed. None is a different person; each goes on the report with the note on how it was resolved. ## Common mistakes - Correcting a record when an explanation would do. Amendments take time; many offices accept a declaration for an obvious variant. - Fixing the newest record instead of the oldest. The birth record is usually the anchor the others are compared to. - Ignoring small differences. A missing middle name is small; three small differences on one person add up. - Mistaking a renamed place for a different place. Old and new names of the same town are common in Central Europe. - Letting a translator correct a spelling. A translation must render the record as written. ## Frequently asked questions **Will a misspelled name stop my application?** Not usually on its own, if the documents clearly describe one person. Several differences, or a difference that could mean two people, should be explained or fixed before filing. **What is a one and the same person declaration?** A signed, often sworn, statement that two differently written names belong to the same individual. Offices differ on whether and how they accept one. **Should I correct my grandparent's birth record?** Only if it is wrong at the source and the office asks for it. A correction is slow; a variant that is clearly the same person is often handled with a declaration. ## Sources - [Registering a foreign birth (Foreign Births Register)](https://www.ireland.ie/en/dfa/citizenship/born-abroad/registering-a-foreign-birth/), Irish government, foreign affairs service, undated page, read 28 September 2026. Used for: Certified copies and translations, and change of name documents accepted by the register. - [Information sheet: acquisition of German citizenship by declaration, for persons living abroad](https://www.bva.bund.de/SharedDocs/Downloads/DE/Buerger/Ausweis-Dokumente-Recht/Staatsangehoerigkeit/Einbuergerung/Ermessen/EER_Merkblatt_englisch.pdf?__blob=publicationFile&v=5), German federal office that handles citizenship cases from abroad, PDF, page 1 dated July 2024 and pages 2 to 7 dated October 2025, read 28 September 2026. Used for: Name change documents asked for with the German declaration. - [Confirming Polish citizenship or its loss](https://www.gov.pl/web/usa-en/confirming-polish-citizenship-or-its-loss), Polish government service pages for the United States (gov.pl), undated page, read 28 September 2026. Used for: Name change documents for Polish confirmation. # Questions about Rootdossier URL: https://rootdossier-web.pages.dev/faq/ ## Answers **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.