Alien Registration Files

Background Information
Between 1940 and 1 April 1944 the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) began Alien Registration for all cases involving aliens in the United States as they passed through the immigration and inspection process. There are over 300,000 files available belonging to individuals born from 1909 and earlier.

Record Content
These files can contain a lot of biographical information about an alien. Some of the information you might hope find could include:


 * Name
 * Name at time of entry to the US
 * Other names used
 * Address
 * Date of Birth
 * Citizenship/Nationality
 * Gender
 * Marital Status
 * Race
 * Height &amp; Weight
 * Hair &amp; Eye Color
 * Port, date, ship and class of admission at last arrival in US
 * Date of first arrival in US
 * Years lived in US
 * Intended stay in US
 * Usual occupation
 * Present occupation
 * Present employer, including address
 * Club, organization, or society memberships
 * Military service (Country, branch, dates)
 * Date and number of Declaration of Intention (if filed), and city and State where filed.
 * Date of Petition for Naturalization (if filed), and city and State where filed.
 * Arrest history
 * Fingerprint
 * Signature
 * Date and place of registration

How to locate Alien Registration Files
You can request copies of these files through the National Archives (NARA). The records can be found in both the San Francisco and Kansas City National Archives locations.

An online index that includes both locations is available at the NARA website.

Click on Online Catalog to begin your search.

Enter the name of the person you are looking for.

Next view your results. If the information appears to be the person you seek, contact NARA with the contact information found at the bottom of the results page. They will tell you how much copies will be and how to make payment.