# Archives and sources

Ask for this guide with the two-letter code of the country where a record was created to get that country's list: whether its records can be found online, who holds them, and the providers EasyPassport has vetted, each with an access note.

## Finding the archive that holds a record

A country's list names the archives and providers EasyPassport has vetted for it.
When the list has no archive for the record you need, or the record was created in a
country with no list, work it out this way:

1. **Pin down the place of the event** as precisely as possible: the town, and the
   district, province or region it belonged to *at the time*. Borders and place names
   changed, and records follow the place as it was then.
2. **Civil records** (births, marriages and deaths after civil registration began) sit
   with the civil registry of that municipality. Older registers are often transferred
   to a regional or state archive after a retention period.
3. **Before civil registration**, look for church or parish registers: the parish
   itself, or the diocesan archive. Many have been filmed or digitized; the
   FamilySearch catalog can be searched by place.
4. **The national archive's genealogy pages** usually explain which archive holds what,
   and link to regional archives.
5. **The country's dossier** in the "country record playbook" guide covers the
   authority, apostille and translation rules, for the countries EasyPassport covers.
6. **Say what is vetted and what is not.** Only the archives and providers in these
   guides are vetted by EasyPassport. If you point the user to anything else, say that
   it is not on EasyPassport's list, and prefer official sources.
7. **If the trail runs out**, suggest a qualified specialist, or the consulate of the
   country concerned.

## Countries with a list

Ask for this guide with one of these codes: AT (Austria), BG (Bulgaria), CA (Canada), CH (Switzerland), CY (Cyprus), CZ (Czech Republic), DE (Germany), ES (Spain), FI (Finland), FR (France), GB (United Kingdom), GR (Greece), HR (Croatia), HU (Hungary), IE (Ireland), IT (Italy), LT (Lithuania), LU (Luxembourg), LV (Latvia), MT (Malta), PL (Poland), PT (Portugal), RO (Romania), SI (Slovenia), SK (Slovakia).

## Access notes

Every link in a country's list carries one of these:

- **open this yourself; do not have your agent fetch it**: the site forbids automated access, needs a login or written permission, or has not been cleared for agents. The user opens it in their own browser and shares what they find with you.
- **your agent may open this page for the user's own family research; record images are for the user's private use only and must not be republished**.
- **openly licensed; your agent may open this page**.

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General guidance, not legal advice. EasyPassport is a document-organization tool, not a law firm. Confirm your own case with the relevant authority or a qualified professional.