# Naturalization check (the chain-break question)

The single most common thing that breaks a descent claim: the emigrant ancestor
**naturalized in their new country before the next person in the line was born**, so
they no longer held the origin citizenship to pass on. The timing is decisive and
depends on the country. This guide helps the user *find the naturalization record and
its date* so the fact can be verified, not guessed.

## Method

1. **Identify the emigrant ancestor.** If you can read the user's EasyPassport family
   tree, find the person in the line who left the origin country (a foreign
   birthplace for their children, a naturalization or immigration event, a note that
   they acquired citizenship abroad). Otherwise ask the user which ancestor emigrated,
   when and where to.
2. **Frame the timing question, not the verdict.** State plainly which date matters:
   *did the ancestor naturalize in the destination country before or after the birth
   of the next descendant in the line?* The exact rule (before the birth breaks it;
   later-law or minor-child exceptions; women's transmission before a reform date) is
   in the origin country's rules. Point to that country's dossier in the "country
   record playbook" guide and treat the legal effect as **general guidance to confirm
   with a qualified specialist**, never a ruling you issue.
3. **Locate the naturalization record in the DESTINATION country.** Use the
   destination list below for where each major destination keeps these records and
   how to request them. Match the destination to the ancestor's emigration and give
   the concrete source and request route.
4. **Check the origin side too.** Origin-country emigration, exit or passenger records
   (in the dossier's "Emigration & naturalization" section) can date the departure and
   corroborate the timeline.
5. **Report what to verify.** Tell the user the specific record to pull and the date
   to read off it. If the record shows the ancestor **never** naturalized (or
   naturalized *after* the key birth), that supports an intact chain. It is still a
   fact for them to document, not a conclusion you certify.

## Rules

- **Never fabricate or estimate a naturalization date.** It is a hard fact that can
  flip a claim. If it is not known, the answer is "here is the record to obtain and
  the date to read", not a guess.
- **General guidance only.** You explain the timing question and where to find the
  record; whether it legally breaks the chain is for the eligibility rules and a
  qualified specialist.
- **A foreign naturalization is not automatically a break.** Some countries preserved
  citizenship; some have minor-child or reacquisition exceptions. Defer the legal call
  to the country's rules and suggest specialist review when it is close.
- **Privacy.** Only use details about living relatives that the user chooses to
  share, and never pass a person the user asked to keep private to a search.

## Where to find an ancestor's naturalization record (by destination country)

Fees, URLs and processing times change; always confirm on the official page before
quoting them to the user. These are record *sources*, not a ruling on whether a
naturalization broke the chain (that is the origin country's rule).

### United States

- **Naturalizations before about 1906** were handled by *any court* (federal, state or
  county). Records are scattered; start with the county or state court of the place of
  residence and the **National Archives (NARA)** regional holdings. FamilySearch has
  many indexed. There is no standardized certificate before 1906.
- **1906 onward**: federal standardization. Two record types, the **Declaration of
  Intention** ("first papers") and the **Petition for Naturalization** ("second
  papers"), plus the **Certificate of Naturalization**. Held by NARA (before 1956) and
  by the **USCIS Genealogy Program** (index search and record request, fee-based) for
  C-files and certificate files.
- Date to read: the **date of the naturalization order** (on the petition or
  certificate). The Declaration date is *not* the naturalization date.
- Sources: archives.gov (naturalization records), uscis.gov/genealogy.

### United Kingdom

- **The National Archives (TNA), Kew** holds naturalization records: certificates and
  **Home Office (HO) naturalization case papers**, searchable in TNA's Discovery
  catalogue (series HO 1, HO 144, HO 334 and others). Records after 1986 are with the
  Home Office (freedom-of-information request).
- Date to read: the **date on the certificate of naturalisation**.
- Source: nationalarchives.gov.uk (search "naturalisation").

### Canada

- **Library and Archives Canada (LAC)** holds naturalization records. Pre-1917
  records and the **1915–1951 naturalization index** are searchable; later records via
  LAC or IRCC (access-to-information request).
- Date to read: the **date of the certificate**.
- Source: bac-lac.gc.ca.

### Australia

- **National Archives of Australia (NAA)** holds naturalization and citizenship
  records, searchable in RecordSearch. Before 1904 naturalization was colony-based.
- Source: naa.gov.au.

### New Zealand, South Africa, Argentina, Brazil and others

- **New Zealand**: Archives New Zealand holds naturalization records (before 1948).
- **South Africa**: National Archives (Pretoria) and the Department of Home Affairs.
- **Argentina and Brazil** (major destinations for Italian, Spanish and other
  emigrants): naturalization was often *not* pursued (many emigrants kept their origin
  citizenship, which often helps an intact chain). Where it exists, records are with
  the national archive and the federal courts (Argentina: *carta de ciudadanía* through
  the federal court; Brazil: Ministry of Justice or Arquivo Nacional). Confirm case by
  case.

### How to use this list

1. Match the ancestor's destination to a section above.
2. Give the user the **record type to request** and the **official source**.
3. Tell them the **date to read off** the record, and that this date, compared with
   the next descendant's birth, is what the origin country's rule turns on (defer the
   legal effect to the country dossier and a specialist).

---

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.