Konsulatsmatrikel Finder

What these records prove

Consular register (Matrikel). Germans abroad could register at their consulate, and only after showing proof of German citizenship. Before 1914 a registration also stopped the ten-year rule, under which ten years abroad otherwise cost a German the citizenship.

Passport register. Each line is a German passport the consulate issued or renewed. The consulate treated the holder as a German citizen on that date.

Other lists. Military-service lists, option lists after the border changes of 1920-22, registration cards and lists of expatriated persons also name people as German citizens. Visa registers mostly concern foreigners.

Few emigrants ever registered. The Chicago consulate recorded about 137 registrations between 1877 and 1901. A missing entry proves nothing either way.

Search the archive yourself

1. Open invenio, the Politisches Archiv's catalogue and choose Suche ohne Anmeldung. Close the welcome popup with the X at its top right.
2. In the left tree open 3. Amtsbücher → AB 2 Matrikel und Passregister des Deutschen Reiches.
3. In the lower left panel open AB 2 klassifiziert, then the continent, the country and the consulate city.
4. The right side lists each volume with its years (Laufzeit). Digitalisat anzeigen opens the scans; entries run in date order.

Entries are handwritten, mostly in Kurrent. Help with reading: Kurrent on Wikipedia and the r/Kurrent community.

Births, marriages and deaths abroad

Civil registrations made at German consulates (the Konsularregister of Standesamt I) are held by the Landesarchiv Berlin: births 1874-1910, marriages 1874-1940, deaths 1874-1990. Only the Deutsches Reich registers (1871-1945) matter for descent from that period.

They are not online. Ask the archive for a search with its request form, or write to info@landesarchiv.berlin.de.

Source: Landesarchiv Berlin, list of consular districts with surviving registers.