Proof of Jewish Descent for Aliyah: Documents and Archive Search

In every Israeli file I have seen, the outcome depended on one thing: whether the chain of documents closed. The Jewish Agency writes that the application is an official request for nationality under the Law of Return, so legalised original documents are required. Here is how I would build the file.

The chain from you to the ancestor

The task is to connect you to a Jewish ancestor with documents issued by state bodies, link by link. If your grandmother is the ancestor, you need her record with Jewish nationality, your parent’s birth certificate naming her, and your own birth certificate naming your parent. Every change of surname needs a marriage certificate or a name change certificate.

The ancestor’s records

The BRIDGES programme page lists the usual sources:

• a birth certificate with a record of nationality;
• an archive certificate from a registry office or a regional archive;
• entries in registers and pre-war documents;
• the ancestor’s marriage certificate;
• the death certificate.

In Soviet documents nationality was often written in birth certificates and internal passports, which is why these papers carry so much weight.

The links between generations

• birth certificates for every link, with no gaps;
• marriage certificates where a surname changed;
• adoption papers, if there was an adoption;
• certificates of a change of first name or surname.

Small spelling differences between documents are a frequent problem. I recommend sorting them out before the interview, because there they turn into questions.

Your own papers

The Jewish Agency lists a birth certificate, marital status documents, a criminal background check, a valid passport and proof of your connection to Judaism. BRIDGES adds that an internal passport, a military record or a work record book may be requested.

Legalisation and translation

Foreign documents usually need an apostille and a translation. The validity period of certificates, the police certificate in particular, and the form of legalisation are set by the receiving side and change. I always check the current list on the filing date.

When nothing has survived

This is the normal situation, not a dead end. Records can be restored through registry offices, regional and departmental archives and registers. An archive can take months to answer, so I start the search first and do not wait for a refusal. The next step, the check itself, is in the process guide.