Central Register of Foreigners
The Central Register of Foreigners (Ausländerzentralregister) (AZR) is a file of data about persons living in the Federal Republic that is managed centrally by the Federal Office. It contains information about foreign nationals who are living or who have lived in Germany. The AZR is also a source of information for more than 6,500 partner authorities.
Structure of the register and deletion deadlines
The register consists of a general database and a visa file. As a rule, the data stored in the general database are deleted from the register ten years after the foreign national has left the country or immediately the foreigners naturalises as a German citizen. The storage period is as a matter of principle five years for data in the visa file.
Data may be stored in the AZR if the AZR Act authorises this. All facts that are stored in the register are specified in the appendix to the AZR Act's implementing regulations.
Requesting personal information from the AZR
Foreigners may receive information free of charge about the data stored about them by submitting a written application. (Requesting personal information in accordance with sec. 34 of the AZR Act).
Details about yourself should be given in the application form. If making a personal application at the Federal Office, the presentation of an official identity card is sufficient to prove your identity. In all other cases, the applicant's signature on the application must be officially certified.
Applicants in Germany
Certification can be carried out in all public offices.
Applicants outside Germany
Certification can be carried out by a German embassy, a notary or an authorised office in your country of origin.
It is not necessary to have the signature certified on the application if the applicant is represented by a lawyer who is accredited by a German court.
