Archives
The digital community archive contains the scans of C.I. certificates solicited from Chinese Canadians community members by the Paper Trail project over the past few years. If your family submitted a scan of a C.I. certificate to the Paper Trail, you can view it here.
C.I. 44 Certificates
As a condition of the 1923 Chinese Exclusion Act, the Canadian government created a registry of every person of Chinese origin or descent in Canada, using a C.I. 44 registration form. Read more on the context of these records here.
The records have been indexed and can be searched via Family Search and through Ancestry by signing up for a free account. Ancestry normally requires a paid subscription, but Ancestry has made the C.I. 44 collection accessible via a free account.
The records are also available in microfilm reels at Heritage Canadiana. They are not searchable on Heritage Canadiana; users must use the index card reels to manually locate C.I. 44s, using the following finding aid.
Library and Archives Canada (LAC)
Many collections held by LAC related to Chinese migrants are not digitized and are available only onsite at LAC in Ottawa. Furthermore, several of these record collections are restricted. However, some of their digitized collections are a useful starting point. To search these collections, go to the LAC Collections Search and select “Advanced Search.” Find the text field labelled “Database”, and select “Immigrants from China, 1885-1949” in the dropdown menu. Enter the search query in the text field at the top of the search form.
British Columbia Death Records
To find a death certificate for a relative who died in BC, you can order a copy for the purpose of genealogical research from the Vital Statistics Agency of the BC government, or you may be able to locate the record online if the death occurred farther back. BC death records go back to 1872, and some are digitized and available online through BC Archives.