103.21—Access by individuals to records maintained about them.

(a) Access to available records. An individual who seeks access to records about himself or herself in a system of records must submit a written request in person or by mail to the Freedom of Information/Privacy Act Officer at the location where the records are maintained. If the location is unknown, the request may be submitted to the nearest Service office or to the Headquarters FOIA/PA Officer, 425 I Street, NW., Washington, DC 20536. The outside of the envelope should be marked “Privacy Act Request.” A Form G-639, Freedom of Information/Privacy Act Request may be used for convenience and to facilitate identification of the record requested. However, a request may be made in any written form and should clearly identity the record sought by the name and any other personal identifiers for the individual (such as the alien file number or Social Security Account Number), date and place of birth, and type of file in which the record is believed to be located.

(b) Verification of identity. The following standards are applicable to any individual who requests records concerning himself, unless other provisions for identity verification are specified in the published notice pertaining to the particular system of records.

(1) An individual seeking access to records about himself in person shall establish his identity by the presentation of a single document bearing a photograph (such as a passport, Permanent Resident Card or identification badge) or by the presentation of two items of identification which do not bear a photograph but do bear both a name and address (such as a driver's license, or credit card).

(2) Individuals seeking access to records about themselves by mail shall establish their identify by submitting a notarized signature along with their address, date of birth, place of birth, and alien or employee identification number if applicable. Form DOJ 361, Certification of Identity, may be obtained from any Service office and used to obtain the notarized signature needed to verify identity.

(c) Verification of guardianship. The parent or guardian of a child or of a person judicially determined to be incompetent and seeking to act on behalf of such child or incompetent, shall, in addition to establishing his own identity, establish the identity of the child or other person he represents as required in paragraph (b) of this section, and establish his own parentage or guardianship of the subject of the record by furnishing either a copy of a birth certificate showing parentage or a court order establishing the guardianship.

(d) Accompanying persons. An individual seeking to review records pertaining to himself may be accompanied by another individual of his own choosing. Both the individual seeking access and the individual accompanying him shall be required to sign the required form indicating that the Service is authorized to discuss the contents of the subject record in the presence of both individuals.

(e) Specification of records sought. Requests for access to records, either in person or by mail, shall describe the nature of the records sought, the approximate dates covered by the record, the system in which it is thought to be included as described in the “Notice of Systems of Records” published in the Federal Register, and the identity of the individual or office of the Service having custody of the system of records. In addition, the published “Notice of Systems of Records” for individual systems may include further requirements of specification, where necessary, to retrieve the individual record from the system.

(f) Agreement to pay fees. In accordance with 28 CFR 16.3(c) a requester automatically agrees to pay fees up to $25.00 by filing a Privacy Act request unless a waiver or reduction of fees is sought. Accordingly, all letters of acknowledgement must confirm the requester's obligation to pay.

Code of Federal Regulations

[40 FR 44481, Sept. 26, 1975; 40 FR 46092, Oct. 6, 1975, as amended at 42 FR 33025, June 29, 1977; 48 FR 49653, Oct. 27, 1983; 58 FR 31149, June 1, 1993; 63 FR 70315, Dec. 21, 1998]