Documents & Records
C.I.36 Certificate
Basics
C.I.36 certificates were issued to replace C.I.5 (head tax) certificates issued prior to 1912. The older certificates were considered inadequate, as they did not include photographs. Replacements were issued as the occasion arose - for example, when someone needed a travel document.
Front
The following represents information found on C.I.36 certificates, based on a 1913 example:
| [Certificate number] | C.I.36 |
|
Dominion of Canada Immigration Branch - Department of the Interior |
|
| Ottawa December 22nd 1913 | |
| This certifies that [Name (alternate name)] of [address] whose photograph is hereto attached claims to be [name] who arrived at [port of entry] on the [##] day of [month and year of original arrival] who was registered at Ottawa under [????] at [port of entry] under No. [#####] and to whom C.I.5 No. [#####] was issued. This certificate is given in exchange for C.I.5 above mentioned and while it is not an admission that the party to whom it is issued was legally admitted into Canada, it may, unless cancelled upon presentation, be used when registering out under C.I.9. Chief Controller of Chinese Immigration | |
Back
In 1923, after passage of the Chinese Immigration Act, C.I.36 certificates were stamped on the back in accordance with Section 18, which required the registration of all Chinese people living in Canada.
Finding the Records
C.I.36 certificates were issued to individuals and have often remained in the possession of families. Examples may be found in archival repositories.
At Library and Archives Canada
Library and Archives Canada (LAC) collections include five examples of C.I.36 certificates:
| Certificate No. | Name | Alternate Name | Date |
| 02955 | Fung Tak Ming | -- | 1913 |
| 06596 | Ung Dip Jang | -- | 1914 |
| 20880 | Seid Yew | Seid Dong | 1924 |
| 21217 | Chin Ming Kee | Ching Ming Gee | 1924 |
| 23563* | Lee Sha Yue | Wing Too | 1924 |
*This is not a C.I.36 certificate, but a 1953 receipt for a C.I.36 certificate, together with a 1946 C.I.46 certificate for the same person.
Additional information about these certificates is found in Library and Archives Canada's online List of Head Tax Certificates Held at Library and Archives Canada.
Image copies of the certificates can be seen on the first part of Library and Archives Canada microfilm reel C-13421, together with examples of other Chinese immigration certificates.
Use the online inter-library loan form to borrow microfilm reel C-13421 from Library and Archives Canada.
Related records are found in the C.I.36 register, which records the numbers of C.I.36 certificates issued to approximately 24,200 individuals, most of whom arrived in Canada between 1895-1912.
Photo banner: Detail from VPL Historical Photograph 78362
