Fees
and expenses
The Italian Genealogical Institute has chosen
to charge its patrons according to the actual number of hours spent in research
rather than a fixed rate according to the number of names or families completed.
This is to avoid hurries or sloppy research made in the attempt to find as many
names as possible whether directly related or not. Also, In
many cases, many hours of research are necessary in preliminary research before
correct town of origin, or family can be found.
The present rates are: -45 U.S. Dollars for every hour of research
Also, hotel, travel and postal expenses will be
charged; when travel by car is necessary, 40 cents per kilometer will be charged.
Research
Costs
Although sometimes civil vital records can be obtained by mail, this is
rare for parish records, or other sources that must be personally researched.
Since there are no central Archives in Italy,
and since microfilming of the civil vital records has just begun, and, in any
case, rarely copies records before 1809, this means that to perform the
research, a trip must be made to the individual village or parish.
The parish priests are in no way obliged to concede
access to consult the records, and often much persuasion and an offering are
necessary to enter and research. Since travel time and expenses are a considerable portion of each bill, the more research
that can be pursued in one trip, the lower the cost per family will be. Thus
it is advised, that when founds permit, as much research as possible be concentrated
in one trip, rather than pursued a little at a time. One should calculate
an initial sum of at least $750 to sponsor a research trip, as otherwise too
little remains after expenses to do effective research. We find that for personal
research of the parish records, when a minimum of six families are researched,
the cost for each complete family comes to about $85 to $125, including expenses.
The cost varies considerably depending on the
amount of research pursued, the distance of the locality, the condition and
availability of the records, and the amount of time the priest allows the
record agent to research each day.
Thus a client whose ancestors all came from the
same parish, who desires to complete back to the fifth generation, or about
twelve families, should expect to spend from 900 to 1500 dollars. In any case,
research will be performed as best as possible for whatever sum the patron
decides upon.
Also, if desired, a client can build up a
deposit a little per month before research is performed, so as to sponsor a
more productive trip.
Normally research will be executed within
twelve months of the patron’s written confirmation of our services. Research is
sometimes delayed to accommodate the schedule of the parish priest. Most
research is performed in the summer months, and usually many research projects
are concentrated into one trip to reduce travel time and expenses for the
patron. This can create a delay if the project cannot be pursued during
research trip due to closed office, or unavailable priests.
Although many patrons have received much more
research than expected, we have believed it more forthright to inform potential
patrons of the difficulties and expenses normally involved in research rather
than give an overly positive and misleading prospective. Although Italian
research can be expensive, usually the results are very positive. We have a
long list of satisfied patrons and if you wish to contact one in your area,
please let us know.
To
begin
To begin your Italian genealogy,
please contact us by e-mail and we will give all the extra information you
desire and the address where you can send by registered mail:
- Copies
of all the information and original documents that you may already have
gathered.
- A
retainer fee of $500 which will be accredited to your account. Each patron
will be billed after each phase of research. This should be a cashier’s check
or a personal check made out to the "Italian Genealogical Institute".
- A
signed copy of the attached contract.