Hourly Fee — $95.00
The hourly fee includes preparation of a research plan, actual time researching, as well as time for preparation of a research report. If any expenses are incurred, you would be invoiced for them. Included in all research reports is a description of the research performed, a detailed analysis of the information found, a calendar of records searched, and source-cited copies of any relevant documents.
Retainer
For projects that are estimated to be under 10 hours, prepayment in full is necessary.
For projects that are estimated to be over 10 hours, a retainer of half of the estimated hours is required.
Research reports are not transmitted to the client until the second half of the fee has been paid.
Document Requests from Italian Archives
$125 — one document request
$175 — two documents requested from the same office
Requests to multiple offices or for more than two documents requested from the same office — a quote will be given depending on the specifics of the project. Some civil record offices or provincial archives charge per family member when preparing a State of the Family Certificate. These fees are not covered by the stated document fee and would be invoiced at the end of the project.
We are very experienced in acquiring documents that other genealogical providers are unable to find. We often receive requests to finding missing documents that other Italian dual citizenship, Italian research firms, or professional genealogists were unable to find. Research to find out why a record has not been found in your Italian town of origin, or to find where your ancestors originated, will be charged at the hourly rate listed above.
Occasionally, an office in Italy simply refuses to provide the requested document, despite our best efforts. This is the exception, rather than the rule. The document request fee would still apply because the work was still performed. We have a 99% success rate and will make every effort possible [through every repository the record may be held in] in order to acquire the necessary document.
Italian Citizenship Services
Please see the separate tabs (pages) on this website detailing these services.
Mailing of Certified Documents Outside the U.S.
Mailing of certified Italian documents to a country outside of the U.S. can be very costly. The client would be responsible for the costs of mailing at the end of the project. Certified documents are sent in a manner which allows us to track the package, in case it does not arrive. This helps to assure that the document does not get lost.
Italian Document Translation Services
Translations are $50 per hour. We would be glad to provide a free estimate of time needed, if you forward digital copies of the documents that need translation to Melanie@holtzresearch.com.
Documents for citizenship are translated word-for-word, as required by Italian consulates. If you would like to see an example of one of these translations, please email us at the address above.
Documents for genealogical purposes — Most Italian civil and parish records follow a general format and do not take long to translate. Unless you request a word-for-word translation, we would provide a translated abstraction of all genealogically pertinent information. Formula wording is omitted to save the client time and money, unless necessary to understand the document within its social or historical context.
OnSite Research in Italy
See the separate Onsite Research page on this website
Payment Methods
Payment is accepted via personal check (made out to Melanie Holtz), PayPal or Square. Personal checks need to be made out to Melanie D. Holtz.
If you are an international customer and/or wish to pay by credit card, you must pay using Square or PayPal. Please contact us before using this option and an invoice will be emailed to you.