How to request your travel history from CBP (FOIA) for citizenship

Where to file

CBP changed how it takes requests at the start of 2026:

“Effective January 22, 2026, CBP is no longer accepting hard copy (mail/fax/email) Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for CBP records. To ensure timely processing, you must submit your records request through the CBP SecureRelease portal or www.FOIA.gov.”

The two places are SecureRelease and FOIA.gov. One older CBP page still lists a mailing address; the 2026 notice replaces it. Filing costs nothing: CBP’s FAQ says “There is no fee to file a FOIA request.”

What to ask for

Ask for records, not answers. CBP says requests “must be for records, not for information or answers to questions,” and “FOIA requests submitted as questions will not be processed.” A request for your own arrival and departure records over a stated date range is a request for records.

For your own records, CBP asks you to include:

• Your full name and any alias you used when you entered
• Your date of birth
• Your A-Number
• Your parents’ names
• A signed Certification of Identity, or a statement under penalty of perjury with your signature, or a notarized signature
• A clear description of the records, with the date range you need

CBP’s entry and exit records start in 1982. For the N-400, the date range should cover the period Part 8 asks about: 5 years, or 3 years if you file as the spouse of a U.S. citizen. If someone files for you, such as your attorney, CBP needs your written consent and recommends Form G-28.

How long it takes

CBP does not publish a processing time. Reported waits range from weeks to many months: one immigration firm reports “approximately 40 business days,” while other applicants describe waiting the better part of a year. You get an acknowledgment and a tracking number when you file. Because of the uncertainty, file early, ideally before you start filling out the N-400.

What to do while you wait

Nothing stops you from preparing your trip list from your own records now and checking it against CBP’s record when it arrives. That also catches the opposite problem: people sometimes find a trip in the CBP record they had forgotten, or a CBP entry that does not match their memory, and it is better to know before the interview than during it.

TripRebuild builds that draft from photos of your passport stamps. Each date stays attached to the stamp it came from, you confirm every row, and the result exports in Part 8 order. See also every place your travel dates may still be recorded.