This is a preliminary record, please consult the linked accessions. Sub-series consists of the so-called Chinese case files which are a special group of personal case files, separate from the general immigration case files in the HQ series (RG76-B-3). They were set up to document the entry of specific families and individuals of Chinese ancestry to Canada under the Chinese Immigration Act. The records were apparently created in the 1940's, at or about the time of the establishment of the HQ series and the rollback of restrictions under the Chinese Immigration Act (ca.1947-1953). At that time older Chinese case files were incorporated into the sub-series from the First Central Registry system sub-series (RG76-B-1-a). An unknown number of First CR Chinese case files were probably destroyed at or before this time. Opening of new files in this sub-series ceased in the late 1970's, although some existing CH/XY files remain active in the 1980's.
A few files in this sub-series relate not to individuals but to businesses and Chinese community organizations, and document these groups' involvement in sponsoring or advocating the cases of specific persons.
Most of the surviving files bear the prefix CH, or its later replacement XY (a euphemism for the racial identifier), together with a sequential file number that appears to have been assigned centrally at Immigration HQ in Ottawa. It is not yet clear to what extent CH files were created in Immigration's regional offices rather than at NHQ in Ottawa. It is thought that many or most of the files were in fact created in the regions or at the ports of entry/CICs, and sent to Ottawa for renumbering, indexing and storage only after the conclusion of the case. Further research is required.
The surviving files document persons arriving from approximately 1900 onwards. The earliest files often represent families in which one member arrived early in the century, and sponsored other relatives' immigration to Canada after repeal of the exclusionary legislation. The bulk of the documentation therefore relates to persons arriving in Canada after 1947.
