Deutsche Dienststelle ( WASt ) The Deutsche Dienststelle ( WASt ) is a German agency based in Berlin which maintains records of members of the former German " Wehrmacht " who were killed in action . Formerly called the " Wehrmachtsauskunftstelle " ( " WASt " ) , this agency also provides information about the fate of foreign and German soldiers as well as prisoners of war in Germany . This kind of information is used for civil proceedings as well as an official register of war graves . History . It started its work on August 26 , 1939 under the name of " Wehrmachtsauskunftstelle für Kriegerverluste und Kriegsgefangene ( WASt ) " , as part of the " Wehrmacht " , under the auspices of Article No . 77 of the Third Geneva Convention ( which related to the treatment of prisoners of war from July 27 , 1929 ) . The text of Article 77 is as follows : " The Detaining Powers shall provide all facilities for the transmission , through the Protecting Power or the Central Prisoners of War Agency provided for in Article 123 , of instruments , papers or documents intended for prisoners of war or despatched by them , especially powers of attorney and wills . " " In all cases they shall facilitate the preparation and execution of such documents on behalf of prisoners of war ; in particular , they shall allow them to consult a lawyer and shall take what measures are necessary for the authentication of their signatures . " Headquarters moved several times . In August 1943 , the archives were divided in two parts . One part of the " WASt " was transferred to Saalfeld / Saale in Thuringia , the other part moved to Meiningen , also in Thuringia . It was put under the American Military Authority on April 12 , 1945 , after their occupation of Thuringia . The American forces moved " WASt " on July 1 , 1945 to Fürstenhagen near Kassel , shortly before the Soviet Army moved in . In January 1946 , the archive was relocated to Berlin and renamed the " Deutsche Dienststelle " . On June 14 , 1946 , the Allied Control Council devolved some of its role to the French Military Commission . The Federal Government of Germany and Land Berlin agreed on January 9 , 1951 , to rename " WASt " the " Deutsche Dienststelle ( WASt ) für die Benachrichtigung der nächsten Angehörigen von Gefallenen der ehemaligen deutschen Wehrmacht " and made it part of the administration of Land Berlin . " WASt " is now located in Berlin in the Wittenau quarter in the district of Reinickendorf . Its address is Eichborndamm 179 . Data from further archives . " WASt " integrated in the post - war period documents from other military and paramilitary archives . In December 1990 , it received documents originating from the Potsdam military archive and from the GDR state archive in Dornburg near Zerbst / Anhalt . " WASt " s archives were swelled by further documents from various former army , navy / marine and other archives about casualties , prisoners of war and so on . " WASt " has now also become an important source for scientific research . Existing files . The French author Laurent Guillet , a native resident of Brittany , has conducted research into his main interest area of Franco - German history during World War II . He has listed some important documents which are part of the archives of " WASt " . This information is recorded below to further assist potential users of " WASt " . Role of the " Deutsche Dienststelle " ( " WASt " ) . Requests directed to " WASt " will pass through , according to the wishes of the individual , the following stages : 1 ) Alphabetical central data file 2 ) Prisoners of war 3 ) Marines / Naval forces 4 ) War cemeteries 5 ) Identification tags 6 ) Further external inquiries 7 ) Written notices The Past . Formerly , " WASt " was tasked with searching for proper documents in order to evaluate old age pensions for German soldiers or their family members who had been left behind . On the other hand , persons who committed war crime s in the German Armed Forces ( " Wehrmacht " ) , could be identified by this agency . Future . Today , the Agency is called the " Deutsche Dienststelle ( WASt ) " and is part of the administration of " Bundesland " Berlin . Nowadays , enquiries are often still fruitful ; for example , the German War Graves Commission relies in its search for unknown German war graves , among others , on information obtained from them . It can also provide proof of German descent for would - be immigrants looking to resettle from abroad ( e . g . from Poland ) , as establishing a link to an ancestor who served in the German Armed Forces can provide this . War children whose fathers were German soldiers or German Prisoners of War can also contact the Agency to research the history of their German fathers who were killed , are listed as missing , or are no longer traceable . Such enquiries to " WASt " derive mainly from France , Norway , Denmark , The Netherlands , and from Finland . In terms of numbers , there are about 500 enquiries per year from war children born in , or slightly after , World War II , with around 110 per year alone from France . This research is often undertaken as part of a genealogical search for their origins , their unknown procreator and relates to those soldiers who were declared missing , killed in action or are untraceable . " WASt " can also conduct inquiries for the German families of former German soldiers , for example , to find out if a French war child is searching for their father .