An approach for standardizing access to user registries, the approach involving providing a first schema extension to an identity management system and a bridge component to an identity management application wherein the bridge component comprises a second schema extension to the identity management application, receiving a request in a first data format associated with the identity management system, converting the request into a second data format associated with the identity management application and executing the request in the identity management application, receiving a response to the request in the second data format, converting the response into the first data format and returning the response to an end user via the identity management system.