How To Obtain Italian Citizenship If The Consulate Does Not Accept Applications?

• Published date: 16 January 2024
• Subject Matter: Immigration, General Immigration
• Law Firm: Boccadutri International Law Firm
• Author: Mr Calogero Boccadutri

Are you seeking Italian citizenship but facing delays in processing your application at the Consulate relevant to your residence, as stipulated by law?

In the case of documented impossibility to obtain recognition of the right to Italian citizenship iure sanguinis administratively, it is possible to turn to the judicial authority.

Mere hindrance is not sufficient to approach the Court to be acknowledged as an Italian citizen by descent.

When applying for citizenship, it is essential to provide comprehensive documentation proving that the bloodline has not been intentionally severed, meaning that ancestors maintained Italian citizenship or, at most, lost it involuntarily (e.g., through marriage or forced naturalization).

The appeal for citizenship recognition by descent can be filed with the competent Italian Court.

The choice of the Court is based on the birthplace of the father, mother, or Italian citizen ancestor (Law reforming civil procedure no. 206 of 26.11.2021, effective from 24.12.2021), and it applies to cases filed from June 2022 onwards.

Consulate Overloaded with Work: A Recent Case

Discussing a specific case handled by our firm, it took just over a year, from the filing of the appeal with the competent Italian Court, to be recognized as an Italian citizen as a direct descendant, even though the case should have followed the administrative-consular route and presented no particular challenges.

The names of the ancestors had undergone changes over time, as they had provided different names in the new homeland, requiring a straightforward clarification of identity certification.

Although the ancestor had naturalized as a citizen of the new state, this did not hinder applying for Italian citizenship. The naturalization occurred after the descendant's birth, who was already of legal age at that time and had remained a legally recognized Italian citizen, thus continuing the so-called "bloodline."

A typical story, and a case destined to follow the administrative route before concluding successfully.

The petitioner had already gathered all the necessary documentation, both produced in Italy and collected abroad, from the birth certificate to the marriage certificate, from population census records to the birth certificate of the children, demonstrating how and when various changes had...