The Great Naturalization Of Brazil: How To Obtain Italian Citizenship

• Published date: 08 January 2024
• Subject Matter: Litigation, Mediation & Arbitration, Immigration, Trials & Appeals & Compensation, General Immigration
• Law Firm: Boccadutri International Law Firm
• Author: Mr Calogero Boccadutri

Many descendants of Italians who emigrated to Brazil and wish to claim recognition of Italian citizenship still grapple with what is known as the "Great Naturalization of 1889" - the imposition of Brazilian citizenship by authorities on all foreign citizens present in the country.

Faced with a highly unusual event, Italian law considers the transmission of citizenship precluded only in cases where Italian ancestors expressed their intention to relinquish Italian citizenship.

How does one prove this intent in cases of 'tacit consent,' where there is no document demonstrating that the Italian ancestor explicitly refused Brazilian citizenship in order to retain their Italian citizenship?

The response to this question has divided Italian judges whose task is to rule on the claims of Italian citizenship by descent through Italian immigrants affected by the Great Naturalization.

The Great Naturalization of 1889

In 1889, the Brazilian provisional government issued Decree No. 58, establishing an automatic renunciation mechanism for all foreign citizens residing in Brazil as of November 15, 1889.

From then on, the principle of jus soli became the general rule for citizenship in the Brazilian legal system.

Between 1889 and 1891, the Brazilian government also enacted other measures of forced and mass naturalization affecting all foreigners living on Brazilian territory.

Emigrants present in Brazil during those years, to avoid becoming Brazilian citizens and losing their previous citizenship, had to submit a declaration renouncing the acquisition of the new citizenship.

Mass naturalization alone was not enough to cause the loss of Italian citizenship for immigrants in Brazil. However, at that time, Italy operated under the 1865 civil code, explicitly stating that acquiring a new citizenship was grounds for losing Italian citizenship, leaving room for interpretation where the individual's will mattered little.

More than tacit consent, it was ignorance of the laws and measures in place to assert the desire to remain Italian.

Cases where voluntary renunciation was expressed are those where the bloodline can truly be considered interrupted.

As early as October 5, 1907, the Court of Cassation in Naples ruled, referring to the Brazilian situation, that Italian citizenship could only be lost through a voluntary and explicit renunciation, and not through the actions of the foreign state's government, avoiding reacting against such attribution.

Conclusive acts expressing the...