Italian Citizenship by Descent

Summary

Italian citizenship by descent (jure sanguinis, "by right of blood") has historically been one of the most generous ancestry-based citizenship routes in the world. For over a century, Italy recognized an unbroken bloodline from an Italian ancestor as sufficient for citizenship, with no statutory generational cap. Descendants with a great-great-grandparent who emigrated from Italy — often during the late-19th or early-20th century wave (much of it to the U.S., Argentina, Brazil, Australia, and Canada) — could qualify, provided the chain of transmission was never broken by naturalization (before the next descendant's birth) or formal renunciation.

The foundational law remains Law 91/1992, which codified jure sanguinis transmission. A critical wrinkle is the so-called "1948 rule": under pre-Republican law, Italian women could not pass citizenship to children born before 1 January 1948. Descendants in female lines pre-1948 must pursue a judicial claim at the Tribunale di Roma (or the relevant regional tribunal after 2022 decentralization) rather than an administrative application.

On 28 March 2025, the Italian government issued Decreto-Legge 36/2025, which was converted into law on 23 May 2025 (Law 74/2025) and entered into force on 24 May 2025. The reform sharply restricts jure sanguinis going forward. For applicants born abroad who also hold another citizenship, recognition is generally available only if a parent or grandparent held only Italian citizenship, or if an Italian parent lived in Italy for at least 2 continuous years after becoming Italian and before the applicant's birth or adoption. Great-grandparent and more remote claims are generally closed for new applications unless the applicant falls inside the transition rules.

Transitional rules preserve some rights for applicants who had already filed a complete application or had a qualifying confirmed consular appointment by 27 March 2025 at 23:59 Rome time. That protection is not limited to remote-ancestor cases; it can matter for any older jure sanguinis claim that would otherwise fail the new parent/grandparent rules. Anyone now considering this route must confirm eligibility under the post-reform framework and, in many cases, pivot to alternative pathways such as residence-based naturalization, elective residence, or the digital nomad visa.

Eligibility

• Italian ancestor alive on or after 17 March 1861 (date of Italian unification); citizenship did not exist as a legal status before this date.
• No naturalization of the ancestor before the next descendant in line was born — a foreign naturalization certificate (e.g., U.S., Argentine, Brazilian) dated even one day before the child's birth breaks the chain.
• No formal renunciation of Italian citizenship by any person in the line of descent prior to the birth of the next descendant.
• 1948 cases: if transmission passes through a female ancestor whose child was born before 1 January 1948, the claim must be pursued through the Italian courts rather than administratively — the constitutional court has affirmed women's right to transmit, but legislation was never updated.
• Post-2025 reform (DL 36/2025, converted as L. 74/2025): applicants born abroad who hold another citizenship must usually show either (1) a parent or grandparent who held only Italian citizenship, or (2) an Italian parent who lived in Italy for at least 2 continuous years after acquiring Italian citizenship and before the applicant's birth or adoption. A great-grandparent or older ancestor does not satisfy the new rule by itself.
• Transitional protection: applicants who filed a complete consular or judicial application, or had a qualifying confirmed consular appointment, before 23:59 Rome time on 27 March 2025 may still be assessed under the pre-reform rules.
• No criminal disqualifications per se for descent claims, but applicants with serious convictions may face scrutiny.
• Dual citizenship is permitted: Italy permits dual nationality with most countries (including the U.S., Canada, U.K., Australia, and most EU/EEA states); no renunciation of foreign citizenship is required on the Italian side.

What This Route Allows

This route can help confirm or document citizenship in Italy when the citizenship-creating facts named above are proven. For many people in this category, the main work is evidence: civil records, family-link records, prior citizenship records, and any registration or restoration paperwork needed to show the claim.

What This Route Is Not

This is not a shortcut around documentation. Even when the citizenship claim is based on a right, you still need records that prove each required fact and family link.

Next Steps

1. Map your family tree and identify the qualifying ancestor. Under the post-2025 rules, first confirm whether you have a qualifying Italian parent or grandparent, and whether they held only Italian citizenship or meet the 2-year residence exception through an Italian parent. If your only Italian ancestor is a great-grandparent or more remote, a new jure sanguinis application is likely closed unless you fall inside the transition rules.
2. Gather vital records for every generation in the chain: birth, marriage, and death certificates for the Italian ancestor and every descendant down to you; plus the ancestor's naturalization record from the destination country (e.g., USCIS/NARA for the U.S., or proof of non-naturalization). Italian records come from the comune of birth; civil records elsewhere come from your country's vital-records authority.
3. Apostille and translate all non-Italian documents. Most foreign documents require an apostille under the Hague Convention (in the U.S., issued by the Secretary of State in the state where the document was issued; other countries have their own competent authorities), followed by a certified Italian translation. Non-Hague countries follow a consular legalization procedure instead.
4. Choose your filing venue: (a) the Italian consulate with jurisdiction over your country/state of residence, (b) directly at the comune in Italy if you establish residency there, or (c) judicial proceedings in Italy for 1948 cases or contested files.
5. Engage qualified legal counsel for 1948 cases and any edge cases — pre-1948 maternal-line claims require litigation before an Italian tribunal, and post-reform claims may require careful argument regarding the transitional window or constitutional challenge.
6. After recognition, request your Italian passport and register with AIRE (the registry of Italians abroad).

Sources

• MAECI — Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Citizenship
• Gazzetta Ufficiale — Decreto-Legge 28 marzo 2025, n. 36
• Gazzetta Ufficiale — Legge 23 maggio 2025, n. 74 (conversion of DL 36/2025)
• Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs — Citizenship
• Consulate General of Italy in New York — Citizenship by Descent
• Law 91/1992 — Nuove norme sulla cittadinanza (normattiva.it)
• Italian Ministry of Interior — Cittadinanza portal