The decree-law of March 28, 2025, No. 36, issued by the Italian government and containing “urgent provisions” regarding citizenship, was converted into law this past May 23.

It was never clear what the alleged “urgency” was, and I believe the Meloni government confused “urgency” with the need to update the legal framework governing citizenship.

The result is a law with very few articles, which mainly introduces “patches” — sometimes difficult to interpret — to the previous 1992 law.

This is not a coherent and comprehensive legal framework addressing citizenship in all its aspects, but rather a set of provisions that introduce “limitations” and “restrictions,” undermining the jus sanguinis system that has historically guided Italy.

This is not a law designed to establish long-term state policy; instead, it is a political decision — one shaped and colored by the ideology of the government that enacted it — with a clear goal: to definitively limit a reality that has overwhelmed the limited, comfortable bureaucratic capacity and structure of the country, fostering fears based more on prejudice and insecurity than on any real threat.

This political decision by the Meloni government, taken unilaterally and without consulting those directly affected, and driven by a very short-term vision, creates — from a human and social perspective — a painful rupture between Italy and its descendants around the world. From a legal standpoint, it introduces gaps, inequalities, and violations of basic constitutional principles, which, in practice, will result in an increase in one of the very issues it aimed to eliminate: the growing number of legal cases in Italian courts brought by thousands of residents abroad who have no intention of giving up their right to be Italian.

The new version of the law, which repeals the automatic transmission of citizenship to individuals born abroad, establishes that this right can only be passed down by first- or second-degree ancestors, provided these ancestors held — or had held — exclusively Italian citizenship at the time of their death, unless the applicant’s parent had resided in Italy for at least two years before the child's birth.

Experts point out that this new formulation could jeopardize the recognition of Italian citizenship even for children and grandchildren of Italians born in Italy, in cases where their parents or grandparents acquired a foreign citizenship without ever having lost their Italian citizenship.

Observers warn that the risk is moving forward with a reform that, in an effort to impose stricter filters to prevent abuse, ultimately undermines the legal and historical foundations of Italian citizenship by descent

By limiting the transmission primarily to cases of “exclusive citizenship,” the proposal denies the very reality of Italian emigration, which since the 19th century has been characterized by legal integration into host countries without severing ties to Italian identity.

In this way, under the vision of the new law, those with dual citizenship do not double their opportunities — they actually lose half of what they have.

For example, someone who holds both Italian and Argentine citizenship is considered less Italian than someone who holds only Italian citizenship. As MP Federica Onori stated during the parliamentary debate, having dual citizenship means “being guilty.”

Thus, in today’s global context — marked by multiculturalism and interconnected nations — the “guilty” are punished. Those who broaden their sense of belonging to multiple countries and cultures are penalized.

From this ideological perspective, how can one even conceive of being Italian while also being a citizen of Europe?

It is therefore understandable why this law was adopted by the current Italian government, which is closely aligned with the ideas of “sovereignism,” a movement gaining strong momentum across Europe. Similarly, the invocation of the decree’s alleged concerns about security or the supposed lack of an “effective” or “legitimate” bond with Italy has been used to justify the current reform.

In this way, being Italian will soon become the privilege of a minority — an elite — and only the “exclusively Italian” will be able to pass on this noble status to those born beyond its borders. Nothing could be further from the universal principle of equality, and nothing closer to the ideology of those who seek to close off “territorial” borders.

The Court of Cassation has always categorically affirmed that Italian citizenship, obtained under the principle of jus sanguinis, is acquired by birth and is of a permanent nature. The State “recognizes” and declares citizenship — it does not create it.

All those born before March 28 were therefore Italian at the time the decree was enacted, regardless of whether they had initiated the process at a consulate, with a municipality, or through legal action for recognition.

Laws are non-retroactive — this is a fundamental principle of legal civilization, a protective stronghold, a safeguard for the citizen that prevents lawmakers from enacting laws that harm “acquired rights,” such as citizenship in this case

In the Italian legal system, there is the principle of “legitimate trust” (in Italian, principio di legittimo affidamento), which is a fundamental legal principle that protects the reasonable trust individuals can place in the actions and declarations of other parties, especially public administration, and whose violation may give rise to liability.

If the public administration, through its acts or behavior, leads an individual to believe that a certain legal situation will remain unchanged, and the individual relies on that trust, the administration cannot later change its position and revoke that act or behavior, causing harm to the individual.

Consider, then, the many Argentinians or Brazilians I personally know who, based on this “legitimate trust,” had made life plans in Europe, sold a house or all their savings, and were either already in Italy or had flights booked just days after March 28. They intended to apply for citizenship at the municipalities and settle there with their children. Overnight, these people went from being Italian citizens to mere “oriundi” (people of Italian descent), to tourists limited to ninety days, forced to follow the residence application process just like any foreigner.

This law, as can be easily observed and as we have already discussed in the preceding article, is flawed by many aspects of unconstitutionality and will give rise to others that would perhaps be too lengthy to describe and explain here.

This law is therefore destined to a short life — lasting only as long as the judicial process takes — until the Constitutional Court can issue its verdict, which will bring it down in one decisive blow.

Once, I met a Genoese man living in Barcelona who told me that his Argentine neighbor had worked a miracle by making him feel at home again, taking him back in time to his childhood alongside his grandparents. Because that woman, perhaps without even realizing it, prepared “pesto alla Genovese” in a way no longer done in Liguria itself — just as it was made in the time of his grandmother.

It is therefore not necessary to speak the language perfectly or to have been to Italy a hundred times to maintain a “real, genuine bond” and to deserve the right to be Italian and hold a document or passport certifying it.

Being Italian is a matter of personal history, of sacrifices, traditions, and feelings. It is the daily memory of our grandparents who taught us songs and told us stories of the farmers who were forced to emigrate during the “Italian diaspora,” yet who kept forever engraved in their eyes the green fields of Piedmont or the blue sea of Liguria.

The value and prestige of Italian industry and culture around the world remain vibrant and alive thanks to the descendants of those emigrants who left for Argentina, Brazil, the United States, or Australia. These communities are Italy’s best allies in its growth and development worldwide. Many Italian entrepreneurs are surprised that sales in Argentina have always been proportionally significant compared to larger countries, not understanding that this is due to the deep-rooted Italian culture, the respect for work, and the creativity of descendants of Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci.

Trying to destroy all of this through a decree of apparent “urgency,” later ratified by a law passed hastily without proper social and parliamentary debate, constitutes a blatant injustice — a humiliation to “Italians of the world” — and a mutilation of a part of the Italian nation.

 

Fundamental Changes Introduced by the New Italian Citizenship Law:

 

1. Repeal of Automatic Transmission of Citizenship. Generational Limitation and Exclusivity Requirement:

The transmission of Italian citizenship by descent for individuals born outside of Italy has been limited to two generations: if at least one parent or grandparent was born in Italy and held exclusive Italian citizenship, their children and grandchildren may acquire it.

The sole exception allowing a “non-exclusive” parent or adoptive parent to transmit citizenship is the circumstance of having resided in Italy for at least two uninterrupted years following the acquisition of Italian citizenship and prior to the date of the child’s birth or adoption.

2. Category Protected by the Temporal Limitation Introduced by the New Law:

Individuals who secured an appointment prior to March 28 to submit the necessary documents for the recognition of citizenship—whether at a consulate, an Italian municipality, or through judicial proceedings before an Italian court—after the law came into effect, will be subject to and protected under the previous legal framework.

We also consider that those who attempted to obtain an appointment at the consulate but were unable to do so due to bureaucratic or administrative issues should also be entitled to initiate legal actions under the legislation in force up until March 28. This situation corresponds to previously recognized cases of legal action based on “lack of appointment availability” or “endless waiting lists.”

 

3. Minors:

Minor children of Italian citizens born prior to the enactment of the decree are granted a limited period—until May 31, 2026—to register with the consulate and obtain Italian citizenship by jus sanguinis. Failure to complete registration within this period may result in the loss of the automatic right to citizenship, requiring them instead to pursue naturalization procedures.

Conversely, minor children of Italian citizens born abroad after the promulgation of the March decree must be registered with the consulate within one year of birth. This registration will be considered a formal application for the recognition of Italian citizenship.

4. Individuals of Italian Descent (“Oriundi”):

The new law establishes a new legal category—oriundi—which includes individuals of Italian descent beyond the second generation (i.e., great-grandchildren and beyond), as well as children and grandchildren of those who did not retain the “exclusive” status of being Italian citizens and who acquired an additional foreign citizenship.

According to the text of the law, after two years of legal and continuous residence in Italy, direct descendants up to the second degree (children and grandchildren) of Italian citizens—i.e., those previously disqualified due to the lack of “exclusivity” of their ancestors—may apply for citizenship.

Great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren will be subject to the general residency requirement applicable to foreign nationals, currently set at ten years. This period may potentially be reduced to five years if the referendum scheduled for early June is approved.

It is important to note that once the required period of residence is fulfilled, applicants must wait an additional three years (in practice, often longer) after submitting their application for the citizenship to be effectively granted.

There are various types of visas that may be used to obtain a residence permit legalizing one’s stay in Italy, and all of them may be accessed by oriundi.

The residence permit for work purposes (permesso di soggiorno per motivi di lavoro) is the most useful for citizenship purposes. Under the new law, it will be granted to oriundi without generational limitations and will not be subject to the quotas established by the so-called Decreto Flussi, which governs the number of work visas available to foreign nationals in Italy.

A key requirement is that applicants must have a job offer from an Italian employer willing to hire them. The residence permit issued will be valid for the duration of the employment contract. However, once this permit is obtained, it is possible to change employers or renew both the employment contract and the residence permit with the same employer.

At present, there is no official definition of which countries will be considered as having a “high rate of Italian emigration”—a condition necessary to access these permits. Nevertheless, it is beyond doubt that Argentina will be among the countries included on that list.

For oriundi required to meet the ten-year residency requirement (as things currently stand) to obtain citizenship, it is important to note that after five years of continuous residence with a stable income, it is possible to obtain the Carta di Soggiorno (EU long-term residence permit), which not only allows residence and employment in Italy, but also in other European Union countries. This status significantly facilitates the eventual acquisition of Italian citizenship.

5.- Reacquisition of Italian Citizenship:

Individuals who lost their Italian citizenship under previous legislation now have the opportunity, under the new law, to reacquire it through a formal declaration. This declaration may be submitted at the consulate between July 1, 2025, and December 31, 2027.

 

Pablo Munini  Tomo 55 Foglio 386 , Colegio Público de Abogados Buenos Aires

e-mail :    info@citizenship.support