Italy Moves to Curb Citizenship by Descent After Senate Approval
Italian Senate Approves Stricter Rules for Citizenship by Descent
With 81 votes in favor and 37 against, the Italian Senate has passed a new decree-law that introduces stricter conditions for acquiring Italian citizenship by descent. The newly approved rules specifically target individuals born abroad and aim to curb automatic entitlement to citizenship through ancestral ties.
New Eligibility Criteria for Citizenship by Descent
Under the revised law:
A person born outside Italy will be recognized as an Italian citizen only if at least one parent or grandparent holds solely Italian citizenship.
An exception applies if the person’s parents lived in Italy for at least two uninterrupted years after acquiring citizenship and before the child’s birth.
These changes significantly limit eligibility for individuals claiming citizenship through distant ancestry, especially in countries with large Italian-descendant populations.
Brazilian and Argentine Descendants Most Affected
According to a report by NSC, the changes will have the greatest impact on descendants in Brazil and Argentina, which received millions of Italian immigrants between the late 1800s and early 1900s.
In Brazil alone, around 1.4 million Italians arrived between 1870 and 1920.
Today, Brazil is home to an estimated 30 million Italian descendants, including 800,000 Italian citizens (by descent or dual nationality).
In 2023, Italy granted 61,000 citizenships by descent, with Brazilians accounting for 68.5%—nearly 42,000 cases.
Argentinians were the third-largest group, with over 16,000 individuals gaining Italian citizenship in 2023, a fourfold increase from 2021, according to ISTAT (Italian Office for Statistics).
Deputy PM: Italian Citizenship “Is Not a Joke”
Italian Deputy Prime Minister Antonio Tajani defended the stricter rules, stating that citizenship must reflect genuine national ties, not convenience.
“Being an Italian citizen is a serious matter; it is not a joke to have an [Italian] passport in your pocket to go shopping in Miami. We want those who wish to become Italian citizens—because they have the right and feel connected to our country—to be able to do so. But without abuse.”
— Antonio Tajani, Deputy Prime Minister of Italy
March 28 Decree Tightened Jus Sanguinis Rules Further
The recent decree builds on reforms enacted on March 28, when Italy introduced new residency requirements for those applying through jus sanguinis (citizenship by bloodline). While applicants previously did not need to live in Italy, the new rule now requires that they must have lived in Italy for at least three years to qualify.
These changes mark a broader shift in Italy’s approach to nationality, placing emphasis on residency, national identity, and legal accountability, rather than automatic entitlement through distant ancestry.
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