Share and Follow
IN brief
- Italy’s top constitutional court has upheld a law limiting citizenship by descent to parents or grandparents of Italian citizens.
- The ruling affects millions globally, including Australians, who would have previously been eligible to apply.
For Australians with Italian roots dreaming of obtaining an Italian passport, the path just became more challenging. Italy’s highest constitutional court has upheld a contentious law that significantly narrows the eligibility for citizenship through distant ancestry.
Last year, Italy implemented a decree that tightened the criteria for citizenship by descent. This law now restricts eligibility to individuals who have an Italian parent or grandparent, along with imposing stricter application requirements. This change has disappointed many who hoped to connect with their heritage.
In March, the Constitutional Court of Italy affirmed this law, and on Thursday, it released its detailed legal reasoning. The court dismissed challenges to the law as either “unfounded” or “inadmissible,” reinforcing the decree’s standing.
Prior to these changes, the rules were more inclusive. Any person who could demonstrate they had an Italian ancestor alive after March 17, 1861—the date marking the establishment of the Kingdom of Italy—was eligible for citizenship under the principle of “jus sanguinis,” which translates to “right of blood” in Latin.
With the new restrictions, millions of people of Italian descent, who might have qualified under the previous regulations, now find themselves unable to apply. This shift marks a significant departure from the past policy, leaving many with heritage aspirations unfulfilled.
When the laws were enacted, Italian foreign minister and deputy prime minister Antonio Tajani argued they were needed because the citizenship process had been misused.
“Unfortunately, over the years, there have been abuses and citizenship requests that went somewhat beyond genuine interest in our country,” Tajani said last year.
Italy’s foreign ministry has previously said that would-be citizens had overwhelmed consulates abroad with passport applications.
Separate legal challenges have also been mounted against the so-called “minor rule”, a provision that strips citizenship eligibility from descendants whose Italian ancestors naturalised abroad while their child was still under 18.
Before 1992, Italy did not generally allow dual citizenship, meaning many Italian migrants who became Australian citizens lost their Italian nationality, with flow-on effects for their children’s eligibility.
A decision from the Supreme Court of Cassation in a test case involving three families — two American and one Venezuelan — is expected in the coming months and could have implications for the 2025 restrictions.
According to CNN, lawyers for the plaintiffs challenging the minor rule asked the court to rule on whether citizenship is a permanent right acquired at birth.
If they do rule in the plaintiffs’ favour, that could open the door for a judicial dismantling of the 2025 citizenship restrictions.
‘Hard to swallow’
Domenic Cuda said he was affected by the “minor rule” because his Italian-born grandfathers became naturalised Australian citizens while his parents were still under 18, effectively cutting the line of descent.
He said other Australian-born relatives remained eligible for Italian citizenship. Cuda’s friend only discovered his eligibility after finding that his grandmother had become a naturalised Australian citizen after his father had already turned 18, meaning the citizenship chain had not been broken in that line.
“It’s sort of a discrepancy in the law that sort of creates haves and have-nots within families,” he told SBS News.
“An interpretation of the law says that I am less Italian than my younger cousins, and from an identity perspective, it’s hard to swallow.”
Between 2014 and 2024, the number of Italians living abroad rose by 40 per cent, from 4.6 million to 6.4 million, many registering thanks to their newfound nationality, according to the foreign ministry.
Italy has a population of around 59 million, which has been shrinking over the past decade. The foreign ministry has estimated that, under the old rules, 60 to 80 million people worldwide were eligible for citizenship.
This story was produced in collaboration with SBS Italian.
For the latest from SBS News, download our app and subscribe to our newsletter.