ROME (AP) — In a landmark judgment, Italy’s supreme court has affirmed that a child born with dual citizenship—Italian and another nationality—retains Italian citizenship even if their parent subsequently naturalizes in another country. This significant legal decision is set to bolster the citizenship claims of descendants of Italian expatriates across the globe.
The court’s ruling resolves a persistent legal quandary known as the “Minor Issue,” which has impacted thousands of cases where ancestry-based citizenship was in question. Many of these cases involve families who emigrated from Italy between the late 1800s and early 1900s, authorities highlight.
Announced Sunday and released to the public on Wednesday, the decision was handed down by the Court of Cassation’s top panel, responsible for clarifying conflicting legal interpretations.
At the heart of this legal conundrum was a debate about whether minors automatically forfeited their Italian citizenship when their Italian parent acquired a foreign nationality.
A restrictive reading of the law, first adopted by the judiciary in 2023, led to the rejection of many applications from subsequent generations. Authorities perceived this as a break in the continuous line of citizenship inheritance.
What the court decided
In its new ruling, the court said that under Italy’s historical citizenship laws, children who were already Italian citizens by birth under the principle of “iure sanguinis,” or citizenship by bloodline, did not automatically lose their Italian citizenship when a parent became a citizen of another country.
The court clarified that children born in countries that automatically grant citizenship at birth — including the United States — retained their Italian citizenship even if their parents later naturalized there. Because they remained Italian citizens, they could pass that citizenship on to subsequent generations.
The ruling represents a reversal of recent practice
Lawyer Marco Mellone, who represented applicants in the case, explained that the ruling reversed a restrictive interpretation that had blocked citizenship claims in recent years, many by U.S. citizens.
What the decision means for people of Italian ancestry
The decision could have broad implications for descendants of Italian emigrants, particularly in North and South America, where large Italian diaspora communities have ancestral ties to Italy. Mellone estimated that several hundred thousand families may have been affected by the restrictive interpretation adopted in recent years.
Legal experts say the judgment is likely to strengthen the position of applicants whose claims were rejected solely because of the Minor Issue and provide authoritative guidance to judges handling pending cases. The ruling could also influence how Italian administrative authorities and consulates assess future citizenship applications.
Whether the Interior Ministry and Italian consulates formally adjust their practices to reflect the court’s interpretation remains unclear. However, decisions issued by the panel — known as the “Sezioni Unite” or United Sections — carry particular weight because they are intended to resolve conflicting interpretations of the law.
Mellone noted that “there’s no one above” the panel, which has only very rarely reversed decisions.
The ruling comes as Italy faces growing demand for citizenship by descent and legal disputes over the scope of ancestry-based citizenship rights.
Separately, a law championed by Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani that restricts citizenship transmission through more distant generations has been referred to the European Union’s Court of Justice, with proceedings expected next year.