If you are looking to apply for Italian citizenship due to an Italian great grandparent, there are several steps you need to follow and special requirements you need to achieve.
Jure Sanguinis or “right for blood”
For several years now, Italy has approved the right of citizenship by the principle of Jure Sanguinis or “right of blood”.
This right implies that any Italian descendant, no matter where they were born, has the right to apply for dual Italian citizenship as long as they can demonstrate an uninterrupted connection with Italy.
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How to apply for Italian citizenship by Jure Sanguinis?
Applying for Italian citizenship involves a long process where “Patience” is the key word.
It feels like traveling back in time. You might dig into your family’s past in order to discover who came from Italy to your country, in which year, which also will tell you the reasons why they did it; if they resigned their Italian citizenship or not, among other questions.
How do I prove my Italian bloodline?
In order to demonstrate the Italian authorities of your blood right, you need to present a series of legal documents that tells your family story:
- Birth certificates: starting from your first Italian ancestry, to all the family members until you were born.
- Marriage certificates: to explain family unions.
- Death certificates: to anyone who applies.
- No Naturalization certificate: maybe the most important one. Which demonstrates that your italian ancestor did not resign to their nationality once they arrived in their new country.
If they did, do not worry ! There might still be a way you can apply for Italian citizenship. Keep ready for special cases down below.
- Personal certificates: all your personal information, born, marriage, divorce, anything that applies.
Please note that any document that has not been issued in Italy must be apostilled, legalized and translated into Italian by an official translator registered and recognized by the Italian consular authorities.
Where can I find the documents I need?
Digging into your past can be challenging. First source of information and most recommended will always be to speak with your family.
Information such as names in Italian, place where your ancestor was born, year that they came to your country are the starting point of your research.
Some families are lucky enough to already possess all original documents. Some others have sufficient information to contact the Italian comune and request the original documents. However, others need to work a little bit extra.
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For this last group, the internet will be their best friend.
For many years, the Italian government has worked with non profits organizations in order to promote accessibility and reconnection to foreigners with their Italian roots. By creating different web portals where only by entering some key information, you will be able to obtain digitized images of the documentation needed for then to request it from the corresponding Italian authority.
For more details about these portals read our post on how to search for Italian records online.
Once I gather all the information, what should I do?
As we mentioned before, once we have our folder completed. We need to make sure all documents are legally translated to Italian.
With our complete folder, we are ready to request an appointment at the Italian office closest to our place of residence, through the Italian web portal Prenot@Mi.
Depending on the consulate chosen and the demand it has, the waiting time and availability of appointments may vary significantly.
Special Cases
As you can imagine, throughout history immigration and nationality laws changed and Italy was no exception.
Given that the Jure Sanguinis principle admits transgenerational blood rights without a time limit, there is a possibility that your particular case has been affected by one of these special situations:
- Your ancestor resigned to their Italian nationality, however they have a child before that. In this case, the newborn will still be considered Italian, therefore the bloodline is not broken and you can claim your citizenship through this descendant.
- Your Italian ancestor is a woman born before 1948.
Take advantage of specialized assistance to secure your passport for a borderless future.
Previous to that year, the government only allowed men to transfer Italian citizenship through blood rights. However, in order to instate equality, Italy changed the rules and now you can file a motion to appeal to the 1948 Rule in court in Rome, claiming your Italian rights through your female ancestor.
If you have concerns about your personal case, you can look for more information in our post Italian citizenship loopholes or speak with one of our advisers.
