Citizenship by residency is granted on the basis of the number of years of legal residency in Italy. For non-EU citizens, legal residency in Italy for at least 10 years is required. On the contrary, for EU citizens, the period of residency required is 4 years. Nevertheless, there are also cases for which the period of residency required is lower, such as for foreigners whose parents or grandparents were Italians by birth. In this specific case the time required is 2 years of legal residency; the same applies to individuals who were born in Italy as non-Italian citizens.
Note: there is a simplified process to apply for Italian citizenship for individuals who were born in Italy and resided in the country without interruption until the age of 18. These individuals can petition to become Italian citizens by presenting a simple request to the vital statistics office (“ufficio di stato civile”) of the municipality in which they reside, before they turn 19 years old. Click HERE for more information.
In order to apply for Italian citizenship by residency you need to meet a number of requirements. Firstly, you need to provide proof that you are a resident in Italy from a legal stand point, i.e., that your name is listed in the registry office in the town/s where you have resided with no interruption. If you are a non-EU citizen, you must also comply with the laws regulating immigration, i.e. you must hold a regular residency permit for the entire duration of your residency in Italy.
Secondly, you need to have certified knowledge of the Italian language at a level which is no lower than B1, which is a low intermediate level, unless you already have certified knowledge of Italian which has been recognized by one of the institutions listed below, or if you hold a language degree in Italian or you attended school in Italy, or if you hold a “carta di soggiorno UE per soggiornanti di lungo periodo” which was issued after 2011.
Currently, there are four certification bodies which belong to the unified certification system known as Italian Quality Language Certification (CLIQ):
- the University for foreigners of Siena,
- the University for foreigners of Perugia,
- the Roma Tre University,
- the Dante Alighieri Society.
The language certification required for individuals who apply for Italian citizenship by residency is the same as the one required for individuals applying for Italian citizenship by marriage. To read more about the language certification click here .
Thirdly, you need to provide evidence that your yearly income has not been lower than € 8.263,31 for the past 3 years. If you are married and your spouse depends on you financially, your yearly income must not have been lower than €11.362,05, and an additional € 516, 46 is required for every dependent child. If you do not have a yearly income or if your yearly income does not meet the minimum required by law, you can indicate somebody else’s, provided that they are part of the same household.
The application for citizenship by residency must be submitted via the official website of the Italian Ministry of the Interior. There will be a number of fields that need to be completed and a section in which you will need to upload scans of the required documents. Once your application has been approved you will then need to provide the local prefecture (“Prefettura”) with original copies of the documents. In particular, you will need:
- a certified, original copy of your birth certificate which has been duly translated and legalized (in compliance with the obligations provided for by law in relation to legalization/apostille and translation). The specific requirements regarding the translation and legalization/apostille depend on the country of origin where the certificate was issued;
- a criminal background check issued by the country of origin and any other countries in which you have resided, which have been duly translated and legalized (in compliance with the obligations provided for by law in relation to legalization/apostille and translation); for people from the US, aside from the criminal background check from the Federal Government, criminal background checks from all of the US states where you have resided are normally required. Please note that it is advisable to request your criminal background checks last as they are only valid for 6 months from the date of issuance.
- Proof of payment of €250;
- Proof of income;
- The language certification (if this applies to you).
Note: In addition to the above-mentioned documents, people who have Italian ancestry and are applying for citizenship by residency must also provide their Italian ascendants’ vital records.
Please note that if you are a man and you are married, you do not need to provide a certified copy of your marriage certificate as part of the documents needed to apply for citizenship. If you are a woman and you have changed your name after your marriage, you will need to provide a copy of your marriage certificate or another document which justifies your name change.
As for the processing time, it can take up to 24 months (2 years) to receive an outcome. This can also be extended to 36 months (3 years). If your claim to citizenship is successful, a decree of citizenship will be sent to the town hall of your place of residency, and the citizenship ceremony will take place within 6 months from that date. During this ceremony you will need to take an oath and swear allegiance to the Italian Republic. If you have any children who are minors who are living with you at the time of the oath they will automatically become Italian citizens.