When Kyle began doing research on how to get Italian citizenship by descent he came across one of ICA’s YouTube videos. Being a 1948 case, his application had to go through the courts, which can be trickier than applying via a municipality or a consulate.
“ICA immediately stood out for the ease with which they could carry me through the process”, he states.
A “1948 case” refers to applying for Italian citizenship through a female ancestor who gave birth to her child prior to January 1, 1948. This is the date when Italy’s constitution came into effect; prior to this date women did not have the same rights as men and therefore could not pass on citizenship to their children. Therefore, people like Kyle who have a female ancestor who gave birth to their child prior to that date must file a court case to claim citizenship retroactively. So long as the female ancestor did not naturalize before her child’s birth, of course, which applies to all citizenship by descent cases, regardless of gender. Prior to June 2022 all 1948 cases had to be filed through the Court of Rome, but now they must be filed in the court of the municipality where the female ancestor was born. While each court has a different processing time, this change means that the cases can go through quicker. Just like applying through a municipality or consulate, the applicant must retrieve vital records and have them translated into Italian and apostilled. It can seem like a daunting process at first, especially if one is unsure if they will obtain citizenship, as Kyle was.
“No one at the time, when I started looking into this service, would offer a 100% money back guarantee prior to pursuing confirmation of my Italian citizenship. The fees were milestone based, so I had nothing to lose and everything to gain.” Kyle selected the full-service package, and his contact was Martina Ottoboni. He was “impressed with her efficiency and meticulous work, as well as the quick, detailed replies to his phone calls and emails”. From minor, yet crucial, corrections to birth certificates to following up with agencies, Kyle found the overall process to be quite smooth and stress-free. “Any question I had was promptly responded to with detailed information and [it] was comforting to know that Martina was highly knowledgeable of my case and status.”
Kyle’s entire case took about two years, but he said it most likely would’ve been even shorter had the health emergency not slowed down the process of receiving certain documents in his jurisdiction. He was happily confirmed an Italian citizen in September 2022, with no further inquiry from the Italian court. “Having an Italian passport allows my family additional opportunities to pursue affordable education for my children (in most cases free), further freedom of mobility throughout the EU as well as certain tax benefits. My real estate plans within the next 5 years are to tour Italy and purchase real estate property (with the help of ICA’s realtor contacts) for my children while in university in Italy. As an equity trader living in Italy (and as a citizen), we will be afforded access to financial markets and instruments only available in the EU and/or Italy. This will further expand our portfolio and lead to exciting investments in a new market outside of the USA”.
“I have been recommending ICA to everyone I know and am so grateful to have had this experience with this team (especially Martina). I would recommend to anyone that knows, or even suspects, they are of Italian descent to call ICA as soon as possible. Get the free evaluation to know for sure.”
Kyle also highly recommends ICA’s YouTube videos for informative, up-to-date information on the process of getting Italian citizenship. Congrats to Kyle!
Kyle has agreed to serve as a subject of this success story and has granted ICA the right to use his name and image.
