Once we became Italian citizens via the court system (on March 1, 2023) the next and last step was to move toward dual passports. I figured this was a formality, until I realized there were still a good number of steps to be taken to get our passports in hand.
Once the Judge rules in your favor in a 1948 case, the Court of Rome requires 60 days for the appellate process and, if there is no appeal, you can get a certified copy of the judgement, which becomes final. Our informed and experienced ICA representative, who was familiar with the ins and outs and challenges of the court’s appeal process, helped us through this process. We had the fortune to be assigned Chiara who worked tirelessly to get the comune to move in our direction as quickly as possible (which in Italy can be unheard of, if you know what I mean).
In fact, once obtained, the judgment must be recorded at the comune. Chiara was taking us around the turn to the finish line, but little did we know the line kept moving as we were getting closer, but Chiara refused to give up. She set up follow-up contact dates and times with the townhall clerk and reached out to them each and every time to keep everything moving forward. Chiara was relentless, but always cordial and patient with the clerk, so as to not upset him and give him reason to delay the process any further.
When the comune clerk informed Chiara that the records had been recorded, and she was about to receive her electronic copy, I thought I could see the finish line! However, the summer holidays on both sides of the Atlantic were putting the process at risk of being delayed. Chaira wasn’t going to let some holiday delays get in her way, and she stayed on top of the process with the comune of Acri, Italy, and the consulate in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, making sure she secured passport appointments for me and my wife, Vicki. That was actually the finish line and not just a dream! We went to Philly and met with the consulate representative. We walked out of the consulate 30 minutes later with passports in hand!
Our two boys were also assigned to Philadelphia and scheduled their appointments shortly after, and they too had passports in hand within a half hour. Unfortunately, our daughter and grandsons had to work with the Los Angeles Consulate which was a bit more of a challenge, and they were mailed their passports a week after their consulate meeting that had a waiting period of 3 months.
We are now a complete family of Italian/American dual citizens with both passports, and are extremely grateful to Marco and his team for their commitment and dedication. Every one of his team stayed close to the action and pushed hard when it was necessary to keep the government representatives on track. Chiara carried the load at the end of the process and had to contend with my impatience as time went on.
I can’t thank Chiara enough for her kindness, encouragement, patience, and perseverance in working with me during the good, and the not so good. My entire family is just so appreciative for all of Chiara’s hard work and for keeping this ‘old man’ in his lane with a positive attitude. 😊
Written based on Joe Pirozzi’s words
