There has been much discussion recently concerning citizenship by descent cases in the Italian local courts, particularly those with a “minor age” issue. In fact, the trend continues throughout 2024 that most local courts have been approving a majority of these types of cases. This article will explain further details on the situation and the future outlook of minor-age citizenship cases at the Italian local courts.
“Minor Age” Issue
First, we will review the Italian Citizenship Law that provides the basis for Italian citizenship by descent cases. Law no.555/1912, which was enacted on June 13, 1912, established that citizenship would be transmitted according to the principle of jure sanguinis, or right of blood. This means that descendants with Italian-born ancestors have the ability to obtain recognition of their Italian citizenship, proving an unbroken chain between the applicant and their Italian-born ancestor. This law also stated that acquiring a foreign citizenship meant the automatic renouncement of one’s Italian citizenship. This did not change until Law 91/1992 came into effect on August 16, 1992, permitting dual citizenship.
The instances where you would have a so-called “minor age” issue occur when your Italian-born ancestor voluntarily acquired foreign citizenship while their child, the next descendant in line, was still a minor. As a reminder, before March 9, 1975, the age of majority in Italy was 21.
Guidelines in the “Circolare” n. 43347
On October 3, 2024, the Italian Ministry of Interior released new guidelines indicating that an ancestor who was naturalized when their child was a minor would cause an interruption in the transfer of citizenship to the subsequent generations. However, the “circolare” ONLY applies to applications that are filed via an Italian consulate or municipality. Since public administrations and the Italian judicial system are legally completely separated and independent from each other, the “circolare” does not bind in any way judges and courts.
Court Cases
The first situation in which a citizenship case would be filed in the Italian courts instead of at an Italian consulate would be what is called a “1948 case”. According to the 1912 Citizenship Law, women were not permitted to pass citizenship down to their children. This changed when the Italian constitution went into effect on January 1, 1948, which granted women the right to transmit citizenship down to their children. Therefore, cases with a woman in their Italian lineage who gave birth to her child outside of Italy before January 1, 1948, are not accepted at an Italian consulate or municipality. However, in recent years, the Italian courts have deemed this as unlawful and discriminatory, stating that principles in the constitution should be applied retroactively, including events that occurred prior. Therefore, these cases can alternatively be filed through the Italian courts. Additionally, if the Italian female-born ancestor acquired US citizenship when her child was still a minor, this would be considered a “minor age” case.
Another situation where citizenship cases are being filed in the Italian courts is for cases that would normally be presented to the Italian consulate, but due to extended wait times for an appointment that exceed 730 days are instead submitted through the courts. These cases argue that if you aren’t able to get service from the public administration in a timely manner, you can pursue this right in court. Some of these cases may fall into the “minor age” category if the Italian-born ancestor acquired foreign citizenship while their child, the next descendant in line, was still of minor age.
Current Outlook
While there is always some element of risk to pursuing a judicial proceeding for a citizenship case, the majority of these cases have been approved by the regional courts thus far. It should also be noted that citizenship lawsuits are filed at the local Italian court that covers the jurisdiction of the municipality where the Italian ancestor was born.
Other court cases that have a high likelihood of success involve a female who naturalized automatically and involuntarily due to the naturalization of their husband prior to 1922. Finally, if the Italian ancestor was never naturalized or naturalized when the child was already an adult, the chances of success are very high.
Conclusion
To review, cases where your Italian-born ancestor acquired foreign citizenship while their child, the next descendant in line, was still a minor are commonly called “minor age” cases and can be filed in the Italian courts due to extended consulate wait times for appointments exceeding 730 days or when there is a female in the Italian line who gave birth to her child prior to 1948.
The trend across the majority of local courts in Italy is that cases with a “minor age” issue have been approved. Therefore, those who have a pending case or are looking to present a citizenship case with a minor age in an Italian court should be aware that most local Italian courts are still currently approving a majority of cases in 2024, despite the recently issued “circolare” n. 43347 which rendered individuals who have the “minor age” issue unable to apply for citizenship by descent via an Italian consulate or municipality.
If you would like further information or need legal assistance for a citizenship by descent case via a consulate, municipality or Italian court, please don’t hesitate to contact us at [email protected].
