I spent quite a long time gathering documents from the U.S. side and originally considered pursuing citizenship through the consulates in the U.S. However, I wanted to move as fast as possible and get to know Italy in a deeper way, so I opted to take the ‘live-in-Italy’ path and moved to Rovigo in May 2023. I remember my first day very clearly – I arrived in Bologna very early and took the train to Rovigo. I made my way to the Antico Deposito del Caffè where I had my first brioche (pistacchio) and a cappuccino – erano deliziosi. An hour later I was met by the ICA team and shown to my apartment. It was a very nice apartment and exactly what I needed – furnished, simple, and clean, right on the main street of Rovigo. I had my first meeting with the municipal clerk the next day and after making some changes to my documents, I had officially started.
I spent the next two years learning about Italy in a way that I had never done before. I started learning Italian and connected further with my family in Italy. I started thinking about where I would like to live once I got citizenship. Initially, I thought this would be a simple question, but I realized that Italy is so big and there are so many wonderful cities that I realized I would need time to explore.
First, I looked into Italy’s regions, starting in the city of Trieste (which I loved) and working my way down to Rome. I still have not gotten much time below Rome and so that remains uncharted territory for me. However, at the moment I am probably going to look for a more permanent place to live in the north.
From the time of my application to the moment when I got citizenship ICA was there to help!
While the journey seems romantic as I look back, there were definitely periods of doubt with the municipality and the consulates; however, I must say that ICA was a great partner in the process and they guided me very well. There were quite a few highlights. For instance, I had some exciting moments at the clerk’s office and with various consulates (mostly Philadelphia). I had some wonderful trips from Rovigo to visit my family in Auronzo di Cadore as well as to other cities like La Spezia, Roma, Milano, Trieste, etc. I met some wonderful people, other Italian-Americans like myself living and working in Italy – many of whom I got to know in Rovigo. We still keep in touch to this day via a WhatsApp group we are a part of. I found the Italian people to be truly wonderful, very funny, and great to be around.
Regarding my overall experience, I have two thoughts that I think people need to understand, because this will be the reality of how things play out:
This is an investment from you to Italy and from Italy to you. It sounds romantic for an American to go back to our roots and become an Italian, and it is. But I do think that there is a sense of responsibility that one must think about as well. I feel very proud to be both Italian and American. I will definitely learn Italian as well as I can (I cannot accept being an Italian that can’t speak the language). And I will definitely spend time in Italy and try to understand what it means to be Italian and an EU citizen.
Also, the process brings with it both joy and some pain, as all good journeys do. The joy is easy for everyone to accept, but the process is long and at many points the process is out of the hands of ICA and in the hands of a municipal worker or a consulate. One must be ready to handle a lot of ups and downs. To be honest, there were periods in which I was very frustrated. However, in the end, I am very happy that I did not give up.
For the future, as mentioned, I am in the process of learning Italian. I read each day in my Italian book (Fuochi d’artificio, based on the 2025 TV series) and I try to practice speaking as much as I can. I plan to move to Italy and spend around half my time there each year. If possible, I would also like to start a business in Italy.
Overall, I really appreciate ICA’s services and partnership. I realize now, as I look back, that there is a substantial amount of work on the ICA side that goes into supporting someone on their citizenship journey. Everything from the preparation of the application to the management of the municipality or court or consulate. It is a lot of work. I will definitely recommend ICA to anyone looking to get Italian citizenship. I truly feel that ICA did their job and represented me as well as they could along the journey.
Anthony has agreed to serve as a subject of this success story and has granted ICA the right to use his name and image.
