My Journey to Italian Citizenship with ICA
Being Italian on both sides of my family, I’ve always felt a deep connection to Italy—its culture, history, and traditions. However, despite my strong Italian roots, my path to citizenship was far from straightforward.
As a third-generation Italian-American, I initially thought I was ineligible for Italian citizenship because all of my grandparents had become American citizens before my parents were born. Fortunately, after extensive research, my wife, Stephanie, discovered that my great-grandmother on my father’s side was still an Italian citizen when my grandfather was born. However, since he was born before 1948 to a female ancestor, my case fell under the special “1948 Rule,” requiring me to go through the Italian court system.
The Long and Challenging Process
When Stephanie and I decided to explore my eligibility further we found ICA online and reached out to Marco Permunian, who quickly connected us with his team to assess my case. During the document search, we found key evidence—a record of my great-grandmother crossing the Canadian border that confirmed she was still an Italian citizen at the time of my grandfather’s birth. This discovery was the confirmation we needed, but it also meant we had to take the legal route through the Italian courts.
The journey was filled with ups and downs. COVID-19 caused significant delays in court dates, and by the time my case was reviewed, judicial interpretations of citizenship laws had started to shift. Unfortunately, the judge in Rome denied my case due to my grandfather being a minor when my great-grandmother naturalized—an interpretation that was inconsistent with many prior rulings. After years of waiting, this was a devastating setback.
Thankfully, ICA encouraged me to appeal, confident that we would receive a favorable ruling. Around the same time, a new law was passed allowing citizenship cases to be brought to the court in the ancestor’s jurisdiction rather than exclusively in Rome. This gave us a renewed sense of hope, and after discussing the options with ICA, we decided to pursue this new route. When the Court ruled in our favor—granting Italian citizenship not just to me, but also to my son, my sister, and my nephews. It was one of the happiest moments of my life.
Looking Ahead as an Italian Citizen
The entire experience was a rollercoaster—from initial excitement, to delays and disappointments, to finally holding our Italian passports in our hands. Now that we have citizenship, we are focusing on our next steps, including purchasing property in Puglia, where both my family and my wife’s family have roots. We also plan to continue improving our Italian, with Stephanie working toward her B1 language certification for her own citizenship application. Most importantly, we’re excited about the opportunities this citizenship provides for our son, whether for education or career opportunities in the EU.
My Experience with ICA
I cannot recommend ICA enough. From the very beginning, their team was incredibly knowledgeable, responsive, and supportive throughout the entire process—even during the most challenging moments. A special thank you to Valentina Dobbo, who managed our case for most of the journey, and Anna Boldrin, who assisted us in obtaining our Italian passports after citizenship was granted. Both were fantastic to work with—proactive, attentive, and truly invested in making the process as smooth as possible.
Throughout my experience, I have personally recommended ICA to family and friends, many of whom have successfully obtained their Italian citizenship as well. If you’re considering pursuing Italian citizenship, I wholeheartedly recommend ICA—they are truly the best in the field.
Mark has agreed to serve as a subject of this success story and has granted ICA the right to use his name and image.
