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🇮🇹 Italy · Citizenship by descent
Italian citizenship by descent — what the new law changed
In May 2025 Italy passed the biggest reform of jure sanguinis in a century, and its Constitutional Court upheld it in March 2026. The old “unlimited generations” rule is gone — but many people still qualify. Here's where things stand.
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The new rules (Law 74/2025)
If you were born abroad and hold another citizenship, you now qualify only if at least one of these applies:
- A parent or grandparent was born in Italy — the core “two-generation” rule
- A parent or grandparent held exclusively Italian citizenship (no other nationality) at the time of your birth
- An Italian-citizen parent legally resided in Italy for at least two continuous years before your birth
On top of that, the traditional requirement still applies: the line must be unbroken. If your Italian ancestor naturalised elsewhere before the next person in the line was born, the chain broke at that point.
Great-grandparent lines
Claims that run only through a great-grandparent — the classic route for many families in the US, Brazil, and Argentina — no longer qualify under the new law. Anyone who had booked and confirmed a consular appointment, or filed, by 27 March 2025 keeps the old rules. Litigation is ongoing (the Court of Cassation and possible EU referrals), so if this is your situation it's worth monitoring developments rather than giving up entirely.
Documents you'd need
- Your ancestor's Italian birth certificate (estratto dell'atto di nascita) from their comune
- Naturalisation records — or a certificate that no naturalisation exists — to show the chain stayed intact
- Birth and marriage certificates for every generation down to you
- Apostilles and certified Italian translations for all foreign documents
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Frequently asked questions
Is Italian citizenship by descent finished after the 2025 law?
No — it's narrower, not gone. Parent and grandparent lines still work, and there are exceptions for exclusively-Italian ancestors and parents who lived in Italy for two years before your birth. Great-grandparent-only lines are the ones that generally no longer qualify.
I qualify through a great-grandparent. Is there any hope?
Under the current law, generally no — unless you had booked or filed before 27 March 2025, in which case the old rules apply to you. Court challenges are continuing, so the position could still evolve.
Does it matter that my Italian ancestor became an American citizen?
Yes, timing is everything. If they naturalised before the next person in your line was born, they lost Italian citizenship and the chain broke there. If the naturalisation came after that birth, the chain survived.
Did Italy's Constitutional Court overturn the new law?
No. In ruling 63/2026 (March 2026) the Court rejected the constitutional challenges, so Law 74/2025 stands. Related questions remain before other courts.