Art. 1 of Law no. 91/92 establishes that a child born to an Italian father or mother is an Italian citizen by birth. This confirms the principle of ius sanguinis, already present in the previous legislation, as the fundamental principle for the acquisition of citizenship, while ius soli remains an exceptional and residual case.
By explicitly declaring that citizenship can also be transmitted bt the mother, the article fully incorporates the principle of gender equality in the transmission of the status civitatis.
As regards the procedures for the recognition of Italian citizenship through iure sanguinis, these have been formally outlined in circular no. K.28.1 of 8 April 1991 issued by the Ministry of the Interior.
The competent authority for the verification process is determined based on the applicant’s place of residence: for those residing abroad, the responsibility lies with the territorially competent Consular Office.
The procedure for recognition includes the following steps:
- verification that the line of descent originates from an Italian ancestor (“avo dante causa”), in accordance with the provisions of the aforementioned Circular K.28.1;
- confirmation that the Italian ancestor retained Italian citizenship until the birth of the next person in the line of descent. The absence of naturalisation or the date of any naturalisation of the ancestor must be certified by the competent foreign authority;
- proof of descent from the Italian ancestor through civil status records of birth and marriage. These documents must comply with legalisation requirements, where applicable, and must be accompanied by official translations. It should be noted that transmission of Italian citizenship through the maternal line is only recognised for children born on or after 01 January 1948, the date on which the Italian Constitution entered into force;
- certification that neither the applicant nor any of the direct ancestors ever formally renounced Italian citizenship, thereby interrupting the line of transmission. Such certification must be issued by the competent Italian diplomatic or consular authorities.
The applicant is responsible for submitting the application accompanied by the all required documentation, complete and duly legalised, in order to demonstrate compliance with the conditions outlined above.