Recognition of citizenship pursuant to Law no. 379/2000 and Law no. 124/2006

1) to persons born and formerly residing in the territories of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire and their descendants pursuant to Law no. 379 of 14 December 2000 (no longer in force as of 20 December 2010):

Declarations requesting the recognition of Italian citizenship in favour of persons born and formerly residing in the territories of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire and their descendants pursuant to Law no. 379/2000 could be submitted until 20 December 2010 to the Italian Consular Office if the applicant resided abroad or, for those applicants residing in Italy, before the Civil Registrar of the municipality of residence.

Declarations submitted within the prescribed deadlines are examined by an interministerial committee established at the Ministry of the Interior, which issues an opinion on whether the legal requirements are met. If the opinion is favourable, the Ministry of the Interior issues a clearance for recognition.

The necessary requirements for the recognition of Italian citizenship are:

• birth and residence of the ancestor in the territories formerly belonging to the Austro-Hungarian Empire and acquired by Italy at the end of the First World War in implementation of the Treaty of San Germano;
• emigration abroad of the ancestor in the period between 25 December 1867 and 16 July 1920.

2) to Italian nationals from Istria, Rijeka and Dalmatia and their descendants pursuant to Law no. 124 of 8 March 2006:

It provides for the recognition of Italian citizenship in favour of:

a) Italian nationals residing from 1940 to 1947 in Istria, Rijeka and Dalmatia, who lost their Italian citizenship when these territories were ceded to the Yugoslav Republic by virtue of the Treaty of Paris of 10 February 1947, and to their descendants;

b) Italian nationals residing until 1977 in zone B of the former Free Territory of Trieste who lost their Italian citizenship when this territory was ceded to the Republic of Yugoslavia by virtue of the Treaty of Osimo of 10 November 1975, and to their descendants.

The application must be submitted to the Italian Consular Office if the applicant resides abroad or to the Municipality if he or she resides in Italy.

Two distinct categories of beneficiaries must be distinguished:

A. Beneficiaries under art. 19 of the Peace Treaty of Paris, as they were already resident in the territories ceded in 1947.

In order to prove the existence of the requirements required by art. 17-bis, paragraph 1, letter a) of Law no. 91/92, the following documents shall be attached to the application for recognition:

1. birth certificate, possibly on an international model;
2. certificate attesting to the possession of foreign citizenship;
3. certificate of current residence;
4. certification or suitable documentation proving residence as of 10 June 1940 in the territories ceded to the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia;
5. certification showing that the person concerned was an Italian citizen on 15 September 1947 – the date of entry into force of the Peace Treaty of Paris – (or equivalent documentation such as military service record, passport, etc.);
6. certificate issued by any Italian clubs, associations or communities operating in the applicant’s country of residence, showing the date of registration, the usual language spoken and any other useful evidence of knowledge of the Italian language;
7. any other useful documentation proving the usual language spoken (e.g., copies of certificates of attendance from Italian language schools, school reports, etc.).

The children or direct descendants of the beneficiaries of art. 19 of the above-mentioned Peace Treaty of Paris, who intend to make use of art. 17-bis, paragraph 1, letter b), shall attach the following documents to the application for recognition of Italian citizenship:

• certification or documentation showing the possession, by one’s parent or ancestor in the direct line, of the requirements referred to in the aforementioned points;
• birth certificate attesting to the relationship of direct descent between the applicant and the parent or ancestor;
• certificate attesting to the possession of foreign citizenship;
• certificate issued by any associations or communities of Italians, present in the foreign territory of residence, which demonstrates the applicant’s knowledge of the Italian language and culture;
• any other useful documentation suitable for proving the applicant’s knowledge of the Italian language and culture.

B. Beneficiaries under art. 3 of the Treaty of Osimo, already residing in the territory of zone B of the former Free Territory of Trieste

In order to prove the existence of the requirements required by art. 17-bis, paragraph 1, letter a) of Law no. 91/92, the following documents shall be attached to the application for recognition:

1. birth certificate, possibly on an international model;
2. certificate attesting to the possession of foreign citizenship;
3. certificate of current residence;
4. certification or documentation proving their residence and Italian citizenship on 3 April 1977 (date of entry into force of the Treaty of Osimo);
5. certificate issued by any clubs, associations or communities of Italians present in the foreign territory of residence, showing the date of registration, the usual language spoken and any other useful evidence of knowledge of the Italian language;
6. any useful documentation proving membership of the Italian ethnic group as provided for in the aforementioned art. 3.

The children or direct descendants of the beneficiaries of art. 3 of the Treaty of Osimo shall attach the following documents to the application for recognition of Italian citizenship, submitted pursuant to art. 17-bis, paragraph 1, letter b):

• certification or documentation showing the possession, by one’s parent or ancestor in the direct line, of the requirements referred to in the aforementioned points;
• birth certificate attesting to the relationship of direct descent between the applicant and the parent or ancestor;
• certificate attesting to the possession of foreign citizenship;
• certificate issued by any associations or communities of Italians, present in the foreign territory of residence, which demonstrates the applicant’s knowledge of the Italian language and culture;
• any other useful documentation suitable for proving the applicant’s knowledge of the Italian language and culture.

An interministerial committee set up at the Ministry of the Interior expresses its opinion on the applications, which shall issue a clearance if the opinion is favourable.