Italian Citizenship Through Ancestry Is Ending After Italy's Court Backs New Law

What the Court Decided

On Thursday, March 12, Italy’s Constitutional Court signaled that it intends to uphold a controversial citizenship law introduced by the Italian government in March 2025 through an emergency decree. The measure had been challenged by several judges who questioned whether it conflicted with Italy’s constitution, given that citizenship by descent, known as jus sanguinis, has been a core principle of Italian law since the country unified in 1861.

Following the first of four scheduled hearings, the court indicated that the legal objections raised by the Turin court were largely unfounded or not admissible. A full written ruling explaining the court’s reasoning is expected in the coming weeks, once the remaining hearings are completed.

For many people who hoped the court would preserve the existing citizenship rules, the early signal from the court was a major setback. Legal experts involved in challenging the law described the decision as a severe intervention that could affect millions of people with Italian ancestry, potentially narrowing one of Europe’s most expansive citizenship policies.

What the New Law Actually Changes

Under the previous system, Italian citizenship could pass down through generations as long as no one in the family line had formally renounced it or lost it. In practice, that meant someone whose great-great-grandparent emigrated from Sicily in the late 1800s could still, in theory, claim Italian citizenship today.

The new law tightens those rules considerably.

• Only people with a parent or grandparent born in Italy will qualify for citizenship by descent

• That parent or grandparent must have held only Italian citizenship when their child or grandchild was born

• Long ancestral chains will no longer automatically transmit citizenship

• Dual citizenship within the wider diaspora will be significantly restricted

The Italian government says the change is meant to address what officials see as years of strain on the system. In recent years, the number of citizenship requests from descendants abroad has surged, overwhelming consulates and courts. Government leaders have argued that citizenship should be tied more closely to direct family connections and ongoing ties to Italy, rather than distant ancestry alone.

Why Italy Made This Change

The numbers help explain why the issue reached a breaking point. Between 2014 and 2024, the number of Italian citizens living abroad grew from about 4.6 million to 6.4 million, with the biggest increases coming from Argentina and Brazil. In Argentina alone, Italian consulates handled around 30,000 citizenship applications in 2024, roughly 10,000 more than the year before. At the same time, regional courts in Italy became overwhelmed with citizenship cases, and waiting lists at some consulates stretched for years, sometimes even a decade.

From the government’s perspective, the argument is fairly simple. Officials say Italian citizenship should reflect a real connection to Italy. Many descendants living abroad do not pay taxes in Italy, do not vote in Italian elections, and may have little ongoing relationship with the country beyond family history. In court, state lawyers argued that many descendants were not born with citizenship itself, but with the possibility of claiming it, and that if the process had not been completed by 2025, the legal link to Italy had effectively faded.

There is also a broader geopolitical concern behind the change. An Italian passport grants freedom of movement across the European Union, and officials in Italy and elsewhere have grown uneasy about how many people could potentially gain EU mobility rights through distant ancestry alone.

What It Means If You Were Planning to Apply

The practical consequences for people already in the process, or thinking about applying, could be significant. Right now, the advice from lawyers varies depending on where someone is in the citizenship journey.

For applicants who already have cases moving through the Italian courts, some lawyers are suggesting patience. One strategy is to ask judges to delay proceedings until the legal situation becomes clearer. Another legal challenge to the new law is scheduled for April 14 at the Court of Cassation, Italy’s highest court, whose decisions can carry even greater weight.

For people who have not yet filed a claim, other legal experts recommend waiting to see how the situation unfolds. Some believe the issue could eventually reach European courts in Luxembourg, which might reopen parts of the debate around citizenship rights.

For those who already hold Italian citizenship, there is little indication that the ruling would strip them of their status. Applications that are already in progress also appear unlikely to be immediately canceled. However, for future applicants, the path is becoming much narrower. Claims based on distant ancestry beyond a parent or grandparent may soon be effectively off the table.

The Irony of a Shrinking Country Shutting the Door

The timing of the ruling has struck many observers as ironic. Italy is currently facing one of the steepest demographic declines in Europe. In 2024 alone, more than 155,000 Italians emigrated, and over half a million residents left the country between 2020 and 2024. At the same time, several regions, especially in southern Italy and Sicily, have spent years trying to attract descendants of Italian emigrants back to help revive shrinking towns.

Some places have gone to creative lengths to do it. The Sicilian town of Mussomeli, known for its one-euro home program, even recruited Argentine doctors with Italian roots to help staff its local hospital. Efforts like that become much harder to sustain if fewer descendants are able to obtain citizenship.

That tension has not gone unnoticed by critics of the law. Italy has spent years encouraging people with Italian heritage to reconnect with the country, restore abandoned homes, and even move back. Now, the legal pathway that made that connection possible for many of them may be narrowing.

The legal fight may still continue in the courts. But for millions of people who had hoped to claim an Italian passport through their family tree, this week’s ruling represents a major and unexpected hurdle.

Italy’s citizenship rules have always reflected the country’s complicated relationship with its global diaspora. For more than a century, the door remained open to descendants whose families left generations ago, creating one of the broadest citizenship systems in Europe. That era now appears to be ending.

While legal challenges may continue and the final details of the ruling are still unfolding, the direction is clear: Italy is redefining what it means to belong to the country. For millions of people tracing their family trees back to Italy, the path to citizenship is no longer a distant possibility but a rapidly closing window.

Frequently Asked Questions: Italy Citizenship Jus Sanguinis Ruling 2026

What did Italy's Constitutional Court rule on citizenship?

The court indicated it would uphold a 2025 law that restricts citizenship by descent, finding a constitutional challenge to the law partially unfounded and partially inadmissible. A full detailed verdict is expected within the coming weeks.

What is jus sanguinis and how did it work in Italy?

Jus sanguinis, or "right of blood," is the principle that citizenship passes through family lineage. Under Italy's previous rules, anyone who could prove an unbroken line of Italian citizenship through their ancestry, without anyone in that line having formally renounced it, could claim Italian citizenship regardless of how many generations back the connection went.

Who is affected by Italy's new citizenship law?

Anyone who was planning to claim Italian citizenship through an ancestor beyond a parent or grandparent is significantly affected. The new law limits recognition to those with a parent or grandparent born in Italy who held solely Italian citizenship at the time of their descendant's birth.

Does the ruling affect people who already have Italian citizenship?

The current ruling does not appear to strip existing Italian citizens of their status. Ongoing citizenship applications are also not expected to be immediately impacted by the ruling.

Can the new Italian citizenship law still be challenged?

Yes. Lawyer Marco Mellone has a separate hearing at Italy's Court of Cassation on April 14, whose opinion can supersede the Constitutional Court. Some lawyers are also advising clients to seek referrals to EU courts in Luxembourg. The legal battle is ongoing.

What should I do if I have a pending Italian citizenship application?

If you have a case already in Italian courts, lawyer Marco Mellone advises requesting a postponement until fall 2026. If you have not yet filed a claim, Professor Caruso advises waiting to see how the legal situation develops before proceeding.

Why did Italy change its citizenship rules?

The Italian government cited the rapid growth of Italians registered abroad, from 4.6 million to 6.4 million between 2014 and 2024, overwhelming consulates and courts. Officials argued that citizenship should require meaningful ties to Italy and that many ancestry-based claims lacked genuine cultural or civic connection to the country.

Will this affect Italian American, Argentine, or Brazilian communities specifically?

Yes. These communities represent the largest populations outside Italy pursuing citizenship by descent. Argentina and Brazil in particular had seen surging application numbers in recent years, and citizens of those countries who had been pursuing multi-generational claims will be most directly affected by the new restrictions.