Introduction:
The applicants sought recognition of Italian citizenship by descent from an Italian ancestor born in the Province of Ferrara who later emigrated to the United States. The genealogical chain spans four generations, including minor children, all supported by duly translated and apostilled civil registry records. The action was brought after repeated and documented attempts to access consular channels proved unsuccessful, resulting in what the Court itself described as a "de facto paralysis of the system." The case was filed in May 2025, after Decree-Law no. 36/2025 had already come into effect. The Court ruled directly on the merits, without suspending proceedings pending the Constitutional Court hearing of June 9, 2026, and expressly referenced the Constitutional Court press release of March 12, 2026 in addressing the applicable legal framework.
Outcome:
The Court upheld the claim in full, rejecting all objections raised by the Ministry of the Interior. It declared all 11 applicants Italian citizens from birth and ordered the competent Civil Status Registrar to carry out all consequent formalities. Legal costs were fully offset between the parties.
View the Judgment:
Court of Bologna 04.17.2026
Challenge:
The case required the Court to apply Decree-Law no. 36/2025 (converted into Law no. 74/2025), which introduced significant restrictions on citizenship recognition by inserting Article 3-bis into Law no. 91/1992. Under the new framework, applicants must demonstrate that a formal application accompanied by documentation was submitted to the competent consular authority or mayor prior to March 27, 2025.
Action:
The applicants demonstrated through documentary evidence that they had formally submitted a citizenship application to the competent Consular Office prior to March 27, 2025. The Court held that this submission clearly and unequivocally expressed the intention to apply for citizenship, fully satisfying the requirements of Article 3-bis. It further confirmed that citizenship had been transmitted without interruption across all four generations, with no evidence of renunciation at any stage.
In the words of the Court:
“It must therefore be held that such application, formalized in the manner described above, clearly and unequivocally expresses the intention to apply for Italian citizenship and fully satisfies the requirements set out in the applicable legislation.”
This case was brought by Aprigliano Law Firm, based on the legal strategy developed by Avv. Salvatore Aprigliano.
For the privacy of our clients, all names are fictional, and any identifying details in the judgements have been obscured.