Introduction:
In this case, the Court of Palermo examined a petition filed by foreign applicants seeking recognition of Italian citizenship by descent from an Italian ancestor born in Sicily who emigrated to the United States. The applicants reconstructed their genealogical line through the maternal line, demonstrating descent from an Italian ancestor who never naturalized abroad. In this case, the Court of Palermo examined a petition filed by foreign applicants seeking recognition of Italian citizenship by descent from an Italian ancestor born in Sicily who emigrated to the United States. The applicants reconstructed their genealogical line through the maternal line, demonstrating descent from an Italian ancestor who never naturalized abroad.
Outcome:
The Court upheld the application and declared that the applicants are Italian citizens from birth, ordering the competent authorities to carry out the necessary registrations. Legal costs were fully offset between the parties.
Challenge:
The case required the Court to apply Decree-Law no. 36/2025, which introduced a general limitation on the recognition of citizenship for individuals born abroad holding another nationality, unless specific conditions are satisfied. The Court therefore examined all the conditions set out by the new legislation, including the timing of the application and the existence of qualifying family relationships.
Action:
The Court found that, although the application had been filed after the deadline introduced by the reform, the case fell within one of the statutory exceptions. Specifically, the applicants demonstrated that their ancestor within the second degree had possessed exclusively Italian citizenship, having never naturalized as a foreign citizen. On this basis, the Court concluded that the restrictive provisions of the 2025 reform did not prevent recognition and confirmed that Italian citizenship had been validly transmitted jure sanguinis through the maternal line, granting recognition from birth.
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