Introduction:
In this case, the Court of Catanzaro examined an application filed by foreign descendants seeking recognition of Italian citizenship through an Italian-born ancestor who emigrated to Argentina. The applicants reconstructed the entire genealogical line through official civil-status documentation and demonstrated that the Italian ancestor never lost Italian citizenship, thereby preserving its transmission to subsequent generations. The Ministry of the Interior appeared in the proceedings without contesting the claim on the merits, while the Public Prosecutor issued a favorable opinion.
Outcome:
The Court granted the application and declared the petitioners Italian citizens jure sanguinis. It ordered the Ministry of the Interior, through the competent Civil Status Registrar, to carry out all registrations, transcriptions, and annotations required by law, including the necessary communications to the competent Italian consular authorities. Legal costs were fully offset between the parties.
Challenge:
As a preliminary matter, the Court rejected the request to stay the proceedings pending the constitutional question previously raised by the Court of Bologna, noting that the Constitutional Court had already ruled on that issue. The Court further clarified that a prior administrative application is not a condition for bringing judicial proceedings, since no provision of law makes it a prerequisite for an action seeking mere judicial recognition of citizenship. It also observed that the well-known delays affecting Italian consular authorities make judicial protection fully admissible where administrative recognition cannot be obtained within a reasonable time. Turning to the applicable law, the Court confirmed that, because the petition had been filed before 27 March 2025, the newly introduced restrictions contained in Decree-Law No. 36/2025, converted into Law No. 74/2025, did not apply to the case. The judgment also reviewed the Constitutional Court's decisions and the Supreme Court's settled case law recognizing citizenship through the maternal line, including in pre-1948 cases.
Action:
After examining the documentary evidence, the Court found that the applicants had established both their direct descent from the Italian ancestor and the uninterrupted transmission of citizenship throughout the family line. The documentation demonstrated that the ancestor had never voluntarily lost Italian citizenship, while the Ministry failed to produce any evidence of an interrupting event. Relying on established Supreme Court case law, the Court reaffirmed that a claimant seeking recognition of citizenship must prove only the original acquisition of citizenship and the line of descent. Any allegation that citizenship was lost through naturalization, renunciation, or another interrupting event must instead be proven by the State. Since no such evidence was produced, the Court recognized the applicants as Italian citizens from birth.
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