Introduction:
In this case, the Court of Naples examined an application filed by Canadian descendants seeking recognition of Italian citizenship by descent from an Italian-born ancestor who emigrated to Canada. The applicants reconstructed the family line through official civil-status documentation, duly translated and apostilled, demonstrating uninterrupted descent from the Italian ancestor. The Ministry of the Interior did not appear in the proceedings, while the Public Prosecutor did not submit observations. Since the application was filed after the entry into force of the 2025 citizenship reform, the Court assessed the claim under the new legislative framework.
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 consular authorities. Litigation costs were fully offset between the parties.
Challenge:
The central issue concerned the application of Article 3-bis of Law No. 91/1992, as amended by Law No. 74/2025, which limits recognition of citizenship for persons born abroad unless one of the statutory exceptions is satisfied. The Court therefore examined whether the applicants fell within the exception applicable to descendants of a first- or second-degree ascendant who possessed exclusively Italian citizenship. Another significant issue concerned proof that the Italian ancestor had never lost Italian citizenship. The Court held that the ancestor's Italian birth certificate, containing no annotation of citizenship loss, constitutes a public document with full evidentiary value. In the absence of a formal challenge or contrary evidence, that document is sufficient to establish the continuity of Italian citizenship. The Court further observed that, if the Ministry intends to claim that the ancestor became naturalized abroad, it bears the burden of producing evidence capable of proving that interruptive event.
Action:
After reviewing the documentary evidence, the Court found that the Italian ancestor had never acquired Canadian citizenship through naturalization, thereby retaining exclusively Italian citizenship throughout life. Consequently, both the child and the grandchildren of the Italian ancestor satisfied the exception set out in Article 3-bis(1)(c) of Law No. 91/1992. Having verified the continuity of the citizenship line and the existence of the statutory exception, the Court recognized the applicants as Italian citizens jure sanguinis and ordered the competent authorities to complete all required civil-status registrations.
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