Italy curbs citizenship rules to end tenuous descendant claims

29/3/2025 6:25

Italy's government tightened its citizenship laws on Friday, preventing people from delving deep back into their family history to try to claim a much sought-after Italian passport.



Under existing rules, anyone who can prove they had an Italian ancestor who was alive after March 17, 1861, when the Kingdom of Italy was created, can seek citizenship.



However, Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said the system was being abused, with would-be Italians swamping consulates abroad for requests for passports, which provide visa-free entry to more countries than almost any other nationality.



As a result, in future only individuals with at least one parent or grandparent born in Italy, a European Union member state, will automatically qualify for citizenship by descent.



The foreign ministry said there had been a surge in people abroad being granted citizenship, particularly in South America, where millions of Italians emigrated in the 19th and 20th centuries, often to escape grinding poverty back home.