When you have Italian citizenship, you have European Union citizenship. That means you will have the right to live, work, and travel freely throughout 27 EU member countries. You also gain access to the European Economic Area (EEA), which adds three more countries to these freedoms. You’ll also gain the freedom to live, work, and travel through Switzerland, which is not an EU or EEA member.

If you have children, they will be able to easily attend university in EU countries. This is often less expensive than American universities, and provides a unique experience which opens doors not typically open to non-EU citizens.

If you are a world traveler, there are some instances where having an EU passport will get you into a country visa or hassle-free when your non-EU passport may not provide the same privilege.

Citizens of all 31 countries have the same freedom to live, work, and travel throughout one another visa free!

EU

Austria 🇦🇹

Belgium 🇧🇪

Bulgaria 🇧🇬

Croatia 🇭🇷

Cyprus 🇨🇾

Czech Republic 🇨🇿

Denmark 🇩🇰

Estonia 🇪🇪

Finland 🇫🇮

France 🇫🇷

Germany 🇩🇪

Greece 🇬🇷

Hungary 🇭🇺

Ireland 🇮🇪

Italy 🇮🇹

Latvia 🇱🇻

Lithuania 🇱🇹

Luxembourg 🇱🇺

Malta 🇲🇹

Netherlands 🇳🇱

Poland 🇵🇱

Portugal 🇵🇹

Romania 🇷🇴

Slovakia 🇸🇰

Slovenia 🇸🇮

Spain 🇪🇸

Sweden 🇸🇪

EEA

Iceland 🇮🇸

Liechtenstein 🇱🇮

Norway 🇳🇴

Member of the single market, but technically not part of the EU or EEA

Switzerland🇨🇭

If you travel to Italy, the processing times are often quicker than US consulates. This will vary dramatically based on the comune you choose. Our Apply in Italy program averages 90 days from landing in Italy to full citizenship recognition!

The vast majority have their citizenship recognized through a consulate. In that case, many consulates schedule appointments two years in advance. Once the appointment finally takes place, you can expect to wait another 12-24 months before your file is processed. During that processing time, it is not uncommon for the consulate to send document requests or “homework” for you to do, which will lengthen the processing time.

In Italy: 90 days on average

In the US: Potentially 4+ years from booking the appointment to recognition.

View our “Apply in Italy” page to determine whether or not traveling to Italy is the best option for you!

It is important to know that when you travel to Italy for the Jure Sanguinis citizenship process, you must first establish permanent residency in Italy. You cannot have the process completed if you are just transiting through Italy, or on a short holiday. Our Apply in Italy service will help you establish residency legally.

You must have a proper lease, you cannot claim permanent residency if you are living in an Airbnb or hotel, for example.

You will need to obtain a Codice Fiscale. This is similar to a social security number in the US, though not exactly the same. Our Apply in Italy service will bring you to the government administrator and translate all of the paperwork for you.

The local police will be sent to verify that you actually live where you’ve established your permanent residency. They will have 45 days to verify that you are there, starting from the date the comune administrator alerts the police to your arrival. You must remain in Italy until you have been verified as a permanent resident.

View our “1912 & 1948 Rulings” page to determine whether either of these apply to you!

If an Italian naturalized before July 1, 1912: himself, his listed spouse, and any minor children, lost their Italian citizenship.

If an Italian naturalized after July 1, 1912: his foreign-born children with citizenship granted by birthright from the foreign country maintained their right to Italian citizenship via Jure Sanguinis. Since the USA grants citizenship by birthright on the soil, Americans born to an Italian who naturalized after July 1, 1912 and meet the other qualifications can claim their right to Italian citizenship!

If a child is born to an Italian mother and a non-Italian father before 1948: The mother did not pass Italian citizenship to the child. If you meet all other requirements aside from this, you might be able to claim Italian citizenship through the Italian court system via a “1948 case.”

If a child is born to an Italian morhter and a non-Italian father on or after January 1, 1948: The mother passed Italian citizenship to the child! If you meet all other qualifications, you can claim Italian citizenship!here.

If you are applying at a consulate and your children are under the age of 18 at the time of your appointment, they can easily be registered as Italian citizens at the same time that you turn in your documents. If they are 18 or older, they must schedule a separate appointment for recognition. In some cases, the consulate will allow you to bring your adult children along to your appointment. Always contact the consulate in advance to inquire about this possibility.

If you travel to Italy and your children are 18 or older, they will need to come with you in order to be recognized. If they decide to come at a later date, it is best to have them processed through the same comune as you were.

If you are recognized at a consulate, your children will be able to reference your file. That means they will not have to gather all the same documents that you did. In most cases, they will only need their birth certificate in long form, apostilled and translated. Always check with your consulate in advance.

If you are recognized at a comune in Italy and your children wish to apply at a consulate, they cannot use your Italian citizenship as the only point of reference. To apply at a consulate, they would need all of the required documents tracing back to the last Italian-born ancestor.

If you travel to Italy and your children are 18 or older, they will need to come with you in order to be recognized. If they decide to come at a later date, it is best to have them processed through the same comune as you.

Take our online quiz to help determine if you qualify, and what you’ll need to find out!

Unfortunately, simply having Italian in your DNA does not qualify you for Italian Citizenship. You’d need to do some digging to see if you can trace your Italian roots!

Along with the standard qualifiers, document requirements for Italian Citizenship are usually as follows:

– Birth certificates for every line-member leading back to the Italian ancestor

– Marriage certificates for every line-member leading back to the Italian ancestor

– Divorce certificates for every line-member leading back to the Italian ancestor

– Death certificates for every line-member leading back to the Italian ancestor

A comune, pronounced “koh-moo-nay,” is essentially just a town. This word is also used to describe the town hall, so if you have a meeting with the citizenship administrator, you would say you are going to the comune today.

Jure Sanguinis literally translates to “right of blood.” You are not applying for Italian citizenship, you are simply having your existing Italian citizenship recognized! Jure Sanguinis is a birthright that you have always had, whether you knew it or not.

An Apostille is a piece of paper that is issued by a government and used to certify that a document is allowed to be handed to a foreign country. For example, if a birth certificate was issued in Florida, an apostille should be requested from you to the State of Florida to certify the documents. The apostille will be stapled to the original document.

Every non-Italian document needs its own apostille.

Visit our “Know Before You Go” page!