Italy offers a dream life for young families with great weather, rich culture, and an easygoing lifestyle so read on to learn How To Start Afresh In Italy With Citizenship By Descent.
You kids get access to one of the best education systems in the EU, and the healthcare facilities are excellent.
Not to mention, an Italian passport lets you transit visa-free across the EU region.
The good thing is that citizenship by descent gives you an easy route to start a new life in the country.
If you can trace your roots back in the country, consider yourself lucky as you have a head start.
Citizenship by descent also lets you bring your family along. It even opens the rights to your next generations eventually.
The route is simple, and here you can find everything about the process in detail.
All you need to get started is valid evidence and expert guidance from an immigration expert.
Let us highlight the key facts about citizenship by descent that empowers you with the best way to settle here for good.
Table of Contents
Know the concept of Jure Sanguinis
The principle of Jure Sanguinis governs the citizenship law of Italy.
Essentially, it means by the right of blood. You can claim this right on the basis of the nationality of one or both of your parents at the time of your birth.
According to Jure Sanguinis, you can automatically become an Italian citizen if either or both of your parents had citizenship of Italy, regardless of where you were born.
Additionally, you may qualify even through grandparents and great-grandparents under the provision.
However, there are some eligibility norms and exceptions that determine the same.
Eligibility requirements for Italian citizenship by descent
While Jure Sanguinis sounds relatively simple, there is much more to the eligibility for Italian citizenship by descent.
You have to understand these requirements in detail to be sure about qualifying through this route.
Here are the ones that make you eligible:
- You were born to or adopted by an Italian parent as a minor
- Your Italian ascendant was alive and an Italian citizen after the country’s formation and unification in 1861
- Your ascendant never naturalized in a foreign country or did it only after the next child in your Italian line was born
Apart from these eligibility rules, there are some exceptions to them too.
If you wish to apply through an Italian-born female ancestor, you may fall into exceptional cases.
Any Italian woman who gave birth before 1948 could not pass on her citizenship to her child.
The country did not empower women with the right before this year.
If you were born to an Italian mother before 1948, you cannot apply through Jure Sanguinis.
It will also apply to a female ancestor before your mother if she had a child in your direct lineage before 1948.
In this situation, you can apply through the 1948 Judicial process.
So you need not lose hope, although the process differs a bit.
Gather the documents to validate your bloodline
Assessing your eligibility is your first step towards claiming citizenship by descent.
Before applying for the process, you must gather your documents to validate your bloodline.
Expect it to be a long road because the checklist of documents is extensive.
The list will typically have the following:
- You have to gather some documents from the Italian commune of your ancestor. These include certificates of birth, marriage, and death of your ancestor and others in the Italian line. The objective is to trace your roots and validate their existence.
- If the ancestor migrated to the US or any other country, you need naturalization documents too. Things can get tricky with them too because all documents have to be in Italian. You will have to get them translated and legalized with an apostille stamp to make them valid.
- Finally, you will also require your ID proof documents such as your passport, driver’s license, and residence proof. Once again, you have to get them translated and legalized for the process.
Ideally, you should collaborate with a citizenship expert right from the start.
But it becomes essential at this stage because they can guide you about the documentation.
You can even rely on them to use their local connections and get your ancestral documentary evidence from the Italian commune.
Further, they ensure there are no errors and omissions in the paperwork.
Apply at the Italian consulate
Gathering your documents makes the process ahead simple and stress-free.
You get a step closer to your second passport by applying at your local Italian consulate.
It means you need not even travel to Italy for the process.
But you have to wait for your interview appointment at the consulate, which can be long and frustrating.
Sadly, it may take months or even a year to get your appointment, as there is often a long queue of citizenship applicants ahead.
The best you can do is have everything else in place to ensure no delays due to missing papers or errors in the information.
A citizenship expert can help you in this context, so don’t skimp on hiring them for the job.
Another option to expedite the process is by applying from within Italy, but it may not be feasible for everyone.
Once you get the appointment and show your documents, you will get your citizenship rights.
Once you become an Italian citizen, it marks a new beginning for you and your family.
You can move to Italy, live and work there, and get all the benefits that a local does.
The best part is that you can join your family and get back to your roots – start packing LOL.
Your children get the benefits today, and you can even pass them on to your grandchildren and beyond.
It truly is a fresh start that you deserve after the hard work.
The citizenship by descent process can take a couple of years, but it opens up a lifetime of happiness for you and your family.
If you can trace your roots in Italy, go ahead and reclaim them right away if you learn How To Start Afresh In Italy With Citizenship By Descent.
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