(September 1st, 2021) News update: The latest rulings regarding the status of a minor child and citizenship: the courts are sending mixed messages about whether the naturalization of a parent effects the ability of a minor child in your bloodline to retain the ability to pass citizenship. Some recent rulings permit and others do not. MLI suggests that we explore all possible alternatives to citizenship. If your only route is through that minor child as explained above, we will appeal if the initial ruling is negative. This issue is still in question.
In November 2019 we published a post detailing the Court of Rome’s new approach to citizenship cases wherein Italian parents had become naturalized citizens of the United States before their American-born children had come of age. According to the Court of Rome, Article 12 of Law No. 555 of 1912 was to be applied in such cases, thus affirming that minors lose their Italian citizenship status when their parents naturalize. Read this post.
This reading of Article 7 was recently accepted by the Rome Court of Appeal (November 2020), which in two separate judgments ruled that Article 7 should be applied in such cases, specifying that the application of this rule excludes the application of Article 12.
Consequently, the many Italian descendants affected by the Court’s initial approach can breathe a sigh of relief, knowing they can appeal their case to the Court of Rome and potentially receive citizenship through their Italian descent.