Italian Supreme Court Landmark Win for Citizenship by Descent Applicants

Added: 2026-05-17

[00:00:00]Hello, I'm Raffaele Di Foggia, and welcome to another episode of Ask the Italian Lawyer, presented by Italian Citizenship Assistance.com, as well as Italian Real Estate Lawyers.com. As some of you may have noticed, Italian attorney Marco Permunian is not with me this week, as he is currently working hard on a number of cases, including several that fall into the same category as the topic of this week's episode.

[00:00:21]Marco asked me to share his thoughts with you, and before recording, I was able to get a few moments and ask the Italian lawyer himself about an important ruling from May 12th. On May 12th, 2026, Italy's highest Court of Appeal, the Corte di Cassazione, issued ruling number 13818 of 2026.

[00:00:38]The case involved applicants who tried for years to book an appointment with the Italian consulate with jurisdiction over their place of residence, so they could submit their Italian citizenship by descent applications, but they were unable to do so. The applicants first had obtained a favorable ruling from the Court of Genoa, which recognized their right to Italian citizenship. The Ministry then appealed, and the Court of Appeal of Genoa dismissed the claim, saying that the claimants lacked an interest to sue because they had not first submitted a formal application at the consulate. In other words, the Court of Appeal believed that the administrative process had to be formally started before the applicants could go to court. But Italy's highest Court of Appeal disagreed. The applicants showed that in practice, it had been impossible for them to submit their application. They had repeatedly tried to obtain a consular appointment without success. They also relied on official notices from the embassy stating that citizenship iure sanguinis appointments had been suspended after the 2020 health emergency, with no date set for when appointments would resume.

[00:01:46]The Corte di Cassazione held that when an administration makes it impossible in practical terms to even file an application, applicants cannot be required to complete that step before bringing the matter before a judge.

[00:02:00]This is important because the court reaffirmed a central principle of the Italian citizenship by descent rules.

[00:02:06]Iure sanguinis citizenship is not guaranteed by the state. It is a pre-existing right from birth as long as the legal requirements are met. In simple terms though, the consulate or municipality does not create the citizenship. It only recognizes the citizenship status that already existed.

[00:02:25]For this reason, a refusal, a delay, or a practical obstacle that prevents someone from accessing the procedure can cause real harm. A person may be already an Italian citizen under the law, but still unable to exercise the rights connected to that status. The Corte di Cassazione also confirmed that interest to sue cannot only exist when there is an explicit refusal or administrative delay, but also when concrete obstacles make it impossible to begin the administrative procedure at all. In conclusion, the court held that the chronic unavailability of consular appointments can be a valid and sufficient reason to bring citizenship iure sanguinis cases directly before the Italian courts. Although in this case it was presented in 2022, the legal principles may actually also be relevant for people who were unable to submit their applications before the Taiani decree because they could not obtain a consular appointment. This is really a landmark decision and because it's the first time Italy's highest Court of Appeal has recognized that when the administrative route is unavailable in practice, applicants are entitled to a petition the Italian courts. It may also actually matter in connection with the upcoming Constitutional Court review of the Taiani decree in June. Since the Corte di Cassazione recognized Italian citizenship by descent as a birthright, it's actually possible that the Constitutional Court may take that principle into consideration when it further reviews the decree. Of course, every case depends on its own facts and documentation, but this ruling in particular may become very important for citizenship by descent applicants who tried in good faith to access the consular process and were prevented from doing so through no fault of their own.

[00:04:14]If you have any questions about how this ruling may relate to your own Italian citizenship by descent case or need any other help with getting Italian citizenship, whether by descent, residence, or through marriage, you can contact the team at italiancitizenshipassistance.com.

[00:04:26]And on behalf of Italian attorney Marco Permunian and the team at italiancitizenshipassistance.com, thank you so much for joining me for this week's episode of Ask the Italian Lawyer. I'm Raffaele Di Furia. Stay safe and healthy out there, and I will see you all next time.

[00:04:40]Thank you.