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We have a curated list of the most noteworthy news from all across the globe. With any subscription plan, you get access to exclusive articles that let you stay ahead of the curve.
We have a curated list of the most noteworthy news from all across the globe. With any subscription plan, you get access to exclusive articles that let you stay ahead of the curve.
We have a curated list of the most noteworthy news from all across the globe. With any subscription plan, you get access to exclusive articles that let you stay ahead of the curve.
Italy’s long-standing embrace of citizenship by descent is facing its most consequential legal test in decades, as courts weigh the limits of heritage in defining national belonging.
“If accepted, this interpretation could reopen claims for a substantial cohort whose applications were effectively frozen overnight”
Two American families have brought a case before Italy’s highest court challenging a 2025 reform that sharply restricts eligibility for citizenship through ancestry.
Under the new rules, introduced by the government of Giorgia Meloni, only individuals with an Italian parent or grandparent can qualify, ending a system that, until recently, allowed claims stretching back generations.
The reform marked a decisive break with Italy’s traditional interpretation of jus sanguinis, under which descendants of emigrants, often tracing lineage to the late 19th century, could seek citizenship with few generational limits.
For millions in the United States and Latin America, many of whom descend from the roughly 14 million Italians who emigrated between 1877 and 1914, the change has closed what was once a viable legal pathway.
The plaintiffs argue not against the law’s existence, but its reach. Their counsel contends that the restrictions should apply only prospectively, not to those born before the reform took effect.
If accepted, this interpretation could reopen claims for a substantial cohort whose applications were effectively frozen overnight. Italy’s Constitutional Court has already upheld the reform’s validity, rejecting broader challenges and signalling judicial support for tighter controls.
Yet the Court of Cassation now faces a narrower but consequential question: how far back the new limits should bite.Behind the legal arguments lies a broader policy shift. Italian authorities have justified the reform as a response to administrative strain and what critics describe as “passport shopping”, applications from individuals with tenuous links to the country.
Opponents, however, frame the change as an erosion of a birthright, arguing that citizenship by descent reflects an intrinsic status rather than a discretionary privilege.
A ruling is expected in the coming weeks. Its implications will extend well beyond the litigants, potentially redefining the contours of Italian identity for a global diaspora, and recalibrating one of Europe’s most expansive citizenship regimes.
