Australians with Italian heritage will find it harder to gain Italian citizenship under new regulations being proposed by Italy’s government.

Until now the Italian passport has been one of the easiest to acquire by being a blood relative to an Italian citizen, meaning anyone who could prove they had an Italian relative alive after the formation of the Kingdom of Italy in 1861 could get an Italian passport.

However, legislation being considered by Italy’s parliament at the end of May will require new applicants applying to have at least one Italian grandparent or parent.

Additionally they must demonstrate Italian language proficiency by completing a five-part state exam held multiple times a year in Italy or a higher level equivalency test for those not living in the country.  

The rule change, announced on March 28, is aimed at cracking down on people who become Italian to solely overcome travel restrictions and have little connection to the country, but has upset many in Australia’s Italian community who want to keep a connection with Italy. 

“The new law on citizenship rights seems to forget the way Italians who migrated overseas had contributed to the Italian Economy through their remittances; through their hard work they had gained the right to pass on their identity and ties to the home country to their families,” said Dr Emanuela Moretto, a University of Technology Sydney academic specialising in Italy and migration.

“Including Italian language as a mandatory requirement for citizenship is not just learning a language to function in society it’s actually a skill of a lifetime, not a matter of a test.”

Many Italians abroad will now face difficulties trying to gain citizenship with the governments new regulation, an attack on their fundamental rights.

Both the Italo-Australian politicians who represent the Australian electorate in the Italian Parliament said they are disgusted by proposed law and are considering appealing to the Constitutional Court and European Court of Human Rights. 

“[This is an] unacceptable injustice,” said Senator Francesco Giacobbe. “It breaks the ties with our land.

“We cannot allow it and we will not allow it.” 

He urged Italians abroad to make their voices heard.

It is unacceptable to see citizenship treated as a political concession rather than as an indissoluble bond with our history, our culture and our values.

Senator Nicola Carè also objects to the reform calling it “a slap in the face to Italians abroad”.

“The procedures are being complicated with new unjustified restrictions, denying entire generations the recognition that is rightfully theirs” he added.

“It is unacceptable to see citizenship treated as a political concession rather than as an indissoluble bond with our history, our culture and our values.”

Italian minister of Foreign Affairs, Antonio Tajani said the new law would aim to prevent “abuses” from people who become Italian to solely overcome travel restrictions. 

“This decree supports return migration,” he added. “Italian descendants will automatically acquire citizenship if they are born in Italy or if, before their birth, one of their citizen parents has resided continuously in our country for at least two years.”

The new language proficiency test being proposed, was previously only required for citizenship under residency or marriage.

A descendant with at least one Italian grandparent can apply only after living in Italy for three years, while Italians who were born in Italy, but now live abroad, must register the birth of their children in Italy in order to pass on their citizenship.

Current Italian citizens who were not born in Italy can now only pass on citizenship to children born outside of Italy if they have lived in Italy for two consecutive years, and those who marry an Italian must live in Italy for at least two years to qualify for citizenship through marriage. 

Italian citizens with dual citizenship will risk losing their Italian citizenship if they “don’t engage” by paying taxes, renewing ID and/or their passports, and by voting. 

People who were granted citizenship but don’t ever come to Italy may also risk losing citizenship.

Consulates will no longer process any citizenship applications as they will be processed by the Italian government online and require an in-person interview. 

The changes will not apply to anyone that has already obtained citizenship or applied before the March 27 deadline.

Main image by Loridana Zangari.