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Italy approved a law that pulls up the rules for people with the Italian heritage to receive passports.
Earlier, everyone with the Italian ancestor, who lived after March 17, 1861 – was created when the Kingdom of Italy was created – qualified to be a citizen under “jus sanguinis” or a blood descendant law.
According to the supplemented legislation, the parliament ratified on Tuesday, the applicants of the Italian passport must have one of the parents or grandparents who was a birth citizen.
The government said it changed the rules to “increase” the connection between Italy and the citizen abroad, avoid “abuse” and “commercialization” of passports, as well as release resources to resolve the backward statements.
From the end of 2014 to the end of 2024, the number of citizens living abroad increased by 40%, from about 4.6 million to 6.4 million, the government said.
As of the end of March, when the Prime Minister Georgia Meloni government introduced the law, the legislation of citizenship was more than 60,000.
The Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs states in a statement that the changes “release resources to make consular services are more effective, to the extent that they can be dedicated exclusively to those who have a real need for their specific connection with Italy.”
Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said the principle “will not be lost” and the descendants of the Italians will still be able to become citizens, but “accurate restrictions will be established, especially in order to avoid the abuse and phenomena of” commercialization “of Italian passports.
“Citizenship should be a serious business,” he said.
