Italy’s Constitutional Court on Wednesday backed the government’s 2025 restrictions on citizenship claims by descendants of emigrants, dealing a setback to millions worldwide who had relied on the country’s longstanding “right of blood” policy.
The court declared challenges to the law’s constitutionality “partially unfounded and partially inadmissible,” according to a statement issued after the first of four scheduled hearings. A full written ruling is expected in the coming weeks.
The decision effectively ended the automatic transmission of Italian citizenship beyond the grandparent generation for those born abroad, closing a pathway that had fueled a surge in applications from the Italian diaspora in countries such as Argentina, the United States and Brazil.
Under the pre-2025 rules, rooted in laws dating to 1865, 1912 and 1992—citizenship passed indefinitely through generations via ius sanguinis as long as no ancestor had renounced it. The March 2025 emergency decree limited recognition to applicants with at least one parent or grandparent born in Italy and imposed new requirements that the qualifying ancestor held sole Italian citizenship at the relevant time, effectively barring dual-citizenship cases in recognition proceedings.
The government argued that distant descendants often maintained only a “fictitious link” to Italy, contributing little to civic life while overwhelming consulates and courts. Applications had ballooned in recent years: Argentine consulates alone handled 30,000 requests in 2024, up sharply from prior periods, while the number of Italians registered abroad rose to 6.4 million from 4.6 million a decade earlier.
Lawyers who brought the constitutional challenge expressed disappointment. Corrado Caruso, a University of Bologna professor representing applicants, said the court’s intervention was “extremely clear” and “harsh,” noting that the government had viewed the reform as politically critical. “There were interests at stake,” he added.
Marco Mellone, another lawyer involved in the cases, described the day as “very sad” for millions but said the ruling did not render the law permanently ironclad. “This is the first step in a long battle,” he said, urging descendants with pending applications to seek postponements.
The restrictions were introduced amid complaints of administrative overload: applicants often faced decade-long consulate waits, costly document searches and protracted lawsuits. Officials also cited concerns over tenuous generational ties and the potential for Italian passports to be used in ways that complicated relations with allies.
The ruling leaves in place a system that will sharply curtail new citizenship grants for distant descendants, potentially affecting family reunifications, property claims and relocation plans. Regional efforts to lure Italian-rooted talent, such as Sicily’s “one-euro homes” program or recruitment of Argentine doctors, stand to lose a key incentive.
Italy continues to grapple with a shrinking population and net emigration, with 155,732 citizens leaving in 2024 alone. The court’s decision removes one of the few mechanisms that had drawn some overseas descendants back to the country.
Additional challenges to the law remain pending before the Constitutional Court.
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