Why Italy’s PM Should Honor Citizenship Rights for Descendants

PM Meloni praised Italian Americans as ‘exceptional ambassadors’ in her recent US speech at CPAC last Saturday (see link below for the unabridged version), yet her government is creating new barriers to Italian citizenship by descent. As an attorney representing those affected, I have some questions for the Prime Minister about this contradiction (click the image below to watch the video).

I’ll now give you a few factual, documented examples of the hostility shown by the government (who took office on October 22th 2022).

Take, for instance, Parliamentary Bill number 752, brought forward in June 2023 by Senator Roberto Menia of Fratelli d’Italia (Brothers of Italy, Meloni’s party). This proposal, in essence, suggested some adjustments to how Italian citizenship gets passed down through families. Among the things it talked about were potential requirements for living in Italy for some time and also demonstrating some level of Italian language ability, at least for certain people applying. The reasons given for this? Well, mainly to help the consulates manage their workload.

Then, fast forward to October 2024, and the Ministry of the Interior put out what they called Circolare 43347. This was basically a specific way of reading part of the old 1912 citizenship law. It particularly focused on situations where an ancestor had become a citizen of another country while his children were still minor (under 21 years old). The directive clarified how that might affect whether Italian citizenship could still be passed down in those cases. Turns out, this has been quite relevant for people with Italian heritage, especially those living in places like North America.

Around the same time, October 2024 also saw Deputy Prime Minister Tajani, who’s also the Foreign Minister, propose a wider set of changes to citizenship laws. This wasn’t just about ius sanguinis; it also touched on the so called “ius scholae”. This broader proposal has definitely sparked quite a bit of discussion, as you might imagine.

Beyond these specific legislative and administrative steps, it’s also worth noting that the State Attorney General’s office has gotten involved in a number of legal cases since 2024. These cases are all about figuring out who actually qualifies for Italian citizenship. Something unheard of in past years.  Besides, the arguments by the State Attorney General’s office ed are often considered pretextual, aimed at obstructing applications rather than defending established legal principles.

And lastly, in 2025, the Court in Bologna started a constitutional review process. They’re basically taking a closer look at how the ius sanguinis rules fit with the overall Italian Constitution. The government did not submit defensive briefs. This silence is interpreted as a lack of interest in defending the current legislation, further fueling criticism about the coherence of government policies.

I would love to read your thoughts.