On July 26 2026 the Italian Court of Cassation (United Sections) issued judgment No. 24045/2026, ending the long‑standing dispute over whether a child born abroad loses Italian citizenship when the Italian parent naturalises while the child is still a minor.
Court’s ruling
The Court distinguished two situations:
- Dual citizens from birth – Children born abroad in countries that apply ius soli (e.g., United States, Brazil, Argentina, Canada, pre‑1986 Australia) automatically acquire the foreign citizenship at birth. They remain Italian citizens even if the Italian parent later naturalises, and can lose Italian citizenship only by a personal renunciation after reaching adulthood.
- Derivatively acquired foreign citizenship – Children who held only Italian citizenship and obtained the foreign citizenship as a consequence of the parent’s naturalisation do lose Italian citizenship together with the parent.
The principle applies regardless of whether the father or the mother naturalised. A second judgment (No. 24184/2026) confirmed the interpretation a few days later.
Ministry of the Interior’s response
- On August 10 2026 the Ministry issued circular Prot. No. 65050, superseding the restrictive October 2024 circular and instructing all consulates and municipalities to apply the Court’s interpretation.
- The circular has not yet been published on the Ministry’s official site; full implementation may require several weeks.
What denied applicants can do
- Applicants whose requests were rejected solely on the “minor issue” under the October 2024 circular may request a re‑examination of the original application.
- The request must be addressed to the same authority that issued the denial, even if the applicant has moved.
- The case will be reviewed under the legal framework that was in force when the application was filed.
- If the filing date is before 27 March 2025, the 2025 citizenship reform (Law No. 74/2025) does not apply to the re‑examination.
Important caveats
- The ruling protects only those who held the foreign citizenship from birth through ius soli. Anyone who acquired the foreign citizenship later, including derivatively through a parent’s naturalisation, remains subject to the previous loss rule.
- It applies only to parental naturalisations that occurred between 1 July 1912 and 15 August 1992. Since the current citizenship law entered into force in August 1992, naturalisation abroad no longer causes loss of Italian citizenship.
- New applications are still governed by the generational limits of Law No. 74/2025: a parent or grandparent must have been born in Italy (or have qualifying residence). The ruling does not extend the line of transmission.
- Special international treaty provisions that contradict the ruling must be checked for the specific country of naturalisation.
- The applicant’s birth certificate becomes the key document, as it must demonstrate that the foreign citizenship was acquired at birth.
Bottom line
The Court’s decision removes the “minor issue” obstacle for thousands of dual‑citizen families—from the Americas to Australia—who were previously denied Italian citizenship by descent. Applications denied since October 2024 should be reopened, pending cases can move forward, and future filings can be assessed with greater legal certainty, provided the above limitations are respected.
Source article: www.imidaily.com
