Minor children born abroad to an Italian citizen parent who does not automatically transmit citizenship may acquire Italian citizenship in two cases, according to paragraph 1-bis or article 4 of Law 91/1992 and to article 1, paragraph 1-ter of the Law-Decree n.36/2025:
This form of citizenship is not by birth or iure sanguinis, but granted upon meeting legal conditions.
According to Article 15 of Law no. 91/1992, citizenship is acquired by the minor only after the specified conditions are fulfilled, not from birth.
Case 1: Article 4, Paragraph 1-bis of Law 91/1992
All these conditions must be met simoultaneously:
- One parent must be an Italian citizen by birth (not by naturalization, marriage, legal benefit, reacquisition, or other means).
- Both parents (including the foreign parent), or the legal guardian, must formally declare their will for the child to acquire citizenship within one year of:
- the child’s birth,
- the date the child is legally recognized by an Italian citizen, or
- the date of adoption by an Italian citizen while still a minor.
If recognition by two Italian-born parents occurs at different times and not at birth, the one-year deadline starts from the first recognition.
If only the foreign or naturalized parent recognized the child first, the deadline starts from the recognition by the Italian-born parent.
The declaration of intent of acquisition must be made in person to a civil status officer. If made by parents on separate occasions, the effective date is that of the second declaration.
If there is only one parent (or the other is deceased), a declaration from the surviving/legal parent is sufficient.
If the minor establishes legal residence in Italy, the declaration may be made later — but the child must reside in Italy for two continuous years following the declaration.
Case 2: Article 1, Paragraph 1-ter of Decree-Law 36/2025
This case applies when:
- The individual was a minor on 24 May 2025 (effective date of the conversion law);
- The parents are Italian by birth and were recognized as such via an application submitted before 27 March 2025 at 11:59 PM (Rome time);
- The declaration of intent by parents/legal guardian is submitted to the Consulate by 31 May 2026. If the child becomes an adult (i.e. turns 18) before then, they must submit the declaration themselves by the same deadline.
Declarations must be made in person to consular civil status officers.
Required documents include:
- IDs for the applicant and the child
- Proof of residence within the consular district
- Supporting documentation indicated in the declaration form (i.e. birth certificates in original, apostilled by DFAT and translated by a NAATI translator)
Only for AIRE-registered citizens, a self-certificate can replace the parent’s citizenship certificate.
A €250 fee per child is payable via bank transfer to the Italian Ministry of the Interior with the following details:
Beneficiary: “Ministero dell’Interno D.L.C.I Cittadinanza”
Bank: Poste Italiane S.p.A.
IBAN: IT54D0760103200000000809020
Payment purpose: “Acquisition of citizenship by declaration ex Art. 9-bis L.91/1992” with the applicant’s full name (name and surname)
BIC/SWIFT: BPPIITRRXXX (foreign transfers), PIBPITRA (EUROGIRO)
Once of age, the individual may renounce the acquired citizenship — provided it does not result in statelessness.