Citizenship by marriage, even if celebrated before 1983
The term “citizenship” indicates the relationship between an individual and the state and is the status to which the legal system attaches the fullness of civil and political rights. In Italy, the concept of citizenship originated at the time of the establishment of the unitary state and is currently regulated by Law No. 91 of February 5, 1992. 91.
Citizenship by marriage or civil union (Art. 5 l. No. 91/92)
Pursuant to the new legislation of 1992, the foreign or stateless spouse of an Italian citizen can acquire Italian citizenship if:
- after marriage (or civil union), he/she has legally resided in the territory of the Republic for at least two years,
- after marriage (or civil union), three years of residence abroad have elapsed from the date of marriage. At the time of the decree granting Italian citizenship, there must be no dissolution, annulment or termination of the civil effects of the marriage (or civil union) and there must be no personal separation of the spouses.
The terms of two and three years are reduced by half in the presence of children born or adopted by the spouses. This procedure requires a maximum of 24 months from the submission of the application, extendable up to 36, and requires the Ministry of the Interior to be directly involved.
The documentation required for citizenship iure matrimonii
To proceed with the application for the granting of Italian citizenship by marriage or civil union, the necessary documents are:
- Identity documents of the applicant (identity card, passport and tax code, if in the applicant’s possession),
- The extract of the birth certificate of the applicant’s country of origin (apostilled/legalized and translated),
- Criminal record certificate from the applicant’s country of origin (and third countries of residence, if any), legalized and with a legalized translation (excluding the case in which, at the age of 14, the person concerned already had legal residence in Italy and has always maintained it),
- Residence permit, if the applicant is in Italy,
- Extract of the marriage act (registered in Italy even if celebrated abroad);
- Certificate of knowledge of the Italian language at a level of not less than B1, issued by a public or parified school or an institution certified by MIUR; the certificate is not necessary if the applicant holds a long-term EU residence permit or has signed an integration agreement,
- Copy of the payment of the €250 fee to be paid to the Ministry of the Interior,
- €16 revenue stamp.
Please note: If the residences of the spouses are different, or if you don’t know how to go about legalization/translation of your documents, or you don’t have any Italian language certificate yet, contact me for information.
Marriage celebrated before 1983 (also for foreigners married to Italian citizens)
A faster route is available to foreign women who married an Italian citizen before 27 April 1983 and who are entitled to automatic recognition of Italian citizenship, even in cases where there has been a divorce in the meantime.
The art. 10 of law no. 555/1912 established, in fact, that “a foreign woman who marries a citizen acquires Italian citizenship”. In these cases, the transcription of the marriage certificate in Italy is followed by the possibility for the woman to be recognized as an Italian citizen by the Italian authorities, without any other attachment, other than her extract from the birth certificate (legalised/astilled and translated).
Warning! The same possibility was also recognized for foreign men married to an Italian citizen before 27 April 1983. However, the procedures for submitting the application are different! To find out what to do in this case, contact me.
Conclusion
Talking about Italian citizenship also means talking about European citizenship, which is enjoyed by every citizen of an EU member country, such as Italy, in addition to the citizenship of the country of origin… and EU citizenship, like Italian citizenship, entails a number of rights, including for the descendants of Italian citizens (to learn more click on How to be recognized as an Italian citizen by descent).
If you have the opportunity to be recognized as an Italian citizen by descent or marriage and would like to learn more, contact me for a consultation!
