How to get Italian citizenship: options, requrements, benefits

Italy has one of the strongest passports in the world, allowing visa-free access to 172 destinations. Among them are the Schengen Area, the US, Canada, Mexico, Australia and Japan. Since Italy is an EU member, its citizens can spend any amount of time in any other EU country, Norway, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Iceland. They do not need to obtain a residence permit in advance and are allowed to live, get employed, start a business, and study there.

Italy is a pleasant place to live, work and raise children. The country has a warm climate, beautiful architecture, friendly people and delicious food. You can comfortably settle near the mountains or on the seashore. These are just a few of the Italian citizenship benefits.

Dual citizenship is permitted by Italian law. If you get naturalised in Italy, you can retain the citizenship of your home country, if the local law allows it. Italian citizenship will also be inherited by future generations of your family.

Investors may obtain Italian citizenship by participating in the Italy Golden Visa program.

By naturalisation via residency. A foreigner who receives a residence permit card will be able to apply for Italian citizenship in 10 years. They need to permanently reside in the country before applying, receive income and pay taxes. One of the ways to obtain a residence permit, and eventually citizenship, is through the Italy Golden Visa for investors.

By descent. Italian citizenship can be obtained if a person’s parents or grandparents were citizens of the country. The process of obtaining a passport through ancestry is similar to naturalisation, except it is faster as you can apply for citizenship after three years of residence in the country. The applicant confirms his Italian origin with official documents.

By marriage. Those who marry Italian citizens do not automatically receive an Italian passport. However, this does speed up the procedure for obtaining citizenship. You can apply in two or three years depending on the place of residence.

By birthright. A child of Italian citizens automatically acquires citizenship, even if he was born in another country. Children who were born in Italy also receive citizenship if their parents are unknown.

Upon adoption. A child adopted by Italian citizens acquires citizenship from the moment of adoption.

By working for the Italian government for five years, even outside Italy. In this case, you do not need to live in the country for ten years to obtain citizenship.

More details about each way to get Italian citizenship are below.

Those who are not born in Italy or married to an Italian citizen can still become naturalised. The main rule is uninterrupted legal residency in the country.

Citizenship will not be approved if the applicant has spent more than 10 months abroad in the last five years before applying.

Non-EU citizens must reside in Italy for at least 10 years before applying for citizenship. This is also relevant for Golden Visa investors who want to become Italian citizens in the future, instead of lifelong permanent residents.

EU citizens must reside in Italy for at least 4 years before applying for citizenship.

Legal adults adopted by an Italian, as well as stateless persons, can apply for citizenship after 5 years of residency in Italy.

Applicants need to provide a declaration of income for the past three years. Minimum annual income must be:

• at least €8,264 for the applicant;

• at least €11,362 for a married applicant;

• extra €516 for each dependent.

The applicant pays taxes and confirms income with annual tax returns.

Language proficiency is also required. Applicants pass an Italian language test at the B1 level and receive a certification recognized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Such tests are carried out at four institutions: the Dante Alighieri Society, the University for Foreigners in Siena, the University of Roma Tre and the University for Foreigners in Perugia.

Exempt from the test are: Italian school, college or university graduates. The same goes for applicants who obtained a diploma after 2015 from either a provincial centre for adult education and training (CPIA) or a local centre (CTP).

Compliance with the law is confirmed by certificates of no criminal record issued in Italy, as well as other countries where the applicant has previously resided for at least a year. Each certificate is valid for 180 days from the date of receipt.

Is the Italy Golden Visa worth it? Watch the video and find out

Italian passport eligibility can be determined by “jus sanguinis”, or "the right of blood." If a parent, grandparent, or great-grandfather of a person was born in Italy, that person can apply for Italian citizenship. An applicant must be older than 18.

The applicant needs to prove that their ancestor was an Italian citizen or was entitled to Italian citizenship at birth. This can be done with certified copies of official documents in the hometown of the said Italian ancestor.

Applicants also need to confirm that neither they nor their relatives have renounced Italian citizenship before. This is verified by a certificate from the Italian consulate.

To obtain citizenship through ancestry, applicants need to live in Italy for three years, register at the place of living and stay in the country for at least six months and one day a year.

During the residency, certain legal income requirements must be met:

• at least €8,264 for the applicant;

• at least €11,362 for a married applicant;

• €516 extra for each dependent.

Income certificates are provided for the last three years before the date of citizenship application. The applicant pays taxes and confirms income with annual tax returns.

Previously, Italian citizenship was passed only through the parental line. The transfer of citizenship through the maternal line is only possible for people born after January 1st, 1948. Moreover, the applicant’s relative could not have been a naturalised citizen of any other country prior to the applicant’s birth.

Anyone has the right to apply for Italian citizenship after marrying a national. However, It can not be done immediately: a minimum marriage period is required.

When to apply for citizenship after marrying an Italian national

• in 2 years — if spouses live in Italy;

• in 3 years — if spouses live in another country;

• in 1 year — if spouses live in Italy and have a newborn child, or adopt a child;

• in 1,5 years — if spouses live in Italy and have a newborn child, or adopt a child.

Applicants also pass an Italian language test at the B1 level and receive a certification recognized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Italian citizenship cannot be obtained by investment directly, but the country has a path in the form of the Golden Visa by investment program.

Applicants choose from four investment options:

• €250,000 or more for investing in an innovative start-up;

• €500,000 or more for equity financing to an Italian limited company;

• €1,000,000 or more as a philanthropic donation;

• €2,000,000 or more for the purchase of government bonds.

The investor confirms the legality of receiving funds for the investment contribution and undergoes Due Diligence.

A residence permit under the Italy Golden Visa program is issued for two years. It can then be extended for three years provided that the investment is maintained. Investors are not required to live in Italy if they do not want to obtain citizenship.

Investors receive citizenship by naturalisation under general conditions. After five years of holding a residence permit, the investor receives permanent residence and after ten years, citizenship.

Regardless of the method of obtaining Italian citizenship, you will need:

1. Birth certificates, valid passports, and Italian residence permits of all applying family members. Should be submitted in both original form and in the form of notarised and translated copies.

2. Photographs in passport format of all applicants.

3. No criminal record certificate issued by the country of origin and any third countries where the applicants have ever resided after turning 14.

4. Italian language proficiency certificate proving the B1 CERF level or higher.

5. Ministry of the Interior fee receipt in the amount of €250.

Additionally, applicants for Italian citizenship by marriage provide the full marriage certificate or extract of the marriage certificate issued by the Italian town hall where it was registered. The certificate must be issued no more than six months prior to the application date.

Applicants for Italian citizenship by ancestry additionally submit documents confirming that their ancestors have already been recognised as Italian by descent. Each document must be duly legalised and translated into Italian.

A citizenship application form is filled out through the official government bodies in Italy, and submitted along with the documents.

Where to submit citizenship applications:

• for citizenship by residency — via the city hall of the Italian province where the applicant officially resides;

• for citizenship by ancestry — via the applicant’s local Italian consular office, or by contacting the Municipality in Italy;

• for citizenship by marriage — via the Italian Ministry of the Interior portal.

If submitting the form online, applicants upload document scans.

Processing times for Italian citizenship applications take between three months to three years, depending on the queue and each individual case. If all the application conditions are met, the government employees set a date for the original document transfer.

To obtain Italian citizenship, you need to live in the country for ten years. This path is not suitable for everyone.

Some countries give investors the opportunity to obtain a residence permit, permanent residence and citizenship much faster. With these statuses, you can live, study and work in the chosen country, enjoying the right of visa-free travel worldwide. Moreover, their conditions are often milder than in Italy: for example, in Portugal, investors receive citizenship after five years of resident status.

Portugal residence permit by investment can be obtained for €250,000 or more. Applicants can choose to support arts and culture, support scientific research, invest in real estate or business, or transfer their capital.

An investor with a resident status can live and conduct business in Portugal, as well as travel to the Schengen Area without a visa. There is no permanent residency requirement. It is enough to spend seven days a year in Portugal.

When applying for a Portugal residence permit, investors can include their spouse, underage children, and dependents: children and siblings under 26, and parents over 65.

Portugal citizenship can be obtained after five years as a resident. A Portuguese language proficiency test is required.

Malta citizenship by naturalisation for exceptional services by direct investment allows becoming naturalised after 1 or 3 years as a resident. Investors can include their spouses or registered partners, as well as principally dependent family members: unmarried children under 29, as well as parents and grandparents over 55. All applicants undergo a strict four-tier Eligibility Test.

Mandatory requirements:

1. Contribution to the National Development and Social Fund of Malta. Investors who contribute at least €600,000 can apply for citizenship after three years of residency. Those who contribute at least €750,000 can apply after one year.

2. Donation to a non-governmental charitable organisation, of €10,000 or more.

3. Investment in residential real estate in Malta. Investors can rent a property for at least €16,000 a year or buy a property for at least €700,000. The property must be rented or held for five years.

Investors can rent out their Malta property: the average annual yield is 3,5—6%, and capital growth can be up to 25%. The real estate value in Malta grows by 4—6% per year.

Greece residence permit can be obtained by investment of €250,000 or more. Applicants invest in real estate, buy shares or deposit funds, and obtain a five-year residence permit.

After five years, the investor can apply for permanent residence and after another two years — apply for Greece citizenship.

With a residence permit in Greece, investors can travel to the Schengen Area and EU without visas. With a Greek passport, they will be able to move to any EU country using a simplified registration procedure.

1. Italian passports rank among the strongest in the world. They allow visa-free travel to 172 countries and allow the right to work, run a business, or study in any EU member state.

2. An Italian passport can be obtained by naturalisation, birth, descent, marriage, adoption, or employment with the Italian government.

3. Italian citizenship by investment is not available. However, wealthy individuals can move to Italy by investing at least €250,000 and obtaining the Italian Golden Visa.

4. Italian law permits dual citizenship.