Italy is a wonderful country with a tradition-rich in culture and history. While many people enjoy visiting Italy for vacations, others may look to live their permanently or part of the year. To do this, it may be a good idea to get proper citizenship. For those that are citizens of the United States or other countries, getting dual citizenship is one option to consider if you qualify. For those that are looking to apply for Italian dual citizenship, there are several ways that you can qualify.
Benefits of Becoming an Italian Citizen
There are plenty of reasons why someone would want to be a citizen of Italy. When you become an official citizen, it will give you the opportunity to live in the country permanently. It can also give you the chance to visit, work, or live in 27 other countries that are part of the European Union without having to get a work visa. Additionally, you can purchase a home, vote on political and legal matters, and consider the country your home as you enjoy all that it has to offer.
Qualify Based on Ancestry
One way that you can qualify for citizenship in Italy is through your ancestry and family lineage. According to the law in Italy, you can automatically qualify for citizenship if one of your parents was born in Italy and had citizenship. This can be a simple path towards citizenship, but you will need to provide evidence of the lineage, which can include birth certificates for both yourself and your parents.
Citizenship Through Marriage
Another common way that someone can qualify for citizenship in Italy is through their marriage. If you have been married to a citizen of Italy for a period of time, you could meet the basic qualifications necessary to be considered a citizen as well. Generally, foreign-born spouses of Italian citizens will need to reside in Italy for two years after marriage to qualify for citizenship. If you do not live in Italy, you may still qualify but you will have to wait for up to three years after getting married to apply for citizenship. You will need a variety of documents for this including your birth certificates, passports, and marriage certificates to apply.
Reclaim Citizenship
In some situations, someone may have been born a citizen but lost it upon moving to another country for a period of time. While there continue to be steps that need to be followed, those that have lost their citizenship can still reclaim it. In many cases, prior citizens that lost the designation through naturalization can reclaim it both for themselves and for their children.
Overall, there continue to be many benefits that come to those that are citizens of Italy. Similar to other countries, Italy has a variety of processes in place that need to be followed in order to become a dual-citizen of the country. Fortunately, there are several different avenues that someone could follow that could ensure they qualify and are approved for their citizenship application.