Italian Legal Assistance
ASSISTANCE FOR
ACQUIRING THE
ITALIAN CITIZENSHIP
At Italian Legal Assistance (ILA) we carry out genealogy and document research to support your Italian citizenship application.
We help you locate vital records for your Italian ancestors, such as birth, marriage and death certificates, in Italy and abroad. These records are essential for proving your eligibility for citizenship by descent.
Once the records are found, we make sure they are correctly issued, translated and apostilled where required. This careful preparation helps ensure that your documents are accepted by the relevant Italian consulate in the United States or other jurisdictions.
By taking care of the research and formalities for you, we make the document side of your citizenship case much simpler and less time consuming.
At Italian Legal Assistance (ILA) we provide legal representation in court cases to obtain recognition of Italian citizenship.
We handle so called 1948 cases, where the Italian ancestor is a woman and the line passes through children born before 1948, as well as cases where consulates have created excessive delays or have failed to complete the administrative procedure within the legal time limits.
We also bring actions when municipalities or consulates deny citizenship on the basis of an incorrect reading of Italian civil law and case law. In these situations we prepare the petition, collect the evidence and represent you before the court to have your Italian citizenship formally recognized.
Italian citizenship can also be granted by the Prefecture in certain situations, mainly citizenship by naturalization and citizenship by marriage.
Citizenship by naturalization applies to foreign nationals who have legally lived in Italy for a given number of years, which varies according to their status and nationality. For example, the law requires ten years for most non EU citizens, four years for EU citizens and three years for descendants of former Italian citizens up to the second degree.
Citizenship by marriage applies to spouses of Italian citizens, with different waiting times depending on whether the couple lives in Italy or abroad and whether they have children together.
In both paths the procedure involves a formal online application, supporting documents on residence, income and family status, and a criminal record check. Once granted, citizenship is finalized through the oath of allegiance to the Italian Republic.
We assist you in preparing the application, checking that you meet the legal requirements and dealing with the Prefecture throughout the process.