{"id":7166,"date":"2025-06-30T21:43:46","date_gmt":"2025-06-30T19:43:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ambottawa.esteri.it\/?page_id=7166"},"modified":"2026-03-04T18:53:16","modified_gmt":"2026-03-04T17:53:16","slug":"7166-2","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/ambottawa.esteri.it\/en\/servizi-consolari-e-visti\/servizi-per-il-cittadino-straniero\/cittadinanza\/7166-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Acquisition of Citizenship by &#8220;benefit of law&#8221; (minor children born abroad)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>WARNING!<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>A minor <u>born abroad<\/u> to Italian parents is considered an Italian citizen without the need for a \u201cdeclaration of intent to acquire citizenship\u201d only if at least one of the following conditions is met (it is in any case necessary to request the transcription of the birth certificate through the Consulate at the competent Italian Municipality):<\/strong><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><strong><em>At the time of birth, the minor can acquire <u>exclusively<\/u> Italian citizenship, i.e., does not have and cannot acquire any other citizenship e.g., iure soli<\/em><\/strong><em> (citizenship for birth on the territory of the foreign country of residence, as in Canada), <strong>citizenship by option, etc.<\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n<li><strong><em>At the time of the minor\u2019s birth, a<\/em><\/strong><em> <strong><u>first- or second-degree ascendant<\/u><\/strong> <strong>(parents\/grandparents) <u>possesses<\/u> (or possessed at the time of death) <u>exclusively<\/u> Italian citizenship<\/strong> (example: a child is born in Toronto in August 2025 to one Canadian or Italo-Canadian parent and one parent who holds only Italian citizenship).<\/em><\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The<\/em><\/strong><em> <strong>Italian citizen <u>parent resided in Italy for at least two consecutive years<\/u> after acquiring Italian citizenship and before the date of the child\u2019s birth<\/strong><\/em>.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>If none of the above conditions (1 to 3) are met, the minor born abroad to Italian parents may still acquire Italian citizenship through a declaration of intent by the parents. <\/strong><strong>Please read the following information carefully<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>PLEASE, NOTE<\/p>\n<p><strong>The following procedure does not apply to minor children of Italian citizens who acquired citizenship by:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Naturalisation (Art. 9, Law No. 91\/1992)<\/li>\n<li>Acquisition by special provisions (Art. 4, Law No. 91\/1992)<\/li>\n<li>Marriage (Art. 5, Law No. 91\/1992 or Art. 10, Law No. 555\/1912)<\/li>\n<li>Acquisition as a minor living with a newly naturalized parent (Art. 14, Law No. 91\/1992)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>This means that, for example, a parent who acquired Italian citizenship through a previous marriage to an Italian citizen cannot submit a declaration of intent for his\/her minor child to also acquire Italian citizenship, unless the other parent is Italian by birth.\u00a0Likewise, an Italian citizen who acquired Italian citizenship because, at the time, they were a minor child living with their naturalized Italian parent cannot submit a declaration of intent.<\/p>\n<p>Acquisition of Citizenship by \u201cbenefit of law\u201d (minor children born abroad)<\/p>\n<p>In two cases, provided for by paragraph 1-bis of Article 4 of Law No. 91\/1992 and Article 1, paragraph 1-ter of Legislative Decree No. 36\/2025, minor children born abroad to a citizen parent who does not \u201cautomatically\u201d transmit citizenship may acquire Italian citizenship.<\/p>\n<p><strong>The minor who benefits from this will not be a citizen\u00a0<em>iure sanguinis\u00a0<\/em>(i.e. he\/she will not be a citizen by birth).<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>According to Article 15 of Law No. 91\/1992,\u00a0<strong>the minor does not acquire citizenship from the day of birth, but from the day after the conditions provided for by law are met.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>1) In the first case,\u00a0<\/strong>set forth in paragraph 1-bis,\u00a0<u>letters a) and b)<\/u>\u00a0of article 4 of law no. 91\/1992,<strong>\u00a0the following conditions must be jointly possessed:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>1.1<\/strong>\u00a0Pursuant to letter a):<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>one of the parents,<\/strong>\u00a0even if he or she has another citizenship,\u00a0<strong>is an Italian citizen\u00a0<u>by birth<\/u><\/strong>.\u00a0Therefore, cases of citizens by naturalization pursuant to Article 9 of Law No. 91\/1992 or \u201cby benefit of the law\u201d pursuant to Article 4 of Law No. 91\/1992 or by marriage pursuant to Article 5 of Law No. 91\/1992 or Article 10 of Law No. 555\/1912 or by reacquisition pursuant to Articles 13 or 17 of Law No. 91\/1992 or iuris communicatione (Article 14 of Law No. 91\/1992) are excluded;<\/li>\n<li><strong>both parents<\/strong>\u00a0(including the foreign parent) or the guardian\u00a0<strong>submit a declaration of intent to acquire citizenship;\u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>following the declaration of intent submitted by both parents\/legal guardian, the\u00a0<strong>minor resides legally in Italy for at least two consecutive years<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>1.2<\/strong>\u00a0Pursuant to letter b), for\u00a0<strong>applications submitted to the Consulate until December 31, 2025<\/strong>\u00a0included:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>one of the parents,<\/strong>\u00a0even if he or she has another citizenship,\u00a0<strong>is an Italian citizen\u00a0<u>by birth<\/u><\/strong>.\u00a0Therefore, cases of citizens by naturalization pursuant to Article 9 of Law No. 91\/1992 or \u201cby benefit of the law\u201d pursuant to Article 4 of Law No. 91\/1992 or by marriage pursuant to Article 5 of Law No. 91\/1992 or Article 10 of Law No. 555\/1912 or by reacquisition pursuant to Articles 13 or 17 of Law No. 91\/1992 or iuris communicatione (Article 14 of Law No. 91\/1992) are excluded;<\/li>\n<li><strong>both parents or the legal guardian submit their declaration of intent within\u00a0<\/strong><strong><u>one year<\/u><\/strong><strong>\u00a0of the birth\u00a0<\/strong>(or from the subsequent date on which filiation from an Italian citizen is established or on which adoption by an Italian citizen is decided during the child\u2019s minority).<\/li>\n<li>In the event of recognition of filiation at a later date by parents who are both Italian citizens by birth, the one-year term will run from the first recognition (because the first recognition already entails the transmission of citizenship).\u00a0If, however, recognition by a foreign parent (or an Italian citizen not by birth but by another title) occurs first, the one-year term will be calculated starting from the recognition by the second parent who is a citizen by birth<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>1.3<\/strong>\u00a0Pursuant to letter b), as modified by art. 1, paragraph 513 of the Italian Budget Law for the Year 2026, for\u00a0<strong>applications submitted to the Consulate from January 1, 2026 onwards<\/strong>:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>one of the parents,<\/strong>\u00a0even if he or she has another citizenship,\u00a0<strong>is an Italian citizen\u00a0<u>by birth<\/u><\/strong>.\u00a0Therefore, cases of citizens by naturalization pursuant to Article 9 of Law No. 91\/1992 or \u201cby benefit of the law\u201d pursuant to Article 4 of Law No. 91\/1992 or by marriage pursuant to Article 5 of Law No. 91\/1992 or Article 10 of Law No. 555\/1912 or by reacquisition pursuant to Articles 13 or 17 of Law No. 91\/1992 or iuris communicatione (Article 14 of Law No. 91\/1992) are excluded;<\/li>\n<li><strong>both parents or the legal guardian submit their declaration of intent within\u00a0<\/strong><strong><u>three years<\/u><\/strong><strong>\u00a0of the birth\u00a0<\/strong>(or from the subsequent date on which filiation from an Italian citizen is established or on which adoption by an Italian citizen is decided during the child\u2019s minority).<\/li>\n<li>In the event of recognition of filiation at a later date by parents who are both Italian citizens by birth, the three-year term will run from the first recognition (because the first recognition already entails the transmission of citizenship).\u00a0If, however, recognition by a foreign parent (or an Italian citizen not by birth but by another title) occurs first, the\u00a0 term will be calculated starting from the recognition by the second parent who is a citizen by birth<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>The declaration of intent to acquire citizenship must be formal and made in person, in the presence of Consular staff delegated to exercise civil registry functions, by appointment to be requested at\u00a0<\/strong><strong><a href=\"mailto:ambottawa.cittadinanza@esteri.it\">ambottawa.cittadinanza@esteri.it<\/a><\/strong><strong>.<\/strong><strong>\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>If parents do not submit the declaration at the same time, the legal requirement is considered satisfied on the date on which the declaration of the second parent is submitted.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>If the filiation (adoption included) is established with respect to a single person (or if the other parent is deceased), the declaration of a single parent will be sufficient.\u00a0In the case of establishment of legal residence of the minor in Italy, the declaration can also be submitted after the end of one year from birth, but the residence must last for at least two consecutive years after the declaration of intent to acquire citizenship submitted by the parents.<\/p>\n<p><strong>2)<\/strong>\u00a0<strong>The second case<\/strong>\u00a0(paragraph 1-ter of article 1 of Legislative Decree no. 36\/2025) applies when all of the following conditions are met:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>minors<\/strong>\u00a0on the date of entry into force of conversion law no.\u00a074\/2025, i.e. persons\u00a0<strong>who had not reached the age of 18 on 24 May 2025<\/strong>;<\/li>\n<li><strong>children of citizens by birth<\/strong>\u00a0who are in the conditions set out in letters a), a-bis) and b) of Article 3-bis of Law No. 91\/1992.\u00a0In other words, the\u00a0<strong>parents must be recognized as citizens on the basis of an administrative or judicial application submitted by 11.59 pm (Rome time) on March 27, 2025<\/strong>\u00a0or on the basis of an application submitted on the basis of<strong>\u00a0an appointment communicated by the Consular Office or the Municipality by the same date<\/strong>;<\/li>\n<li><strong>the declaration of the parents or guardian must be submitted to the Consular Office\u00a0<u>by 31 May 2029.<\/u><\/strong>\u00a0If the interested party, a minor on 24 May 2025, becomes an adult in the meantime, the declaration must be submitted by him personally within the same deadline.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>The declaration of intent to acquire citizenship must be formal and made in person, in the presence of Consular staff delegated to exercise civil registry functions, by appointment to be requested at <\/strong><strong><a href=\"mailto:ambottawa.cittadinanza@esteri.it\">ambottawa.cittadinanza@esteri.it<\/a><\/strong><strong>.<\/strong><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>If the parents do not make the declaration at the same time, the legal requirement is considered satisfied on the date on which the declaration of the second parent is submitted.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>If the filiation (adoption included) is established with respect to a single person (or if the other parent is deceased), the declaration of a single parent will be sufficient.\u00a0In the case of establishment of legal residence of the minor in Italy, the declaration can also be submitted after the end of one year from birth, but the residence must last for at least two consecutive years after the declaration of intent to acquire citizenship submitted by the parents.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Declarations must be made in person at the Consular Office in front of employees delegated to perform civil-status duties, by appointment to be requested via email at: <\/strong><strong><a href=\"mailto:ambottawa.cittadinanza@esteri.it\">ambottawa.cittadinanza@esteri.it<\/a><\/strong><strong>.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>It will also be necessary to attach an <strong>identity document of the applicant and the child, proof of residence in the consular district, as well as the documentation<\/strong> listed in the relevant declaration form:&#8221;<a href=\"https:\/\/ambottawa.esteri.it\/en\/chi-siamo\/gli-uffici\/modulistica\/\">Modulo richiesta presentazione dichiarazione di volont\u00e0<\/a>&#8220;.<\/p>\n<p>For Italian citizens registered with AIRE in their consular district of residence, the certificate of Italian citizenship by birth of the father or mother may be replaced by a declaration in lieu of certification.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><u>Declarations<\/u><\/strong><u>\u00a0i<\/u>ssued pursuant to article 4, paragraph 1-bis, letter b) of Italian Law no. 91 of 1992\u00a0<strong><u>based on applications submitted after January 1, 2026\u00a0<\/u><\/strong><u>(<strong>case described under point 1.3<\/strong>\u00a0of this webpage)<strong>,<\/strong>\u00a0are\u00a0<strong>FREE<\/strong>\u00a0of charge.<\/u><\/li>\n<li><strong>Declarations<\/strong>\u00a0 issued following applications submitted starting from January 1, 2026, are also\u00a0<strong>FREE for the cases described under point 2 of this page<\/strong> (children of at least one Italian citizen by birth who were still minors on May 24, 2025, with a declaration made by May 31, 2029).<\/li>\n<li><strong>In all other cases<\/strong>\u00a0(outlined under points 1.1, 1.2), pursuant to article 9-bis of law no.\u00a091\/1992,\u00a0<strong>the payment of the contribution in favour of the Ministry of the Interior of 250 euros applies<\/strong>, for each minor. Payment must be made by wire transfer, with<strong>\u00a0any bank fees to be borne by the person requesting the transfer<\/strong>:<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>\u201cMinistero dell\u2019Interno D.L.C.I Cittadinanza\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>Bank Name:<\/strong>\u00a0Poste Italiane S.p.A.<br \/>\n<strong>IBAN:<\/strong>\u00a0IT54D0760103200000000809020<br \/>\n<strong>Reason for payment:<\/strong>\u00a0Acquisto cittadinanza a seguito di dichiarazione ex art. 9-bis L. 91\/1992 (followed by the\u00a0<strong>full name<\/strong>\u00a0of the minor applicant)<br \/>\n<strong>BIC\/SWIFT Code of Poste Italiane:<\/strong>\u00a0 BPPIITRRXXX\u00a0<strong>(for foreign wire transfer)<br \/>\nBIC\/SWIFT: PIBPITRA<\/strong>\u00a0(for EUROGIRO circuit operations)<\/p>\n<p>The interested party, once he or she has become an adult, may renounce Italian citizenship acquired in the ways indicated above, with the sole condition that this does not result in a statelessness condition (the interested party may renounce Italian citizenship only if he or she has another citizenship).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"WARNING! A minor born abroad to Italian parents is considered an Italian citizen without the need for a \u201cdeclaration of intent to acquire citizenship\u201d only if at least one of the following conditions is met (it is in any case necessary to request the transcription of the birth certificate through the Consulate at the competent [&hellip;]","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"parent":299,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-7166","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ambottawa.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/7166","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ambottawa.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ambottawa.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ambottawa.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ambottawa.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7166"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/ambottawa.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/7166\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9164,"href":"https:\/\/ambottawa.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/7166\/revisions\/9164"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ambottawa.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/299"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ambottawa.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7166"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}