If you are the son or daughter of an Italian citizen and have not yet had your citizenship recognized, please be aware that it's possible request registration directly in the municipality where your father or mother was registered.
Regardless of whether the parent was born in Italy or abroad, and whether the parent was recognized through a consulate or the comune (municipality), the registration procedure is the same.
Legal basis for registration
Recently, the Court of Biella, in the Piedmont region, issued a decision which tends to simplify the process of registering children of Italian citizens, regardless of age. This decision represents an important step forward for Italian-Brazilians, eliminating the need for consular intervention or long legal proceedings.
The ruling shows that it is indeed possible to register adult children—even if they do not have recognized Italian citizenship—even if they do not reside in Italy or are not registered with AIRE. (Anagraphe degli Italiani Residenti all'Estero).
In the sentence of 15/05/2024, Judge Francesca Marrapodi highlighted that “under article 28, § 2, letter b) of Presidential Decree No. 396/2000”, birth certificates received abroad must be transcribed in the same folder (family). And she says that article 12, § 11 of the same decree also establishes that “the transcription may be requested by any interested person”, as long as the documentation is correctly apostilled and translated.
According to the order, these legal provisions also apply to the registration of adult children, regardless of whether they already have recognized Italian citizenship or not.
Starting the registration process
The good news is that, initially, you don't need to hire a lawyer.
You can start the process yourself. To do this, gather the necessary documentation — such as birth and marriage certificates (if applicable), duly apostilled and translated — and send them to the civil status officer in the corresponding comune.
What if there is a refusal?
If the municipality refuses to register your adult child, either due to lack of knowledge or stubbornness against the law, you will need to appeal the refusal. In this situation, hiring a lawyer is necessary to ensure that your rights are respected.
Despite the need for legal assistance, the cost and time involved in such an appeal tend to be significantly lower compared to traditional proceedings in Italian courts.
who can apply
Only the Italian citizen parent (obviously alive) can request the registration of the child, even if the child has already reached the age of majority.
Where to register the birth
The Italian parent must register the child in the same Italian municipality where he or she is registered.
What documents to send
To register, the parent must submit the child's full birth and marriage certificates (if applicable), duly translated and apostilled. It is important to include a copy of a valid document (preferably a passport), the application form, and the self-declaration (see below).
To go down: Rich transcription of the act of the birth per figlio (Word version)
To go down: Rich transcription of the act of the birth per figlio (editable PDF version)
Where to send
Correspondence containing all the aforementioned documents must be sent to the civil status officer of the comune of registration.
You can find the comune's address by doing a Google search with the term: “status civile comune di [name of municipality]”.
It is recommended that documents be sent by post, with proof of receipt (keep this receipt for future reference).
How long does it take?
By law, the deadline for registering certificates is 30 days. However, municipalities often rely — mistakenly — on Decree-Law No. 1 of December 2018, 132, which can extend the process to up to 180 days.
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