Senator Andrea Crisanti, elected by Democratic party in Europe, harshly criticized the decree on citizenship Presented by the Italian government on March 28th, the text, which is under review by the Senate's Constitutional Affairs Committee, imposes new restrictions on the recognition of Italian citizenship, mainly for descendants of Italians and citizens registered in AIRE – the official registry of residents abroad.
According to Crisanti, the decree prevents those registered with AIRE from passing on their citizenship beyond the second generation, which could directly affect thousands of families. “It is an unfair measure that will especially affect those who have dual citizenship,” he said.
According to the senator, the impact will be twofold: many will stop applying for Italian citizenship and others will avoid registering with AIRE. He also highlighted the absence of a transition period, which, in practice, excludes from the right to naturalization all those who had already started the process.
Crisanti also criticized the way the decree was drafted, without dialogue with the General Council of Italians Abroad (CGIE), the body responsible for representing the interests of the Italian community outside Italy. “The urgent nature of the decree is not justified. Most of the more than six million people registered with AIRE are not due to naturalization, but to recent emigration of young people and post-pandemic regularization,” he explained to the Aise news agency on Tuesday (22).
The parliamentarian reported that, together with other senators and deputies elected abroad, he presented amendments to change the decree. The aim is to increase the number of citizens who can transfer citizenship and recognize cultural ties with Italy as a valid criterion for the request.
“We will oppose this unjust decree with all our strength,” Crisanti concluded. “Our fight is just beginning,” he concluded.
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