Italian Citizenship Of Minors Born Abroad: Exemption From Fees And Extension Of Deadlines To Three Years, But Not For Everyone

With the 2026 Budget Law, in force from 1 January 2026, the legislator introduced two important provisions concerning Italian Citizenship for minor children born abroad to at least one Italian parent who do not automatically acquire Italian Citizenship: the abolition of the €250 contribution payable to the Consulate that accompanied the application, and the extension of the filing deadline from one year to three years.

2026 Budget Law and Italian Citizenship of minors born abroad

Two very important practical aspects have changed regarding applications for Italian Citizenship for minors born abroad to at least one Italian parent who do not automatically acquire Italian Citizenship.
On the one hand, the declaration may be free of charge (abolition of the €250 contribution) for applications submitted from that date.
On the other hand, in some cases, the deadline for submitting the declaration has been extended to up to three years (from birth or from the establishment of filiation).

However, attention must be paid: these changes do not apply automatically to all minors born abroad who are entitled to Italian Citizenship.

At present, what matters above all is the child's date of birth. In order to be certainly entitled both to the exemption from the fee and to the extension of the deadline, the child must have been born on or after 25 May 2025.

Those who have already submitted an application are penalised, even if they could have avoided paying the €250 contribution, because the provisions apply from 1 January 2026 and no retroactive effect or refunds are provided.

Goodbye to the €250 fee: when the procedure becomes free of charge

From 1 January 2026, the €250 contribution to the Ministry of the Interior is no longer due for declarations of acquisition of Italian Citizenship submitted:

• for minors born abroad on or after 25 May 2025 (unless otherwise provided by the Consulate);
• by parents of whom at least one is an Italian citizen by birth;
• with a declaration submitted within three years from birth or from the date of recognition of filiation.

However, attention must be paid: the exemption applies exclusively to this contribution.

Possible indirect costs related to documents, translations, legalisation or certifications may still apply.

The legislation provides for exemption from the fee in specific cases, but the implementing procedures are not yet uniform across all Consulates, which in some cases continue to distinguish between the ordinary regime and the transitional regime.

Some Consulates, such as those in Brazil, have published operational notices applying the exemption also to transitional cases, while still stressing the need to always verify the instructions of the competent Consular office.

While possible extensions of the final deadline for submission are still subject to future decrees by the Italian Government, to determine whether the fee is due or not it is advisable to seek information from the competent Consulate.

The abolition of the fee has no retroactive effect and no refund is provided for amounts already paid.

Extension of deadlines: three years to apply, but not for everyone

Another significant change is the extension of the deadline for submitting the declaration:

• the fixed deadline (31 May 2026) is replaced by a period of three years from the minor's birth.

However, this measure also does not apply indiscriminately.

The three-year deadline applies only to:

• minors born on or after 25 May 2025;
• cases falling within the new category provided for by the law.

For minors already born before that date, the fixed deadline of 31 May 2026 remains in force.

Application of the new rules at Italian Consulates

As mentioned above, the operational guidelines are not perfectly uniform among Consulates.

Some Consular offices may extend the exemption from the fee also to cases involving minors born up to 24 May 2025, or those that have extended the exemption may subsequently modify their approach and distinguish between minors based on the date of birth or filiation.

Apart from the contribution itself, the failure to apply the extension of the deadline for submitting the application undermines the acquisition of Italian Citizenship for many minors who would otherwise be entitled, due to the slow processing by Consulates.

As with adults, two different rules are being applied simultaneously to minors as well: a new regime for some, while for the majority the previous regime continues to apply, including payment of the fee and stricter deadlines.

The coexistence of multiple legal regimes, combined with the operational interpretations adopted by different Consular offices, makes this area particularly complex today.

For this reason, it is essential to understand precisely who can benefit from the exemption and the three-year deadline and who, instead, is excluded, in order to avoid errors that could definitively compromise the acquisition of Italian Citizenship for the minor.

Italian Citizenship for minor children born abroad: the legal framework

Not all minors born abroad to Italian parents are in the same legal situation.

The legislation distinguishes between Italian Citizenship acquired automatically at birth and Citizenship that must be acquired through a declaration by the parents.

The new provisions are part of the amendments introduced in 2025 to the Italian Citizenship Law and concern minor children born abroad to at least one Italian parent by birth who, under Law No. 74/2025, no longer automatically acquire Citizenship iure sanguinis, as was previously the case.

The 2025 legislation restricted the cases of automatic transmission of Italian Citizenship to minors born abroad.

In cases where the conditions for automatic transmission of Citizenship are not met, the minor may acquire Italian Citizenship by operation of law only following a declaration of intent submitted by the parents within the prescribed time limits.

Which children born abroad are already Italian citizens and do NOT need declarations

There are cases in which the child is an Italian citizen from birth by direct effect of the law.

In these cases, no declaration of intent is required, but only the registration of the birth certificate.

A child born abroad is automatically an Italian citizen if at least one of the following conditions applies:

• at least one parent is an Italian citizen by birth and has resided in Italy for at least two continuous years prior to the child's birth;
• at least one parent holds exclusively Italian Citizenship;
• the child does not possess any other Citizenship;
• a direct ascendant up to the second degree (parent or grandparent) holds or held, at the time of death, exclusively Italian Citizenship.

In these cases:

• the child is an Italian citizen from birth;
• no declaration of acquisition is required;
• the parents only need to register the birth certificate with the competent Italian Consulate or Municipality.

What parents must do in these cases

When the child is already an Italian citizen:

• the birth certificate must be transcribed;
• this is not an acquisition of Citizenship but a simple recognition of an existing status;
• neither the three-year deadline nor the 31 May 2026 deadline applies;
• the €250 contribution is not due.

A necessary clarification regarding grandparents

The condition relating to grandparents in the context of Italian Citizenship iure sanguinis refers to a specific provision introduced by the recent amendments to Law No. 91/1992, in particular Article 3-bis, paragraph 1, letter (c), which governs the automatic acquisition of Citizenship by minors born abroad.

This provision states that a child is an Italian citizen if "a direct ascendant up to the second degree (parent or grandparent) holds, or held at the time of death, exclusively Italian Citizenship", meaning that such ascendant must never have acquired another Citizenship or must have held Italian Citizenship exclusively.

However, this rule does not override the general principle of transmission by bloodline: Italian Citizenship is transmitted from parent to child only if the parent was an Italian citizen at the time of the child's birth.

If the parent, who is the child of the Italian grandparent, naturalised as a foreign citizen before the minor's birth, the chain of transmission is interrupted.

In such cases, the fact that the grandparent held exclusively Italian Citizenship becomes irrelevant, and Consulates apply this logic to prevent transmission beyond the break in the lineage.

In summary, the provision concerning grandparents operates as an alternative and supplementary condition, but it remains subordinate to the continuity of the parental line without interruptions caused by naturalisation.

When parents MUST submit a declaration for their child to acquire Italian Citizenship

Following the changes introduced in 2025, not all children born abroad to at least one Italian citizen automatically acquire Italian Citizenship.

If the minor born abroad does not fall within the cases of automatic Citizenship described above, but has at least one parent who is an Italian citizen by birth, Italian Citizenship is not acquired automatically. In such cases, the parents must submit a formal declaration to the competent Italian Consulate or to the Municipality of residence in Italy within a specific deadline.

A declaration is required when:

• the child is born abroad;
• the conditions allowing automatic transmission of Citizenship are not met;
• at least one parent is an Italian citizen by birth.

In these cases, the minor acquires Italian Citizenship by operation of law, not iure sanguinis, only if the parents submit the declaration within the prescribed time limits.

The declaration is admissible only if:

• at least one parent is an Italian citizen by birth.

It is not admissible if the Italian parent:

• acquired Citizenship by naturalisation, marriage or other legal benefits after the child's birth.

Where and how the declaration must be submitted

The declaration:

• must be made in person;
• before a civil status officer;
• at the Italian Consulate abroad or at the competent Italian Municipality;
• within the statutory time limits (three years or 31 May 2026 in transitional cases).

Without this declaration, the minor does not become an Italian citizen, even if they are the child of an Italian citizen.

In summary: what changes and for whom

• From 1 January 2026, the declaration of acquisition of Italian Citizenship for certain minors born abroad is exempt from the €250 contribution, but the exemption does not apply to all cases and is not retroactive.
• The deadline for submitting the declaration has been extended to three years from birth or filiation, but only for minors born on or after 25 May 2025 and falling within the new category provided by law.
• Minors born before 25 May 2025, if still underage on 24 May 2025, remain subject to the transitional regime, with a deadline set at 31 May 2026 and, in many cases, with the obligation to pay the contribution.
• Children who fall within the cases of automatic transmission of Citizenship iure sanguinis are already Italian citizens from birth and do not need to submit any declaration, but only to register the birth certificate.
• The implementing practices are not yet fully uniform among Consulates, therefore it is essential to always verify the practice of the competent Consular office before submitting the application.

Main legislative references

• Law No. 91/1992: remains the basic law, but has been supplemented by the introduction of Article 3-bis.
• Decree-Law No. 36/2025 (the "Tajani Decree"): converted into Law No. 74/2025, introduced restrictions on iure sanguinis.
• 2026 Budget Law: introduced further operational amendments, including the extension of deadlines for certain declarations and the exemption from fees for some procedures.

The Tajani Decree introduced acquisition by "benefit of law" for the children of Italian citizens by birth who do not automatically transmit Citizenship.

Summary table: when a declaration is required and when it is not

Why it is important to act carefully and without errors

The differences between the applicable regimes, strict deadlines and the absence of retroactivity make this matter particularly delicate.

An error in the procedure, an application submitted late or an incorrect assessment of the requirements may result in the definitive loss of the possibility to transmit Italian Citizenship to the minor.

For this reason, it is advisable to seek assistance from a legal professional who closely follows developments in Citizenship law and international immigration law.

Citizenship scenario for minors in 2026

The hope for many aspiring Italian citizens is that the Government will approve an extension of the exemption from fees and of the filing deadlines by decree, and that the Italian Constitutional Court will rule in favour of descendants of Italians abroad, decisively overturning the restrictions imposed by Law No. 74/2025.

The rules on registration could also change or be repealed depending on the ruling of the Constitutional Court.

The hearing is scheduled for 11 March 2026, after which the decision will be issued.

Legal assistance for the Citizenship of minors born abroad

A law firm specialising in immigration law and international Citizenship can:

• verify whether the minor falls under the free-of-charge regime or the transitional regime;
• check the parents' requirements;
• liaise with the competent Consulate;
• assist in the correct preparation of documentation;
• prevent errors that could jeopardise the application.

In a constantly evolving regulatory framework, legal assistance is often decisive.

The international law firm Boccadutri can assist you throughout all stages of the application, examining your specific case and its particularities.

Do not hesitate to contact the Immigration Law Department.

FAQ on Citizenship of minors born abroad