Former Italian lawmaker Luis Roberto Lorenzato signed a letter Friday (30) addressed to U.S. President Donald Trump, requesting clarification about alleged American interference in the Italian citizenship reform approved by Giorgia Meloni’s government in 2025.
The 11-page document, obtained by Italianismo, poses seven questions to the White House about possible requests, diplomatic contacts or negotiations involving Washington and Rome before the approval of restrictions on citizenship by descent.
The correspondence is also addressed in copy to Italian President Sergio Mattarella.
The letter is digitally signed Oct. 30, 2026. However, the document provided to Italianismo does not include proof that it was sent to or received by U.S. authorities.
The initiative follows a claim on Instagram by Rep. Elisabetta Piccolotti, of the Green and Left Alliance (AVS), that Trump had requested the legislative change to prevent South Americans from entering the United States using Italian passports.
Lorenzato wants to know whether Trump requested the reform
In the correspondence, Lorenzato directly asks whether Trump, personally or through representatives of his administration, requested, suggested or advocated that the Meloni government restrict Italian citizenship by descent.
The former lawmaker also asks whether there were meetings, memorandums, written requests or official communications involving South American citizens with Italian passports.
Another question specifically concerns Decree-Law 36/2025, converted into Law 74/2025.
Lorenzato wants to know whether the reform was discussed in bilateral contacts between the U.S. and Italian governments and, if so, which officials took part in the talks.
The letter also requests clarification about any concerns expressed during Joe Biden’s administration, between 2021 and 2025.
The document does not present these possibilities as proven facts.
Trump’s name may have been used without basis, letter says
Lorenzato raises two possibilities.
The first is that U.S. officials did in fact request or influence the change to Italian legislation.
The second is that Trump’s name was used without basis as a political justification for a reform already under discussion by the Meloni government.
The former lawmaker requests an official statement if no request came from the White House.
In the correspondence, he expressly acknowledges that the statements released so far do not constitute proof of a U.S. diplomatic instruction.
The document also states that no authenticated diplomatic communications or other primary evidence supporting the allegation have been identified.
Suspicion had already been raised in 2025
The controversy began before Piccolotti’s recent statement.
On April 15, 2025, Italianismo published statements by Pasquale Metafora, a former employee of the Italian Embassy in Brasília, claiming that the United States had pressured the Italian government to restrict citizenship by descent.
Metafora alleged that about 50,000 people of Italian origin had entered the United States with Italian passports and overstayed their authorized period of stay.
The figure was not accompanied by official documentation.
On May 19 of that year, the ANSA news agency reported that lawmaker Toni Ricciardi of the Democratic Party (PD) also attributed the reform to an American demand.
According to the agency, Ricciardi said the Trump administration had imposed the measure because some of the South American migrants it intended to repatriate also held Italian citizenship.
Lawmakers Fabio Porta and Christian Di Sanzo, also of the PD, supported the theory during the parliamentary review of the decree, according to the report.
Now, Piccolotti’s statement has brought the suspicion back into discussion.
Despite statements made at different times, no independent evidence has been presented that the U.S. government ordered the change in Italian legislation.
Letter seeks explanation for 50,000 people
Lorenzato also questions the origin of the figure of approximately 50,000 people previously mentioned by Metafora.
The former lawmaker asks the U.S. administration to say whether it has official statistics on people who allegedly used Italian passports to enter the United States and remained beyond their authorized period of stay.
He also requests clarification on the scope of those data, if they exist.
The information is relevant because the alleged presence of these people was used as an argument to link the Italian citizenship reform to the Trump administration’s immigration priorities.
Italian president also included in request
Lorenzato justifies sending a copy to Sergio Mattarella because of the constitutional and diplomatic dimensions of the controversy.
According to the former lawmaker, any foreign influence over legislation affecting the nationality of descendants of Italians requires institutional clarification.
The letter stresses that the initiative is not intended to provoke a diplomatic conflict between Italy and the United States.
Lorenzato also voluntarily offers his legal and parliamentary expertise, without compensation, for any studies on constitutional law and nationality legislation.
Reform restricted citizenship by descent
The Meloni government approved Decree-Law 36 on March 28, 2025, and it took effect the following day.
The measure was converted, with amendments, into Law 74 of May 23, 2025, which has been in force since May 24.
The reform imposed restrictions on citizenship recognition by descent for people born outside Italy who hold another nationality, with exceptions and transitional rules provided for by law.
The Italian government justified the changes as necessary to strengthen citizens’ effective ties to the country and address distortions in recognition procedures.
The reform’s official documentation does not identify an American demand as the basis for the legislative change.
Lorenzato’s letter seeks to clarify whether there was a request from the United States or whether Trump’s name was associated with the reform without documentary support.
So far, the material presented to Italianismo does not contain an official response from the White House.
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