Former parliamentarian Luis Roberto Lorenzato, from Lega, stated that the new decree from the Italian government It devalues the people of Italian descent by treating them as "low-level employees" and potential cheap labor.
According to him, the measure breaks Italy's historical relationship with its diaspora by allowing only subordinate work visas for descendants.
The decree is part of the implementation of the Tajani Decree, which became law in May 2025, and authorizes citizens of countries with more than one hundred thousand registered in the AIRE (Registry of Foreigners and Residents) to apply for residency for subordinate work outside the migration quota system.
The list includes Argentina, Brazil, the United States, Australia, Canada, Venezuela, and Uruguay. The government states that it used data from December 31, 2024, to determine the eligible countries. Brazil has 682.300 Italians registered in the AIRE (Registry of Italians Residing Abroad).
With the new regulation, Italian-Brazilians will have unlimited access to subordinate work permits. After two years of legal residency, descendants will be able to apply. Italian citizenship by naturalization facilitated.
Lorenzato's statements
Lorenzato stated that the decree represents a slight to the Italian diaspora. He said he had always heard that Italians abroad were treated as national assets. According to him, the new model breaks with this tradition and no longer recognizes the transmission of citizenship through descent.
In a video posted on his Instagram profile, he stated that "suddenly they severed this relationship with Italy, took away our citizenship, and decreed that they do not recognize that our parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents were Italian." He described the rule as an attempt to transform descendants into low-skilled labor.
Lorenzato also criticized the nature of the visa offered. He said the proposal reduces Italian descendants to the role of subordinate workers.
According to him, offering them the possibility of working in Italy would be equivalent to treating them like "low-level employees" and cheap labor. "Is that what you want?", he asked in the video.
He further stated that the government is trying to correct "what is indefensible," but ends up worsening the situation by downgrading the value of descendants in immigration policy.
In the end, he described the government as "disastrous" and said he would continue to monitor its next steps.
Fire friend
Luis Roberto Lorenzato is the Lega party's representative in Brazil. The party, led by Matteo Salvini, the current Deputy Prime Minister, is part of Giorgia Meloni's government base. The former parliamentarian's harsh statements indicate a possible distancing from his own party.
FOLLOW ITALIANISM
