In May 2025, the Court of Venice registered 899 lawsuits for recognition of Italian citizenship. The number represents a drop of 33,98% compared to May 2024, when there were 1.362 registrations, according to data from the official portal Giustizia Civile.
Despite the expected drop with the entry into force of the new legislation, the volume is still surprising and demonstrates that the judicial route remains a concrete alternative for descendants of Italians, especially Brazilians.
The 899 actions, concentrated in the court with the largest volume of cases on the subject, reflect the effects of the new Law No. 74/2025, in force since March 28. The rule restricts the recognition of Italian citizenship only to children and grandchildren of Italians. For more distant descendants, such as great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren, the only possible route became the courts.
Only alternative under the new law
According to constitutional lawyers, the new rule is the target of harsh criticism for contravening fundamental guarantees provided for in the Italian Constitution, including the principles of non-retroactivity of the law, acquired rights and proportionality.
Therefore, Italian-Brazilians continue to resort to justice, especially the Court of Venice.
“We are faced with a punitive, retroactive and disproportionate law. It violates the principles of legitimate trust, proportionality and introduces inequality between citizens, creating, in practice, first and second class Italians,” said Alessandro Brutti, professor of Constitutional Law at the University of Padua, during event promoted by the Natitaliani Association, held in the Chamber of Deputies last week.
The teacher Alfonso Celotto, from the University Roma Tre also criticized – at the same event – the new legal text. “It is a late and misoneistic law, which only generates exclusion, confusion and litigation,” he said.
For Professor Giacomo De Federico, the rule still violates European law. “Citizenship revocation should only occur after an individual assessment, respecting the principle of proportionality. Current Italian legislation does not meet this standard. Therefore, it is subject to censure by the Court of Justice of the European Union, opening the way for lawsuits and claims for compensation for moral damages and discrimination.”
While waiting for the position of the Italian Constitutional Court, scheduled for the end of June — although not directly linked to the new law —, Italian descendants continue to resort to legal means as the only alternative to maintain a formal link with Italy.
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