From 2029 onwards, all Italian citizenship by descent processes(ius sanguinis) They will be centralized in a single office in Italy.The Senate approved on Wednesday, January 14, 2026, the bill that restructures services for citizens and businesses abroad.
The measure, which is part of a public finance maneuver, received 76 votes in favor, 55 against, and no abstentions. The text had already been approved by the Chamber of Deputies and will come into effect after publication in the Official Gazette. Official Gazette of the Italian Republic.
Criticisms of centralization
The deputy elected from abroad Fabio Porta, from the Democratic Party, voted against the bill while it was still in the Chamber. In a statement to Italianism Following the vote on Wednesday, Porta described the proposal as detrimental to the rights of Italian citizens living outside of Italy.
"It's part of the government's strategy to eliminate or gradually diminish our rights," he stated.
The parliamentarian explained that the new law transfers all management of citizenship applications from local consulates to a department in Rome, linked to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
According to him, the measure represents an even greater distancing between the citizen and the public service. "The relationship with the consulate is already complicated. Imagine if now the citizenship application is processed in Rome," he stated.
A setback in digitization
Another point criticized by Porta is the fact that the project foresees the submission of all documentation on paper. For him, this represents a technological step backward.
"We are in 2026, where everything is digitized, computerized, and the project foresees that everything will be done on paper," he stated.
Furthermore, Porta warned of the risk of losses, errors, and delays resulting from this model.
Risk of a decline in the quality of service.
With centralization, approximately 80 employees in Rome will be responsible for analyzing the processes of all consulates worldwide. Today, for example, the Consulate of São Paulo It has approximately 60 employees exclusively dedicated to the area of citizenship.
Porta pointed out that these professionals have knowledge of the Portuguese language and Brazilian law, which facilitates the evaluation of documents. “Tomorrow all of this will have to be done by officials in Rome. We don't know if they have knowledge of the language or local legislation,” he criticized.
Changes approved in the Chamber
Despite rejecting the bill as a whole, Porta stated that the Democratic Party caucus managed to pass minor changes in the House, with the aim of mitigating the damage.
Among the adjustments is the possibility of issuing Italian identity cards to residents abroad in any municipality in Italy, provided that the person concerned is physically present.
Another change concerns the maximum time frame for completing the citizenship process, which has been reduced from four to three years. Furthermore, the implementation of centralization, initially planned for 2028, has been postponed to 2029.
Experts are also against it.
During the legislative process in the Chamber of Deputies, several entities and experts were heard. Among them, the association NatitalianiRepresentatives from the Italian Notaries Association and scholars of Public Administration.
According to Porta, the majority opinion was negative. "This is not just the position of some deputies from a particular party, but the position of those who understand what they are talking about," he said.
With final approval in the Senate, the bill will now become law after its official publication. The expectation, according to the legislator, is that the measure could be reviewed if there is a change in government leadership in the next elections.
What changes with centralization in Rome?
The approval of the project to revise overseas services brings structural changes that go beyond simply changing the location of data processing. Check out the key points:
Social impactThe trend is that the administrative route (consular/centralized) It becomes more restrictive, primarily affecting those with fewer resources to afford the costs of a legal process.
Creation of a specific bodyThe three-year deadline (until 2029) was established to allow the Italian State time to structure the new centralized body in Rome that will handle the consulates' responsibilities.
Order limitThe volume of cases that this central body will receive will be limited, based on the average number of cases handled by consulates over the last two years. (2027 and 2028).
Standardization of criteriaIt is expected that centralization will lead to a more rigorous and standardized analysis. Issues such as minor spelling errors or self-declaration documents, which may currently pass in some consulates, are likely to be analyzed more restrictively in Rome.
Consular reliefThe main objective of the measure is to reduce the workload of consulates around the world by transferring the administrative part of citizenship recognition to the Italian capital.
Legal route maintainedExperts indicate that the judicialization of processes (citizenship via court) It will continue to be the main alternative, since the obstacle of accessing consulates remains unchanged for many applicants.
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