A minor born abroad to an Italian citizen parent may be recognized as an Italian citizen if one of the following conditions applies:
- one parent or one grandparent holds, or held at the time of death, exclusively Italian citizenship (Art. 3-bis, paragraph 1, letter c of Law No. 91 of 5 February 1992).
In this case, documentary evidence must be submitted to prove that the parent or grandparent does not hold, or did not hold at the time of death, any other citizenship. Mere sworn statements are not sufficient. - one Italian citizen parent or adoptive parent was legally resident in Italy for at least two consecutive years after acquiring Italian citizenship and prior to the child’s birth or adoption (Art. 3-bis, paragraph 1, letter d of Law No. 91 of 5 February 1992).
In this case, a historical certificate of residence issued by the competent Italian Municipality must be submitted. - the minor does not fall into any of the above categories but does not hold any other citizenship.
In this case, appropriate documentation must be submitted to prove that the minor does not hold another citizenship. Mere sworn statements are not sufficient.
The legislative amendments introduced by Decree-Law No. 36/2025, as converted into Law No. 74 of 2025, allow the recognition of Italian citizenship for a minor born abroad to an Italian citizen only if the minor falls into one of the categories listed above.
In addition, there are limited cases in which minors, children of Italian citizens by birth, may acquire Italian citizenship even if they do not fall under the recognition cases described above. These are cases of acquisition “by operation of law” (beneficio di legge), in which citizenship is not acquired at birth, but on the day following the declaration made at the Consulate.
For further information on cases of acquisition of Italian citizenship by minors not falling within the automatic recognition categories, please consult the page dedicated to citizenship of minors.
To obtain recognition of Italian citizenship for a minor born abroad who falls within the citizenship transmission cases referred to in letters c and d of Article 3-bis of Law No. 91/1992 (see above), it is necessary, pursuant to Article 15 of Presidential Decree No. 396 of 2000, to request the registration of the birth, following the instructions below.
Registration of a birth
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If the minor was under the age of 18 at the date of entry into force of Law No. 74/2025 converting Decree-Law No. 36/2025 (i.e. minors as of May 24, 2025), in order to book an appointment to request the registration of the minor’s birth certificate, it will be necessary to send an email to statocivilehouston@esteri.it with the subject line:
“Recognition of citizenship for a minor – Child’s First and Last Name”. -
If the minor was born after the entry into force of Law No. 74/2025 converting Decree-Law No. 36/2025 (i.e. born after May 24, 2025), in order to request the registration of the minor’s birth certificate, an appointment must be booked through the Prenot@mi portal starting from January 15, 2026.
This request must be submitted WITHIN ONE YEAR of the minor’s birth.
Required documentation:
- Application form for birth registration, downloadable from this website, to be completed, dated and signed by the Italian citizen concerned.
- Original birth certificate bearing an Apostille (or legalization for countries not party to the Hague Apostille Convention).
U.S. certificates must always be issued in extended form (so-called Long Form or Extended Form, showing the exact place of birth, date or age, and parents’ places of birth), according to the procedures adopted by the individual U.S. States. - Italian translation of the certificate, typewritten, complete and faithful to the original, with dates indicated in day/month/year format.
A list of translators is available on this Consulate’s website. - Copy of the valid passports of both parents (photo page with personal details and signature only) and of any foreign passport held by the minor, if applicable.
- Documentation proving that the minor falls within one of the categories allowing recognition of Italian citizenship, as listed above.
IMPORTANT
- If the parents were married abroad but the marriage has not been registered in Italy, the relevant documentation must also be submitted.
- If the parents were married in Italy, please attach a self-certification signed by one Italian parent indicating the date and place of marriage.
- If the parents are not married or were not married at the time of the minor’s birth, the following additional documentation must be submitted.Acknowledgment of paternity, legalized with Apostille and accompanied by a complete and accurate Italian translation.
The acknowledgment of paternity is known in the United States as an “Acknowledgment of Paternity” or “Certificate of Parentage”. It is usually completed and signed by unmarried parents at the hospital and subsequently registered together with the birth at the local vital records office. It can therefore be obtained from the same offices that issue birth certificates.
At the time of registering a birth, applicants are strongly advised to provide local authorities with the parents’ personal details exactly as they appear in Italian documents. Applicants are also advised to carefully check the certificates issued by local authorities and to have any errors corrected before proceeding with legalization and translation.
Please note that transmission of a minor’s birth certificate to the Italian Municipality automatically entails the minor’s registration with AIRE. Therefore, no separate AIRE registration request is required.