Alternative law provisions for minor children who do not automatically acquire Italian citizenship by descent

Who can apply:
This procedure is reserved exclusively for children whose at least one parent is an Italian citizen iure sanguinis (by birth right) who does NOT transmit automatically Italian citizenship (for more details, please check the website section Registry Office).

Please note: this procedure does also not apply to minor children of Italian citizens who acquired citizenship by:

• Naturalisation (Art. 9, Law No. 91/1992)
• Acquisition by special provisions (Art. 4, Law No. 91/1992)
• Marriage (Art. 5, Law No. 91/1992 or Art. 10, Law No. 555/1912)
• Acquisition as a minor living with a newly naturalized parent (Art. 14, Law No. 91/1992)

BEFORE SUBMITTING THE DECLARATION

To submit the declaration, at least one Italian parent must meet all of the following requirements:

1. Residence within the consular district of this Consulate:
   At least one parent must live in one of the following areas:
   • South of England
   • Wales
   • Channel Islands
   • Gibraltar
   • South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands

Residents of the Manchester and Edinburgh consular districts must contact the competent Consular Offices for their territory. (LINK: Verify your competent Consulate – The Consular Network)

1. Italian citizenship and A.I.R.E. registration:
   At least one parent must be an Italian citizen registered in the Registry of the Italians Residing Abroad (A.I.R.E.). (LINK: How to register with AIRE)
2. Previously registered marriages or divorces:
   The marriages and divorces of Italian citizens must have been registered in Italy. For more information, check the following:
   • How to register a marriage
   • How to register a divorce decree
3. Up-to-date residential address:
   It is recommended that the address declared on your application matches the most recent address communicated to the Consulate. To verify the address currently on file in the consular database, log in to your profile on Fast.it. (LINK: The Consular Services Portal)
   To update your address, follow the procedure outlined in the A.I.R.E. section. (LINK: AIRE – 2. Address Update)

In order to register the citizenship and birth of the minor, both parents (including the foreign parent) must submit a declaration of intent within ONE year of the minor’s birth.
If the parents do not make the declaration simultaneously, the legal requirement is deemed satisfied on the date when the second parent submits their declaration.

The declaration must be submitted in person, after a first assessment of the required documents by this office, who will allocate an appointment and give instructions on how to pay the fee of 250 euros to the Ministry of Interior. Documentation (excepet for the payment receipt) must be sent in advance by e-mail as a PDF attachment to:  cittadinanza.londra@esteri.it.  Please indicate in the subject line: “DICHIARAZIONE ACQUISTO CITTADINANZA MINORI”.

Required Documentation:

• Application form – duly filled in and signed
• Copies of the passports of both parents and the minor
• Original full birth certificate of the minor, legalized by apostille and translated into Italian.
• Proof of address for both parents (utility bill or council tax)

PLEASE NOTE! For British birth certificates:

• if the parents were not married at the time of the birth: the certificate must have both Mother and Father as informants (section 12). If the informant is only one parent, the other parent need to formally recognise the minor born outside of marriage, through our Notary Office (link)
• if the parents were married at the time of the birth: if the marriage has been already registered in Italy, only one informant can be present on the certificate.

Please be aware that if the parents are married, the marriage needs to be registered before proceeding with the registration of the minor as Italian citizen (link).

Citizenship gained under this law regulation is granted only from the day after the declaration is submitted at the consulate, and not from birth.

Temporary provision for minor children as of 24^th May 2025
Children who were still  minor as of 24^th of May 2025, and with at least one parent who is Italian citizen iure sanguinis (by birth right), may be registered under this procedure until the 31^st  of May 2026.