Italy is on its way to a mandatory residency period to obtain citizenship
At the end of September, there was news about the collection of signatures for a referendum to reduce the period of residence for obtaining Italian citizenship. We remind you that now, in order to obtain Italian citizenship, you need to live legally in the country for 10 years.
Activists have already collected 500,000 signatures to submit the project to the Italian Parliament and initiate the procedure for amending the Italian Law on Citizenship. To obtain approval for a national referendum, the document must be considered by the Supreme Court and the Constitutional Court of Italy. If the document passes all stages of consideration and is submitted to a referendum, then more than 2,500,000 foreigners will have a chance to be naturalized earlier.
In addition, it is proposed to grant citizenship to immigrant children who were born in Italy, if one of the parents legally stays in Italy for more than one year. In other cases, if children under the age of 12 have arrived in the country and studied at school for more than 5 years, they will also be eligible for citizenship.
Italian citizenship is one of the most difficult and time-consuming to obtain. On par with Spain, Italy requires 10 years of legal residence in the country for the purposes of obtaining citizenship. The opposite situation, for example, is in Germany and Portugal, where it is enough to live in the country for 5 years to obtain citizenship of the country.
Downward trends in residency requirements for citizenship are observed throughout Europe. In 2024, Germany reduced the period of residence for obtaining citizenship to 5 years, and in some cases, citizenship can be obtained after 3 years. Portugal has introduced amendments according to which the countdown of residence for citizenship begins from the moment of applying for a residence permit, and not from the moment of receiving a residence permit card.
Lowering the residency threshold for EU citizenship has become increasingly common in the last 2 years. Facilitation of immigration and naturalization methods contribute to the development of the country's economy. Residence permit programs for investment and residence permits for remote income attract thousands of people to move to EU countries. In this regard, we would like to emphasize that in the countries of the European Union, the way to obtain citizenship for foreigners is mainly naturalization, and not investment programs. When choosing a country to obtain a residence permit, always assess the requirements that will be imposed on you.
And we are always ready to help you develop a personal migration strategy.
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