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Local Italy
4 days ago
- Politics
- Local Italy
Italy's Meloni 'completely against' easing citizenship rules as key vote nears
'Citizenship laws in Italy are excellent and also very inclusive,' Meloni said as the country prepared for a key vote on reducing the current 10-year residency requirement for naturalisation claims to five years. 'I'm completely against' the proposed citizenship reform, she added, noting that Italy has long been 'among the European countries that grant the highest number of citizenships every year". The Italian premier's words came three days after she said she would go to her polling station but not vote in any of the June 8th-9th referendums, including the citizenship vote, sparking cries of outrage among members of the opposition. Meloni defended her decision to abstain from voting on Thursday, saying that abstention was 'a right for everyone'. "I don't agree with the subjects of the referendums and, as has always been the case in the nation's history, when you don't agree, abstention is also an option," she said. proposed labour and citizenship reforms, publicly called on supporters to boycott the upcoming vote. Under Italy's voting laws, referendums must meet a voter turnout (or quorum) of over 50 percent for their results to be considered valid. If this threshold is not met, the results are automatically void, regardless of the outcome. Senate Speaker Ignazio La Russa said in late May he would "campaign to ensure that people stay home" on polling day to prevent the referendums from reaching the required turnout. MP Grazia Di Maggio also encouraged abstention, saying that 'Italians will have better things to do [than voting] on June 8th and 9th'. The government's attempts to boycott the upcoming referendums have prompted vehement reactions from opposition members. The leader of the centrist +Europa party, Riccardo Magi, condemned the hard-right coalition's 'coordinated strategy' to sabotage the referendums, saying it showed 'a lack of awareness of the institutions and role they hold'. Italy needs 'a democratic rebellion' to fight abstentionism, he added.
Mint
24-05-2025
- Politics
- Mint
New rule for Italian citizenship: 2.5 million non-EU residents may be eligible despite PM Giorgia Meloni's resistance
Over 1.4 million non-EU residents could become eligible for Italian citizenship if Italy passes a new law in the upcoming June 8–9 referendum, according to a study by research centre Idos. Right now, non-EU nationals must live in Italy for 10 years before they can apply for citizenship. The proposed reform will reduce this to five years. If passed, nearly 1.14 million adults and 2.29 lakh children will qualify. Another 55,000 children may get citizenship automatically if their parents become citizens. According to estimates by the +Europa party, about 2.5 million residents will become eligible for Italian citizenship. However, not everyone will qualify. About 7 lakh people may still be ineligible because they don't meet the income requirement. To apply, individuals must earn at least €8,263.31 ( ₹ 8 lakh) annually or more if they are unmarried. If someone is married, they need an annual income of €11,362.05 ( ₹ 11 lakh). For each child, they must have an annual incomde of €516 ( ₹ 50,000). These income rules will remain the same. Among other rules, applicants must prove their proficiency in the Italian language. They will have to appear for a test to pass the B1 level. The CEFR (Common European Framework of Reference) test checks skills in grammar, vocabulary, reading, listening and making correct sentences. It is used to measure language levels in Europe. For the referendum to be valid, over 50% of voters must take part. Local news reports suggest that this might not happen as voter turnout in Italy is usually low. Since 1995, only four out of 29 referendums in Italy have met the required voter turnout. Italy's right-wing government, led by PM Giorgia Meloni, is not supporting it. Senate Speaker Ignazio La Russa has said he wants people to stay home (and not vote), according to The Local. Matteo Salvini's League party is also promoting a boycott. A party memo even asked members to help stop people from voting. Salvini, who earlier supported referendums, now says he'll go to the beach instead.
Local Italy
19-05-2025
- Politics
- Local Italy
Over 1.4 million could claim Italian citizenship if referendum passes, study says
Around 1.42 million non-EU residents would qualify for Italian citizenship should voters approve a pivotal reform of the country's naturalisation laws in the June 8th-9th referendum, Idos said. Under current laws, non-EU nationals need to prove that they've legally lived in the country for a minimum of 10 years to apply for citizenship. The proposed reform would halve the 10-year requirement, meaning that non-EU citizens could apply after five years of legal residency. The study from Idos said that nearly 1.14 million adults and 229,000 minors would immediately qualify for Italian citizenship if the reform were to pass. An additional 55,000 minors could automatically acquire citizenship following their parents' naturalisation, it added. Idos said its estimates were more conservative than earlier projections by referendum campaigners, as they excluded non-EU nationals whose countries do not allow dual citizenship and EU citizens, who can already apply for naturalisation after four years of residency. The research centre also estimated that up to 700,000 non-EU residents would not be able to apply for citizenship under the new rules due to them not meeting current income requirements. To claim citizenship by residency, applicants must have a yearly income of at least €8,263.31 if they're not married and without children, or €11,362.05 if they're married, plus an additional €516 for any child they may have. The above income requirements wouldn't change under the proposed reform. As with all referendums in Italy, the upcoming vote will need a voter turnout of over 50 percent for its result to be valid. If this 'quorum' (or threshold) is not met, the referendum won't be considered valid, whatever its result may be. So far, most Italian news reports have said that it's unlikely that the vote will reach the quorum, noting that voter turnout in referendums has historically been low in Italy. Italian media have also expressed concerns that the abstention rate may be particularly high in the upcoming referendum, as members of the ruling hard-right coalition, which strongly opposes the citizenship reform, have publicly called on supporters to boycott the vote in recent weeks. The ruling coalition's calls to abstain from voting have sparked outrage among the opposition's ranks, with many accusing the government of undermining citizen participation in public life. Riccardo Magi, leader of the centre-left +Europa party, said that voting 'is the foundation of democracy' and 'in a normal country, government institutions should do everything to encourage [it]'. Elly Schlein, leader of the centre-left Democratic Party, said that the government's calls to boycott the vote were a 'betrayal of the constitutional principles that establish voting as a civic duty'.
Local Italy
19-05-2025
- Politics
- Local Italy
Seven things to know about Italy's citizenship referendum
Italian citizenship For Members As Italy prepares to hold a landmark referendum on easing citizenship rules, here's what you need to know about the upcoming vote. On Sunday, June 8th and Monday, June 9th Italians will be asked to vote on a proposal to ease Italy's rules on citizenship by residency. Here are seven key things to know about the vote. It only affects citizenship by residency claims for non-EU nationals The referendum proposes cutting Italy's residency requirement for naturalisation in half, making non-EU citizens eligible for Italian citizenship after five years of legal residency rather than the current 10. This only applies to non-EU citizens, and wouldn't affect EU nationals, who would continue to be eligible for citizenship after four years of legal residency in Italy. The proposed reform also only relates to residency-based citizenship applications, meaning that the two other paths to citizenship – i.e., ancestry or marriage – would not be affected. The referendum is not related to the government's recent reforms clamping down on applications for citizenship by descent. Other requirements would remain unchanged All other existing requirements would remain unchanged. They would also need to provide proof of income produced and taxed in Italy for the previous three years, as well as the absence of criminal convictions in any country they've ever lived in, including Italy. It requires a minimum turnout to be valid For this type of referendum to be valid, voter turnout will need to exceed 50 percent. If this 'quorum', or threshold, isn't met, the referendum won't count, whatever the result. As of 2025, some 51 million Italians are eligible to vote, meaning around 25.5 million will need to turn out for the vote to be valid. Over 1.4 million people would benefit Over 1.4 million people – around one in four foreigners living in Italy – stand to benefit from the reform in the short term, according to immigration research institute IDOS. That's lower than the figure of 2.5 million initially suggested by groups that backed the referendum. IDOS says its more conservative estimate takes into account the fact that a number of non-EU countries don't allow dual citizenship, and that minimum income requirements could potentially exclude up to 700,000 residents from being eligible to apply. The government doesn't want it to pass This referendum wasn't proposed by Italy's government, but is the result of a campaign by centrist opposition party +Europa ('More Europe'). It's currently backed by a broad centre-left coalition including the Democratic Party (PD), Greens and Left Alliance (AVS), Italia Viva, Azione and +Europa. Italy's ruling right-wing coalition, which strongly opposes the reform, is openly calling on supporters to boycott the vote so that the quorum isn't reached. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has previously said she thought 10 years was "a reasonable period for citizenship" and saw "no need to change" current laws. … And the odds are stacked against it Voter turnout for 'abrogative' referendums (votes that propose repealing all or part of an existing law) has historically been low in Italy. Of the 77 abrogative referendums held over the past 50 years, only 39 met the voter threshold; and of the 39 referendums that did reach a quorum, only four were held after 1995. This explains why the Meloni government is encouraging voters to abstain altogether, rather than pushing them to vote 'no'. Of course, this tactic could backfire if the quorum is reached regardless of the government's efforts to make the vote fall short of the threshold. There are actually five referendums Besides residency-based citizenship requirements, Italians will be asked to vote on four other questions. It's a big effort to stage a referendum, so the government typically likes to hold several at once. On this occasion, the other questions concern labour law provisions on unlawful dismissals, severance compensation in small businesses, employment contract conditions and contractors' liability over workplace injuries. You can find further details (in Italian) here.
Local Italy
15-04-2025
- Politics
- Local Italy
How can Italians living abroad vote in the citizenship referendum?
Italy will hold a landmark referendum on easing citizenship by residency rules on Sunday, June 8th and Monday, June 9th. The referendum will ask Italians to vote on a proposal to create a quicker path to citizenship by cutting the current 10-year residency requirement in half, down to five years. If passed, the reform would align Italy – which is often regarded as having one of the toughest naturalisation regimes in Europe – with countries such as the UK, France and Germany. According to estimates from the +Europa party, if approved, the changes would make around 2.5 million residents eligible for Italian citizenship. Any Italian national over the age of 18, including those with dual nationality, is eligible to vote in the referendum. While Italian citizens living in Italy will be able to cast their vote by heading to their assigned polling station in their municipality (comune) of residence, Italians living abroad will have the opportunity to vote by post in line with the conditions and deadlines set by the foreign ministry. So what are these conditions and deadlines? First of all, in the case of Italian citizens permanently residing abroad, the option to vote by post is only granted to those registered with AIRE. AIRE (acronym for Anagrafe Italiani Residenti all'Estero) is essentially a register holding the personal data, including the vital records and home address, of Italian citizens living outside of Italy. Registering with AIRE is free of charge and must be done via the Italian Foreign Ministry's FastIt portal. See more details about registering in our separate guide. Italian citizens who normally live in Italy but expect to be abroad for at least three months (and no more than 12 months) for reasons related to work, study or medical treatment can also vote by post provided that the referendum dates fall within the period of time they spend abroad. The same postal voting system is available to their family members. Registration with AIRE is not required for Italian nationals who are temporarily abroad. In this case, however, citizens must communicate that they wish to vote by post through the following form, which must be filled out and sent to the Italian comune of residence via post, email or proxy by Wednesday, May 7th. Wednesday, May 21st. The papers will come in an envelope (plico elettorale) including instructions on how to return them to the relevant Italian consulate. If, come Sunday, May 25th, you have not received your plico yet, you'll be able to ask for a duplicate by getting in touch with your Italian consulate. It's worth noting here that, besides the citizenship referendum, you will be asked to vote in four other referendums. These concern labour law provisions on unlawful dismissals, severance compensation in small businesses, employment contract conditions and contractors' liability over workplace injuries. You can find further details (in Italian) here. All in all then, you will receive a total of five schede elettorali (ballot papers) posing a simple yes/no question, with one of the papers asking you whether or not you want to reduce the requirement for citizenship by residency applications from 10 to five years. Once you have cast your vote, you'll be responsible for ensuring that the completed ballots are received by the relevant Italian consulate by 4pm local time on Thursday, June 5th at the latest. Ballot papers received after the above deadline will not be accepted as consulates will officially start sending the ballots to Italy for counting (scrutinio).
