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Citizenship by Marriage

Citizenship Office
Address: 12424 Wilshire Blvd. Suite 1400; Los Angeles, CA 90025
E-Mail: losangeles.matrimonio@esteri.it

APPOINTMENTS will be given to petitioners once one of the representatives of the Citizenship Department Office reviews the required documentation via email.This procedure is reserved only for citizenship by marriage applications due to the limited validity of criminal records.

 

BEFORE YOU START, PLEASE NOTE THAT:

  1. Applicants can apply at the Consulate in Los Angeles only if they are legal residents of one of the following States: South California, Nevada, Arizona, and New Mexico.
  2. The foreign spouse of an Italian citizen may apply for Italian citizenship after 2 years of marriage if the couple resides in Italy or after 3 years of marriage if it resides abroad. If the Italian national was naturalized after the marriage, the three years start from the date of naturalization of the spouse. Such terms are reduced by a half in case of minor children born or adopted by the spouses.
  3. The marriage must have been already registered at the Municipality in Italy where the Vital Records of the Italian spouse are kept (the “Comune”) – please review the Vital Records page for information
  4. The Italian spouse must be registered at the Consulate of Italy in Los Angeles (the “Consulate”) as an Italian Citizen Residing Abroad – please review the AIRE page for information.
  5. Both spouses must live together at the same address.  Otherwise, they will need to provide documentation proving the reason (e.g. work, children’s schooling, medical care or other) justifying the need for separate domicile.

 

DOCUMENT CHECK-LIST:

Applicants should gather the documents listed below and send them all by email (one email only with PDF attachments) to losangeles.matrimonio@esteri.it  for a preliminary check. If the documents are eligible to be submitted to the Ministry of the Interior, an appointment will be secured via email.

  1. US State of Birth or from Country of origin – It is not necessary to submit a criminal record of the country of origin only if the applicant left it before 14 years of age and is not a citizen of that Country anymore.
  2. State of Residence (one of the following States):
  3. Every State and Country of residence from the age of 14 – this is not necessary for Italy
  4. Every country of citizenship

 

TRANSLATIONS:

Here is the link to the list of our official translators: Traduttori di riferimento / Translators Reference List – there is no need to translate apostilles.

 

APOSTILLE INFORMATION

  • Apostilles authenticate the seals and signatures of officials on public documents such as birth certificates, court orders, or any other document issued by a federal agency or certified by an American or foreign consul. An apostille certifies the document(s), so the document can be recognized in foreign countries that are members of the 1961 Hague Convention
  • In the United States, there are multiple designated competent Authorities to issue Apostilles, and the authority to issue an Apostille for a particular document depends on the origin of the document in question: • Federal executive branch documents, such as FBI background checks, are authenticated by the U.S. Department of State Authentications Office. • State documents such as notarizations or vital records are authenticated by designated state competent authorities, usually the state Secretary of State.
  • Documents issued in Countries other than the U.S. must comply with the local regulations on the legalization of documents, they must be translated into Italian and the translation certified by the Italian Consulate/Embassy in the Country where the documents were issued.

For information on how a document should be legalized in its Country of origin, you can check the website of the competent Italian Consulate/Embassy (a list of all the Italian Embassies and Consulates can be found at www.esteri.it)

  • Secretaries of State’s Offices of the United States – click here

 

ONLINE SUBMISSION:

Applicants will be able to submit their applications online to the following link https://www.interno.gov.it/it/temi/cittadinanza-e-altri-diritti-civili/cittadinanza/cittadinanza-invia-tua-domanda

There they will be asked to create an account where to upload the above-mentioned documents  ( the “account”) only after the required documents have been duly legalized and verified by the Consulate’s  representative.

Due to the time difference, the Ministry of the Interior’s website works only during weekdays from 11 pm to 11 am PST, and on Saturdays from 11pm to 5am PST.

How to fill out the AE online form (Modello AE).

Applicants need to make sure to

  • Complete it with the name of the applicant as it is indicated in his/her birth certificate (exceptions can be made only upon the citizenship department’s approval)
  • Complete it, specifying the city of birth (not only the state of birth)
  • Complete it, uploading all criminal records in one PDF only
  • Include all their addresses of residence since age 14
  • Pay the relevant fees online through the website
  • Check all boxes that apply to their case only

 

FEES:

  • Legalization fees are to be determined every quarter according to the dollar/euro exchange rate and to the number of documents which need to be legalized (to be paid at the Consulate on the day of your appointment)

Art. 71 – Art. 72A  Estratto Tabella Diritti Consolari

  • Payment of the Imposta di Bollo tax of € 16 to be paid to the “Agenzia delle Entrate” through the account
  • Citizenship filing fee of € 250 is to be paid to the Ministry of the Interior through the account. In case the official payment method doesn’t work, applicants are allowed to wire the fee to the account of the Ministero dell’Interno (payment receipt to be uploaded on the application portal): “Ministero dell’Interno D.L.C.I Cittadinanza”

Name of the Bank: Poste Italiane S.p.A;

IBAN code: IT54D0760103200000000809020

Purpose of funds: Richiesta cittadinanza per matrimonio ex art. 5 L. 91/1992 + applicant’s name and surname

BIC/SWIFT Code of Poste Italiane: BPPIITRRXXX (for international bank transfers);

BIC/SWIFT Code: PIBPITRA (for transactions of the EUROGIRO system)

 

APPROVAL INFORMATION:

The Ministry of the Interior is responsible to assess the application and finalize the procedure.

For the purposes of granting Italian citizenship, the following conditions must not have occurred when the decree comes into force:

No dissolution, annulment or termination of the civil effects of the marriage/civil union (e.g. legal separation, divorce)

No convictions by the Italian judicial authorities for offences that carry a sentence of more than three years’ imprisonment

No convictions by the foreign judicial authorities that carry a sentence of more than one year for non-political offences

No convictions for offences against the State

No impediments related to the security of the Italian Republic

For applications submitted before December 19, 2020, the expected completion date is within 48 months. For applications submitted from December 20, 2020 (date of entry into force of Law no. 173 of December 18, 2020),the expected completion date of the procedure is 24 months from the application submission date, and it can be extended to 36 months at most.  If at the end of the assessment process, the procedure is successful, the Ministry of the Interior will send the Italian Citizenship Decree to the Diplomatic/Consular mission in the Consular district covering the area where the applicant resides.

 

OATH CEREMONY:

When a Citizenship Decree is issued by the Ministry of the Interior, applicants will be notified by the Consulate through the Ministry’s website.

Once the applicant reads the official notice of the issuance of the decree, he or she will have 6 months to gather all necessary documents and submit them to the Consulate for the applicant to be sworn in.

By law, applicants become Italian citizens at midnight of the day in which they take the oath.

Oath Ceremony document check-list (these documents must be issued after the decree):

– Atto integrale di matrimonio, i. e., unreduced (not the abstract) form marriage certificate issued by the Italian Municipality where the marriage certificate is registered (please request the unreduced form certificate and not the abstract certificate)

– a new FBI  background check with apostille and translation

– a new State of residence background check with apostille and translation

–  Petitioner’s passport and driver’s license; spouse’s Italian passport and driver’s license

 

GUIDELINES:

  • Language certification. According to the law no. 132, since December 4, 2018, in order to apply for Italian citizenship by marriage, the applicant must possess an adequate knowledge of the Italian language, certified by the following institutions, belonging to the CLIQ system (Certificazione Lingua Italiana di Qualità):
  • Siena University for foreigners
  • Perugia University for foreigners
  • University of Roma Tre
  • Dante Alighieri Society

The level of the knowledge of the Italian language has to be not less than B1. It is possible

to receive the necessary CISL language certification from the Italian Cultural Institute in

Los Angeles (for details click here).  In addition in the US, the Italian Cultural Institutes

in San Francisco and Chicago will also offer this certification.

  • Criminal records must be signed by the representative who is responsible for carrying out the search. Without the above-mentioned signature, the applicant will not be able to request the relevant apostille.

For those who acquired their spouse’s last name or who legally changed their name, criminal records must reflect all names (a.k.a. or “formerly known as”) except for the ones issued upon the applicant’s fingerprints which are allowed to be submitted under one name only. Applicants whose criminal records show a received arrest or a  violation of the law, should submit also the relevant sentence of condemnation issued by the court along with apostille and translation into Italian.

  • Legalization. Documents issued in Countries other than the U.S. must comply with the local regulations on the legalization of documents, they must be translated into Italian and the translation certified by the Italian Consulate/Embassy in the Country where the documents were issued.

For information on how a document should be legalized in its Country of origin, you can check the website of the competent Italian Consulate/Embassy (a list of all the Italian Embassies and Consulates can be found at www.esteri.it).

  • LONG FORM BIRTH CERTIFICATES should list all personal details (including parents’ information and the applicant’s city of birth ), and should be issued and legalized by the authorities of the country of birth.
  • Marriage certificates issued by the Comune must report the exact same name as appears on the birth certificate (first, middle, last maiden name/name at birth). If a name change has occurred, applicants must submit a name-change decree, and a new birth certificate with the relevant amendments.
  • Proof of marriage registration must be requested in long form (i.e. Atto integrale di matrimonio issued by the Italian Municipality where the marriage is registered). Abstract versions will not be accepted ( i.e. Estratto di matrimonio).
  • Applicants who change their address after submitting their online application must notify the Consulate where they originally filed their request which will promptly inform the Italian authority competent of the new area of residence. As proof of residence, the applicant must present the spouse’s NEW AIRE registration filed at the Italian Consulate which is competent of the area. Spouses who move to Italy must show proof of registration with the “Anagrafe della Popolazione Residente”  of the Italian Municipality.

 

STAGES OF PROCESSING CITIZENSHIP BY MARRIAGE APPLICATIONS


RELEVANT LEGISLATION:

Those who apply for citizenship by marriage or civil union must be acquainted with the duties Italian citizenship entails, which include adherence to national values and irreproachable conduct. Law no. 91 of February 5, 1992 (articles 5, 6, 7 and 8) and subsequent amendments currently govern the acquisition of Italian citizenship by marriage for a foreign national or stateless person who married an Italian national on or after April 27, 1983.

Other regulatory references:

Law no. 123 of April 21, 1983

Law no. 91 of February 5, 1992

Legislative decrees no. 5, 6 and 7 of January 19, 2017

Decree Law no. 113 of October 4, 2018 (so-called “Safety Decree”) converted by Law no. 132 of December 1, 2018

Decree Law no. 130 of October 21, 2020, converted by Law no. 173 of December 18, 2020

 

MARRIAGE OCCURRED BEFORE APRIL 27, 1983:

Before April 27, 1983, a female foreign national who married an Italian citizen automatically acquired Italian citizenship. However, a female foreign national who meets this requirement and wants to be registered as an Italian citizen, must book an appointment with the Citizenship Office, by sending an email to losangeles.matrimonio@esteri.it , and submit the following items*:

  • Copy of a valid passport for both spouses
  • Proof of residence (i.e. utility bill and driver’s license copy)
  • Applicant’s long form birth certificate (which includes all personal information, along with the parents’ details and the applicant’s city of birth), issued by the authorities of the country of birth, duly legalized/apostilled and translated into Italian (the translation must be certified as true and complete by the competent Italian consular office)
  • Proof of Italy’s marriage registration. If not registered in Italy yet, please include the original marriage certificate with apostille and translation into Italian
  • Application form – click here
  • Citizenship filing Fee of Euros 300 to be paid to the Consulate General in US dollars (i.e. art 07B, please check the exact amount based on the official exchange rate, here). Payment must be submitted in the form of money order or cashier’s check made out to Consulate of Italy in Los Angeles.
  • Additional documents may be requested on a case-by-case basis

*The document checklist is valid for Applicants whose spouse is registered at the Consulate of Italy in Los Angeles only. For any other case please email losangeles.matrimonio@esteri.it

 

 

Video

  • Tutorial Cittadinanza per Matrimonio