Law 74/2025 One Year On: What We've Learned

The law, briefly

Law 74/2025 (Decree-Law No. 36/2025) took effect on March 28, 2025, introducing Italy's first generational limit on Jure Sanguinis applications. New applicants must now have an Italian-born parent or grandparent — a maximum of two generations. Great-grandparent claims and beyond are no longer eligible for new applications. Applications filed or appointments confirmed before the 11:59 PM Rome deadline on March 27, 2025 are grandfathered and proceed under the old rules.

Who the law has actually affected

The applicants most impacted fall into two groups. First, those with great-grandparent or earlier claims who had not yet filed — their eligibility for new applications was cut off entirely. Second, those who were in early stages of preparation and couldn't confirm an appointment before the deadline. For both groups, the window closed abruptly.

However, the two-generation rule has a meaningful carve-out: if your parent lived in Italy for at least two years before your birth, you may still qualify even if your Italian-born ancestor is further back. This provision has become increasingly important for applicants with mixed or non-standard lineage structures.

Applicants with a parent or grandparent born in Italy — by far the majority of those we work with — are entirely unaffected. The law does not restrict their eligibility, change their documentation requirements, or alter the application process in any way except for the new €600 government fee per applicant.

The constitutional challenge: where things stand

Shortly after the law took effect, legal challenges were filed in Italian courts arguing that the generational limit unconstitutionally eliminates vested citizenship rights — rights that, the challengers argue, cannot be retroactively removed from people who had already established their lineage but had not yet filed. As of April 2026, those proceedings are ongoing. No ruling has been issued. The law remains fully in effect.

Our recommendation has not changed: do not wait. The constitutional challenge may succeed in whole, in part, or not at all. Even if it succeeds, the timeline to a final ruling is uncertain — potentially years. Meanwhile, consulate wait times continue to grow and the Court of Rome's ATQ docket is filling. Acting now under the current law is almost always the better practical choice.

How the Court of Rome centralisation is working

One of the law's structural changes — centralising all new Jure Sanguinis court cases to the Court of Rome — has significantly streamlined the ATQ process compared to the fragmented multi-court system that existed before. Cases are now filed in a single jurisdiction, which creates more predictable timelines and a more specialised bench. The practical impact for applicants: ATQ timelines remain in the 1–3 year range, and in some cases are trending toward the shorter end of that window as the Court of Rome builds operational capacity for this caseload.

What the €600 fee means in practice

The mandatory €600 government fee per applicant is now part of the baseline cost for all new applications — consulate, ATQ, and 1948. For family groups applying together, each applicant pays separately. This is a fixed government charge, not a service fee, and it applies regardless of which firm you work with. We factor it explicitly into all pricing discussions.

Bottom line for 2026 applicants

If you have an Italian-born parent or grandparent, you are fully eligible under Law 74/2025 and should move forward without delay. Consulate wait times at most US offices continue to grow. The ATQ route at the Court of Rome remains a faster, if more expensive, alternative. And the constitutional challenge — while worth monitoring — is not a reason to wait.

If you are unsure whether your lineage qualifies, or whether your application was grandfathered before the deadline, book a free consultation with our team. We assess your specific family timeline and give you a direct answer.