Italy’s decision to restrict eligibility for Italian citizenship has provoked a sharp backlash from the US-based Italian diaspora, with community leaders and lawmakers warning that the changes could alienate millions of Italian Americans and undermine longstanding transatlantic ties.

Under previous laws, descendants of Italian citizens dating back to 1861 could apply for citizenship.

But Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s right-wing government has now limited eligibility to only children and grandchildren of Italian nationals. The new rules, introduced via emergency decree in March and formalized into law this week, were triggered by a surge in applications from Latin America.

According to Italian officials, up to 80 million people may have had a valid claim under the old system, far exceeding Italy’s current population. The government cited a backlog of 60,000 applications and said many foreign nationals were obtaining passports not to migrate to Italy, but to enter the US or other EU countries more easily.

Italian Americans say heritage rights are under threat

The rule change has sparked deep frustration among Italian Americans. In the US, where an estimated 16 to 20 million people claim Italian heritage, some had spent years compiling documentation to apply. Many saw citizenship as a way to reconnect with their roots, and, in some cases, as a path to relocating to Europe.

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“People are very upset and frustrated,” said Marco Permunian, founder of Italian Citizenship Assistance, an NGO that helps Americans trace their ancestry. “A lot of them are preparing to fight this law. They are very motivated and they are not going to let it go.”

The Italian American Congressional Delegation in Washington expressed concern that the new law risks severing historic cultural ties. In a letter signed by its four co-chairs, lawmakers warned the decision “risked alienating” thousands of people who had “invested significant time, effort and financial resources” into pursuing citizenship claims.

“At a time when the transatlantic relationship is under new pressures, the reassuring voices of 20 million Italian Americans serve as bridges between our nations,” the letter stated.

Meloni defends the move as protection against abuse

Meloni, who maintains strong ties with US President Donald Trump and shares a hardline stance on migration, has framed the reform as necessary to prevent the misuse of Italian citizenship.

Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani defended the law, arguing that citizenship “must not be a tool to go on trips to Miami or other places with a European passport.” Senator Marco Lisei of Meloni’s Brothers of Italy party echoed the sentiment, saying the system had been exploited by those with little connection to Italy. “A real traffic in citizenship emerged,” he said, “which has forced the government to intervene.”

After lobbying from groups like the National Italian American Foundation (NIAF) and the Italian Sons and Daughters of America, the government agreed to preserve eligibility for those whose applications were already at an advanced stage.

Rome also reversed plans to bar dual nationals from obtaining passports, allowing those who had lost their Italian citizenship upon naturalizing in the US, prior to Italy’s 1992 dual nationality recognition, to reclaim it.

Still, many see the move as deeply exclusionary. “One day you are entitled to it, the next day you are not,” said Jacopo Zamboni of Henley & Partners, a migration consultancy. “It will definitely have a huge impact.”

NIAF President Robert Allegrini said the foundation welcomed the limited concessions but remained “disappointed” by the broader law, which he warned would make it “even more difficult” for descendants of Italian immigrants to restore their ties to their ancestral homeland.