Venice Court Recognizes Italian Citizenship for Family

The Tribunale di Venezia recognized Italian citizenship iure sanguinis to a Brazilian family descended from a man born in Vigonza, in the province of Padua. Decision No. 17147/2026, published on July 20, 2026, ruled on case No. 13841/2023 and had the distinguishing feature of having been filed nearly two years before the Decreto Tajani came into force, which guaranteed the plaintiffs judgment under the rules in effect before the new restrictions.

What the Venice Court Decided

According to the text of the decision published by Diritto Pratico, the Tribunale di Venezia ruled in favor of the request for recognition of Italian citizenship filed by descendants of a Veneto ancestor who emigrated from the municipality of Vigonza. The action, filed under the procedure provided in Article 281 sexies of the Italian Code of Civil Procedure, was based on proof that the ancestor never naturalized in another country nor formally renounced Italian citizenship before the birth of the descendants who followed the family line.

According to the text of the decision, the Ministry of the Interior was named in the proceedings but presented no defense, being declared in default — a recurring situation in actions of this type. The Public Prosecutor expressed itself without opposing the recognition requested by the plaintiffs. The decision also mentions the involvement of a minor in the proceedings, represented by her parents, whose status as a descendant was equally recognized in the same sentence.

Why the Case Was Heard in Venice

The choice of forum is noteworthy because, until a few years ago, virtually all judicial citizenship cases filed by Brazilians residing abroad were heard in the Tribunale di Roma. This centralization changed with Law 206/2021, which altered the rules of territorial jurisdiction as of June 22, 2022: since then, when the plaintiff resides outside Italy, the action must be brought before the court corresponding to the birthplace of the Italian ancestor, no longer automatically in Rome.

Because the family's ancestor was born in the province of Padua, jurisdiction fell to the civil division of the Tribunale di Venezia, the territorially competent court for cases from that region of the Veneto. This territorial redistribution, applied throughout the country, has relieved the volume of cases concentrated in Rome, but has also created new backlogs in regional courts that began receiving unprecedented demand from descendants scattered throughout Brazil and other countries.

The Impact of Decreto Tajani and Law 74/2025

One of the central points of the decision is the analysis of the new Article 3-bis of Law 91/1992, introduced by the Decreto Tajani and Law 74/2025 (conversion of Decree-Law 36/2025). This rule significantly restricted automatic recognition of citizenship to people born abroad who already possess another citizenship, generally limiting the right to children and grandchildren of Italians.

The law itself, however, provides exceptions to the application of these new restrictions. One of them covers cases where recognition of citizenship is sought through a judicial action (domanda giudiziale) filed in accordance with the rules in effect until March 27, 2025, the cutoff date established by the decree. Cases filed before that date remain protected and continue to be judged according to the previous rules, more favorable to recognition through maternal or paternal lines without generation limitations.

This was exactly the exception that benefited the family judged in Venice: because the action was filed in 2023, well before the March 2025 milestone, the Court applied the old rules of Law 91/1992, without the restrictions brought by the subsequent decree.

What This Means in Practice for Brazilian Families

The decision confirms an understanding that has been reinforced by different Italian courts: whoever already had a judicial action filed before March 27, 2025 preserves the right to have their case judged under the rules prior to Decreto Tajani, even if the sentence is only rendered after that date. In practice, the case took approximately 43 months — nearly four years — between filing in 2023 and publication of the decision in July 2026, a timeframe that illustrates that the judicial route in Italy can be time-consuming, although duration varies depending on the court and case complexity.

The lack of contestation by the Ministry of the Interior and the favorable opinion of the Public Prosecutor, as occurred in this case, are factors that historically contribute to favorable decisions for descendants, although they do not represent automatic guarantee of success in all cases submitted to Italian courts.

Important Considerations for Those Considering the Same Path

For those who have not yet filed a recognition action, the scenario has changed significantly. The new restrictions of Law 74/2025 now require, as a general rule, that at least one of the applicant's parents was born in Italy, which greatly limits the scope of recognition for more distant generations, a topic already covered in detail by Raízes Italianas in our coverage of Italian citizenship.

Before initiating any action, it is essential to gather complete documentation of the Italian ancestor — birth, marriage, and death certificates, plus proof that he never naturalized in another country before the birth of the next descendant in the succession line. The absence of any of these documents can compromise the request, regardless of the path chosen.

Given the complexity of the new rules and the exceptions provided in Article 3-bis, consulting a lawyer specializing in Italian citizenship is advisable to verify whether a specific case can still benefit from any exception provided in the legislation, or if it is definitively subject to the restrictions imposed by Decreto Tajani. More cases like this should be followed in upcoming editions of Italy news on Raízes Italianas.

The decision of the Tribunale di Venezia reinforces that the date of filing the judicial action remains the decisive factor in defining which rules apply to each family, making the decision of when and how to pursue recognition through the judicial route even more strategic.

Do you want to know if you have the right to Italian citizenship? Talk to a specialized consulting team.