Italy tightens the rules of citizenship in the middle of the influx of requests

People of Italian origin have been able to search for decades through their family trees, find an Italian ancestor and ask for citizenship from Italy, guaranteeing a powerful passport which allows them to enter more countries without visa than travelers of almost all other nationalities.

But so many people have attempted to claim the advantages that their requests have congested the courts, the consulates and the municipal offices of Italy, crushing other works.

The government has enough.

Fewer people of Italian origin will now be able to obtain citizenship after the government has only narrowed people with Italian parents or grandparents.

The decree, announced Friday and in force immediately, removes a provision which had allowed all arrivals to seek citizenship if they could prove – often through a long and laborious process – that they had an Italian ancestor living after the training of the country in 1861.

Antonio Tajani, the Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs, said that the stricter regulations followed “years of abuse” by people who had few links with the country and only covet his passport.

Italy has granted citizenship in recent years to an increasing number of South American, said Tajani, suggesting that many new Italians hoped mainly to travel to Europe or the United States. “Being an Italian citizen is a serious thing,” he said at a press conference. “It’s not a game to get a passport in your pocket to shop in Miami.”