Italian citizenship application. How to speed up the process.
Two years or more have passed since you filed your Italian citizenship application through your Italian consulate online.
Since you are not getting any answers from the Italian authority, and you want to know if you or your husband/wife are finally an Italian citizen, you asked your Italian consulate. Unfortunately, the consulate replied, after a while, saying that they do not have any information for you, they cannot help you, and, thus, they invite you to visit the website nullaostalavoro where you should access your personal area to obtain information about the status of your application. You found your user, password, and K10/C/number, you entered your personal area, but when you finally got to your Stato della pratica, you read one of the following:
Stato della pratica: l’istruttoria è stata avviata
Stato della pratica: in fase di valutazione
Stato della pratica: in attesa dei pareri necessari alla definizione della pratica
So, now not only have you realized that you are not an Italian citizen yet, but also you do not know what to do. Should I wait? Should I contact the Italian consulate? Should I try to get in touch with the Italian authority?
- Should I wait? Well, the Italian administration is always under a heavy load of requests, to which must be added that the number of employees that work on Italian citizenship requests is certainly not enough to manage thousands of requests. Therefore, in practice, it happens that, generally, they give priority to the applications of those who reside in Italy, before taking care of those of residents abroad. So, after you waited two years, maybe just waiting more time may not be your best option.
- Should I contact the Italian consulate? You probably already did but the answer was not satisfactory. You can try again, but it is unlikely that the will give you a satisfactory answer now.
- Should I try to get in touch with the Italian authority? There is not a call center or hotline that you call and receive information. Moreover, most certainly you don’t have a pec account, so you cannot send an official certified request via email. In any case, even if you send a registered letter via snail mail or ups, you will have to write it in Italian because the Italian authority will not consider a letter written in English.
So you think you are out of options.
Not really. Here is what you can do.
A serious and very common mistake consists in disregarding the course of one’s application for Italian citizenship, believing, in good faith, that the Italian administration will conclude the process within the time established by law, without the need to solicit it.
Unfortunately, especially for those residing abroad as mentioned above, this almost never happens. This does not mean that the application will never be concluded, but that the Ministry could take 4 or 5 years to give you an answer.
For this reason, we suggest taking legal action. Please consider that this does not mean that you should start a long and probably expensive lawsuit in Italy just because you read that the process for approval of your application has not been concluded.
What you could do is ask an Italian lawyer to send a letter of sollecito/diffida (a reminder/formal legal request for the conclusion of the process) on your behalf. With this letter your Italian lawyer will explain your case, point out legal references, such as relevant laws and recent Italian case-law, and ask for a “fast” conclusion of the process. Therefore, with this letter you remain in an “amicable settlement” outside of the court stage.
It is true that, provided you are able to write in Italian, you could send this letter without the assistance of a lawyer. However, a letter sent by a lawyer has a different impact on the receiver. In fact, among other reasons, the employee in charge will know that you have already hired an Italian lawyer to assist you with the case and that, therefore, you are willing to do whatever it takes to reach the conclusion of the process. This could include starting legal actions against the Italian authority or the personnel itself for “professional inefficiency”.
Furthermore, you will need to know what to write in your letter. Writing a letter where you just remind them that your application process is not concluded, generally is not enough. Thus, the assistance from an Italian lawyer could be more efficient in speeding up the process.
In conclusion, if you just sit and wait you risk not only that your application may remain “frozen” in the offices of the Italian Public administration, but also that other applicants who were wise enough to “participate” in their process taking “legal action” will pass in front of you.
The goal of sending a formal request with the assistance of an Italian lawyer is to put your application on the desk of the competent employee, so that he/she knows that you are waiting for an answer and that you are willing to start a legal action in case it is not delivered to you within a reasonable period of time.
Please note that in case you read this: “Stato della pratica: E’ stata riscontrata la mancanza o la non idonietà di alcuni documenti necessari e l’accettazione è stata sospesa in attesa dell’invio dei documenti corretti”, sending a sollecito is not what you should do. This message means that your documents are incomplete/incorrect, or that some documents are missing, and that the status of your application is “pending”. You will then need to upload, within a short period of time, the missing/correct/complete documents. In this case, we suggest getting in touch with an Italian lawyer who can assist you with the entire process before it is too late.
David
So true! We have been through all of this and more living abroad. The consulate will tell you to go fetch for information yourself on their website. (If you are lucky to get a response) they offer almost no guidance. They will tell you are in “pending” status and give you a long list of things to re do or re submit and correct but they will give you an unrealistic time frame making it almost impossible to achieve. Putting you in a situation to beg them for more time. They have the power and we have nowhere to turn. Until you find David and a team of professionals that do care about your case and will do everything in their power to help you. My husband and I have found Vandemecum and although there is still a lengthy process to go through, we can say that at least we can see light at the end of the tunnel. We are in good hands with David and we trust that he will help us reach our goal. I highly recommend them!
My exact experience is described above. I’m in roughly year 5 of this process. It took two years to get an appointment with the Consulate of jurisdiction for my home and I’ve waited over two additional years for a final decision since my application was submitted online and accepted by the Ministry in Rome. Recently, while searching online for information or help in getting some movement in the process, I happened upon Vademecum. David has really come through since within 6 weeks of his initial sollecito/pec and continued perserverence my application found it’s way out of limbo and into someones hands. The net net is that my application has been finalized with a positive outcome and the relevant decree is in the process of being formalized. While no one knows exactly how long that will take, my journey is another giant step closer to the finish line. Bravo David and Vademecum Italia. Can’t thank you enough!
David,
You have accomplished what no one else could. Besides your outstanding and professional service you went above and beyond to conquer each and every challenge and obstacles along the way, and there were many, but that didn’t stop you. You fought for us with your expertise, while guiding us through each and every step.
The fact that we are countries apart was never used as a manipulative tool but on the contrary, your honesty and transparency were there throughout the entire process.
You work with professionalism, fairness, you kept your cool and collected focus even during times where I couldn’t find the patience to do the same due to the obstacles this process entailed. But, you always thought intelligently about how to best approach the issue at hand from a different angle until it could be resolved.
We worked together, you never left us alone. You followed up regularly and promptly and even responded during your personal time when we had a matter that was of timely essence for our process. Your fees are reasonable and fair compared to many that abuse and overcharge their clients.
I can go on and on with praise and gratitude for accomplishing so much, so promptly when all seemed impossible and unreachable. But I will make one final statement:
In this day and age of so much doubt and confusion over whether to be able to trust someone to provide a service for such a personal process, and one that requires sharing information with a lawyer, to find David at Vademecum, was the most fortunate thing that could happen to us. It is very hard to find an Attorney in any part of the world, that you can put all your trust in, with the caliber and professionalism that David offers.
Thank you immensely David.
Monica
Dear Monica,
Thank you for your wonderful comment.
To be honest, your case with the comune di Roma was very complicated, but luckily everything went fine.
Please let me know if there is anything else I can do for you.
Thank you.
I cannot say enough good things about my experience dealing with Vademecum Italia for legal services. I applied in Italy for recognition of my Italian citizenship. I used a local provider in central Italy to oversee this process for me. Back in the US, it became apparent after waiting 1 1/2 years and tons of excuses, that my application was going nowhere. I contacted David. He was professional and extremely diligent in his initial interaction with me. He went to work immediately on my situation bypassing my service provider and speaking directly with the commune. He followed up with emails to the Clerk’s office. He was not pushy but he was persistent. This resulted in movement of my file that absolutely was not happening previously. Within a few short months I had my citizenship documents in my hands. I also give him credit for moving other files along in this same commune. THANK YOU DAVID for an outstanding job. If you are having issues with your citizenship and are not able to get answers or resolution, I highly recommend you reach out to Vademecum Italia for help.
I applied for recognition of Italian citizenship in Italy. Unfortunately the town administration became unresponsive after my application was submitted and there was no movement with my case for many months. I tried many different methods to get my application processed to no avail. Finally, I contacted Vademecum Italia for assistance and within a few short weeks everything was completed satisfactorily. I highly recommend David for any type of assistance not only because of his legal expertise but also because he clearly knows how to deal with Italian bureaucracy in a very efficient way. Thank you David!
Thank you for your very nice comment.
I’m glad your case was successfully solved.
Please let me know if there is anything else that I can do for you.
Regards,
D
Hello David I need your help, could you please give me your email so we could discuss this further.
Thanks and looking forward to hearing from you soon.
Please help thanks
I don’t understand what this means…Sono in corso approfondimenti istruttori – in attesa di elementi per la valutazione … I applied for my citizenship 2016, I just got this new phrase today and I am worried if it’s something negative.. please I need help
I don’t understand what this means…Sono in corso approfondimenti istruttori – in attesa di elementi per la valutazione … I applied for my citizenship 2016, I just got this new phrase today and I am worried if it’s something negative.. please I need help to know what level it’s now!
Dear Anita,
I will send you an email as soon as possible.
D.
David was a tremendous help in spurring the Consulate into action after two years of stonewalling. My application had been languishing for no apparent reason, and David’s correspondence was instrumental in getting them to act on it. My only regret is that I didn’t engage him sooner. Highly recommend!
David was essential in getting my transcription that was taking more than 2 years to process.
I contacted him and within a few hours I already had a reply. We discussed my scenario and he started looking into ways to get the application to complete.
Within a week of my inquiry we managed to get the application to complete. The Comune had my application in a long backlog, but with David’s advice we contacted them with a valid reason for expediting the application.
I can not emphasize how informative, prompt and effective David is. Do not let your application stall, simply by getting David’s help you can save yourself months (maybe even years) of waiting.
Thank you David!
David has been great at helping with my rather problematic citizenship process. Every step with the local Embassy for the last years has been a battle and he has managed to overcome the issues. I highly recommend his services and should have if anything engaged him sooner. Also I would like to add his communication is responsive and his English is really very impressive.
Grazie mille
Luke
Mille Grazie, David!
More than eleven months past the due date for a decision on my application for citizenship by-way-of-marriage, I learned last night that my application was approved. Engaging you and Vademecum Italia five months ago was perhaps my smartest move.
From the beginning, you were patient and honest explaining the services you could perform and the range of outcomes, favorable and unfavorable, to be expected. You demonstrated a keen knowledge of the intricate citizenship application and approval processes and kept me fully informed of your efforts on my behalf. Your answers to my many questions were always timely and complete.
While no one can say for sure where my application might stand without your efforts, I feel certain that without you my application would have remained in limbo for quite a while longer.
Sincere thanks, David. Please do not hesitate to call upon me as a reference for your work.
Dear Mark,
Thank you!!
Please let me know if there is anything else I can do for you.
All the best,
David.
Mark,
It was my pleasure.
Thank you for your wonderful comment.
All the best,
David.
David was extremely helpful throughout my whole process in procuring Italian citizenship. I had applied with the London consulate prior to Brexit, and was up against a very slow, unresponsive contact who had thousands of applications to sort through. I was at risk of needing to leave the UK as I no longer had visa sponsorship through my work. David helped get my application confirmed within a matter of 2 weeks when no one else could, and made persistent efforts to get me registered with AIRE in a Comune going through an election period and lots of political mess.
He called offices every day, followed up proactively, and helped me sort through what would have been a lot of headache and mess. I wasn’t sure what I would get when I contacted him via this website, but I can say the quality of his work and services are top notch. I am extremely grateful to David for his help and highly recommend him!
Wow Sarah,
Thank you very much for your wonderful comment.
Please get back to me after you go to the Consulate.
All the best,
David.
Thanks for sharing that it is usual that the process will be faster when you are already residing in Italy when applying for this. I guess I will tell my best friend this information so that she can have a smooth process. She just told me that she will be applying for Italian citizenship because she plans to settle down there and work there as well.
Hi David
My husband apllied for Italian citizenship 21st sep,2016.but till now there is no response or proggress.can u pls guide us what can we do now?should we wait or there is any other way?
We need help.pls can u help us?
Thank u
Dear Sharmin,
I answered your request via email of this morning.
Regards,
D.
Thank you very much.
Regards
Sharmin
David was a great help in assisting in getting my Italian Citizenship registered after moving to a different State. He also assisted in helping me to get registered with AIRE in a Comune during a very busy season. Every complication that came up David was able to assist to overcome those obstacles to help speed up the process.
I highly recommend using him. You wont be disappointed.
Thank you very much!
While my own citizenship was relatively fast (les than 2 years), my wife was pending for 4 years. Despite repeated email and even in person inquiries, everything was at a standstill. I had David pend a letter and in less than a month received a response about what needed to be done to move the application forward. If anyone more delays occurs, I will be sure to ask for David’s help.
If you want the job done, utilize David,
Thank You David! I just got my passport!! My citizenship journey has been both challenging and interesting. Thanks in large part to you It’s finally at an end, too. I would likely still be waiting for the Italian bureaucracy to grind along if not for your invaluable knowledge and assistance. I would recommend your services to anyone attempting to negotiate the citizenship system in Italy from the beginning of the process. I could have been spared considerable grief had I found Vademecum sooner! Grazie Mille!!!!!
Dear Michael,
Thank you for your wonderful comment.
I am very happy for you.
Please let me know if there is anything else that I can do for you.
All the best,
David.
Thank you so much David for your professionalism and communication process with ease.
My citizenship application with Italian Consulate was delaying too much, at a risk of documentation validation getting past due. David helped on the communication and feeding back to Consulate my urgency in applying. Now, they are ready to receive my documents for application, after a reviewing of the original copies and no gross issues found. I regret not knowing his services before, it would have saved even more time for me.
Good Day David, i apply for Italian citizenship by marriage on the 15 of February 2018, and i got my K10, Please Sir, dose the new law of waiting time apply to me and please how can i speed it up the waiting time….. my application was in February 2018 before the new law of October 5 2018,,,,, your kindly reply is well appreciated
Dear Bright,
As I said during our phone call of this afternoon, the new law applies to your case.
Regards,
David
I have started my Italian citizenship journey 2 years ago by submitting all the documentation to the Irish consulate. During 1.5 years I had been trying to contact the consulate in order to have a feedback about my request. During this period, a total of 15 emails were sent, but never replied, to the consulate. After having presented my case to David, he agreed to send a letter to the consulate asking for information about my process.
However, he went above and beyond on what had been agreed by also exchanging several emails and making calls to discuss about my process with them.
He had also assisted to explain an issue with my name on my current passport, where it became a blocker at the time.
From there, on each update about my process, David would contact me to keep me informed.
After 4 months since the first contact, I have been granted the so desired Italian citizenship.
Thanks David for all the effort you put in having this become a reality.
I was on a long journey for about 5 years trying to receive my Italian citizenship. I came across David and we spoke about my situation and helped tremendously. David is the go to person to help you get the necessary information. It took only a couple of months to get my paperwork back. He worked diligently and made me very comfortable. I am very happy that I was able to receive my Italian citizenship shortly after working with David. I highly recommend David to any person looking to get great advice and take the necessary steps to receive their Italian citizenship. Thank you very much David!
David was very helpful, patient and professional!
It’s been over a year since my application was accepted. I tried to reach out by email to the consulate for updates at the six month and one year marks, but they never responded.
With less than a year to go I didn’t know if they’d even started. So I thought it time to reach out to David for help.
He worked with me to get the information on my case that he needed. I’m also just a regular guy and not a rich person. I’d never hired a lawyer before, but his pricing was very accessible for me.
He sent them an official, secure letter and the consulate responded within a week with a status update! They assured him that the case would be completed within the deadline.
I’m confident that with David representing me on the Italian side of things that my application will be concluded successfully within the appropriate time.
Thanks David!
While I was able to achieve my citizenship on my own, my wife’s citizenship proved to be quite the challenge. After 3 frustrating years going back and forth with the consulate, I finally contacted David. He is extremely knowledgeable, well versed and professional. He immediately went to work sending letters to Rome. The response received when working with David was very different then when working on my own. Within a matter of months my wife’s citizenship was approved. I want to add this was during the COVID19 crisis that struck Italy quite severely and closed several government offices. Without David our family could never have achieved our dream. We are so thankful. David does not disappointment.
Michael,
Thank you for your kind words.
I really appreciate it.
All the best,
David.
My daughter and I are very grateful to David at Vademecum Italia for his assistance in helping us obtain Italian citizenship. We applied at the Consulate in Philadelphia. It has been a very long process. After over a year since we had submitted the application, we had not heard anything and could not obtain any information on the status of our application. Numerous telephone calls and emails went unanswered. It was very frustrating. I am so glad we reached out to David. He is professional, knowledgeable, and trustworthy. His fee was very reasonable. He promptly responded to my emails and sent well written letters to the right officials. We were able to receive an update on our progress and eventually received Italian citizenship this month despite Covid! I am confident that we would not have attained this goal without his help. I highly recommend his services!
My brother and I are extremely grateful to David for finally helping us elicit a response from the consulate regarding our citizenship applications. After a successful appointment (pending mailing in a few additional documents) with the Italian consulate two years ago, we had received no update on the status of our application. We feared that our files had been discarded and we would have to start over from scratch, because the consulate did not reply to any of our requests for information. David was able to write to the consulate on our behalf, inquiring after the status, and we received a response regarding our (still active!) application within two weeks of his letter. If we had known about his services earlier, we would have contacted him long ago. He has been extremely professional and courteous, and we are relieved to finally have a response. We recommend his services wholeheartedly to anyone in a similar position.
My application for citizenship has been sitting with the Italian Consulate for three years and the only replies I got on my own were that they were busy and would come back when they had time. David got things moving again and now we seem to be close to resolution in only two weeks. I highly recommend his support. Thank you!