Italy's Supreme Court Resolves the Minor Issue

BREAKING: Italy's Supreme Court Puts the Minor Issue to Rest

The Joint Civil Sections confirm the interpretation we have advocated from the beginning: a landmark victory for Italian citizenship by descent.

The Minor Issue is no longer an issue.

For two years, the so-called Minor Issue has created uncertainty for thousands of Italian citizenship applicants around the world. Yesterday, that uncertainty came to an end.

In Decision No. 24045/2026, issued on July 26, 2026, the Italian Supreme Court sitting in its Joint Civil Sections (Sezioni Unite) definitively resolved one of the most significant questions ever raised in Italian citizenship law.

For cases pending before the new law, the Court held that children born abroad who acquired Italian citizenship jure sanguinis while simultaneously acquiring another citizenship at birth do not lose their Italian citizenship merely because their Italian parent later became a foreign citizen.

The decision restores the historical interpretation of Italian citizenship law and brings an end to years of conflicting lower-court decisions.

A Legal Theory We Have Defended From Day One

At Coco Ruggeri & Associates, we have consistently maintained that these cases, children of Italian parents born abroad, are governed by Article 7 of Law No. 555 of 1912, not Article 12. That distinction is fundamental.

Article 7 protects children of Italian parents born abroad who became dual nationals at birth.

Article 12 concerns an entirely different situation: children born in Italy who acquire a foreign citizenship only because of their parent's later loss of Italian citizenship.

Treating these two situations as identical has always contradicted both the structure of the statute and more than a century of Italian administrative practice.

Yesterday, Italy's highest civil court confirmed exactly that interpretation.

The Prosecutor General Reached the Same Conclusion

Long before the Court issued its decision, the Prosecutor General filed written submissions asking the Supreme Court to overturn the restrictive interpretation that had emerged in recent years in relation to the cases at issue. The Prosecutor General agreed with us that Article 12 cannot apply to individuals who were already dual citizens at birth, and that Italian citizenship cannot be lost automatically because of a parent's later naturalization.

That conclusion is particularly meaningful because it confirms the legal reasoning that has guided our litigation strategy throughout these proceedings.

Why This Decision Matters Beyond the Minor Issue

Although the Minor Issue has now been resolved, the importance of this judgment extends well beyond these individual cases.

The Court reaffirmed several fundamental principles that are central to Italian citizenship law:

• citizenship acquired jure sanguinis is a protected legal status;
• loss of citizenship must always be interpreted narrowly;
• restrictive legislation cannot be extended beyond its express wording;
• voluntary renunciation remains the cornerstone of citizenship loss under Italian law.

These principles are equally relevant to the constitutional litigation now pending against Italy's 2025 citizenship reform.

The Final Piece of a Broader Litigation Strategy

For more than two years, Coco Ruggeri & Associates has pursued a comprehensive legal strategy designed to protect Italian citizenship rights on multiple fronts. That strategy has included constitutional challenges to the 2025 reform, the defense of pending citizenship applications, the protection of maternal-line (1948) claims, and the litigation surrounding the Minor Issue.

Yesterday's decision represents the completion of one of those essential components. The constitutional battle concerning the new legislation continues. But one of the most significant legal questions affecting Italian citizenship by descent has now been answered by Italy's highest civil court.

What This Means for Our Clients

First and foremost, for clients whose cases have been affected by the Minor Issue, the Supreme Court's decision should come as a tremendous relief. The Court has now provided the definitive interpretation of the law, removing one of the most significant sources of uncertainty that has affected Italian citizenship by descent claims in recent years.

The remaining question is how quickly the Foreign and Interior Ministries, together with the consular authorities, will implement this landmark decision in practice. Should they fail to do so, applicants can now rely on a clear and authoritative precedent from Italy's highest civil court, which the ordinary courts will be expected to enforce.

Second, just as importantly, this landmark ruling leaves our broader litigation strategy against the new law entirely intact, and, if anything, even stronger.

Our legal challenge to Law No. 74/2025, including our strategy for overcoming the new generational limitation in 1948 maternal-line cases based on principles of gender equality, is not affected by this decision. On the contrary, the Supreme Court's reaffirmation that Italian citizenship is a legal status acquired by operation of law, and that any loss of citizenship must be interpreted narrowly, reinforces the legal principles upon which our strategy is built.

Our team is currently reviewing all pending matters on a case-by-case basis and is proactively contacting clients whose applications may benefit from this important development.

If you would like us to evaluate how this decision impacts your eligibility under the new law or a 1948 maternal-line claim, we encourage you to contact our office for an individual assessment. Call us at +1 303-740-2000 (USA).

This article is general information, not legal advice. Litigation outcomes depend on the specific facts and procedural posture of each case; consult a qualified attorney about your specific situation.