On Tuesday, June 24, the Italian Constitutional Court held a major public hearing to review important legal challenges raised last November by a judge in the Bologna Court. Judges from the courts of Milan, Rome, and Florence later joined with similar concerns.

The core issue is the constitutionality of how Italian citizenship is passed down through generations by jure sanguinis(right of blood). This principle has been part of Italian law since the Civil Code of 1865, reinforced by Law No. 555 of 1912, and currently regulated by Law No. 91 of 1992. The Constitutional Court is now reviewing four combined cases brought by the above-mentioned courts.

The referring judges argued that automatically granting citizenship by descent—regardless of how many generations have passed—may not align with the Italian Constitution. They pointed out that many descendants have no real connection to Italy, whether through language, culture, or history. This idea of a “genuine link” is also the foundation of the new Decree Law No. 36/2025 and its conversion into Law No. 74/2025, which recently changed the rules for recognizing Italian citizenship by descent.

However, the lawyers representing the claimants argued against this new approach. They believe placing strict limits on how far citizenship can be passed down is unfair and goes against the idea of citizenship as a symbol of identity, heritage, and belonging. They called recognition of citizenship a historic and moral responsibility toward the Italian diaspora.

Now that the June 24 hearing has taken place, the Constitutional Court will begin its decision-making process. A final ruling is expected in the coming months. The outcome will be crucial in deciding whether the new generational limits are compatible with the Italian Constitution, or if they instead violate the rights of individuals and disrupt long-standing expectations.

Regardless of the decision, the Court’s ruling will have a major impact on the recently introduced laws—Decree Law No. 36/2025 and Law No. 74/2025—which made generational limits a central part of Italy’s new citizenship framework