Citizenship reform petition reaches 500,000 signatures.

A petition in Italy calling for a referendum to make it easier for foreigners to claim Italian citizenship has reached the half a million signatures needed to trigger a public vote.

The proposed referendum aims to reduce from 10 to five the number of years of continual legal residence in Italy required to apply for Italian citizenship which, once obtained, would automatically be passed on to the citizen's children.

Under the current legislation, which dates to 1992, non-EU nationals are required to be legally resident in Italy for 10 years before they can apply for citizenship, and children born in Italy to foreigners cannot apply for citizenship until they turn 18.

The referendum petition was launched earlier this month by the liberal, centre-left +Europa party and has been backed by Italy's centre-left opposition parties and pro-migrant groups.

The goal was to reach 500,000 signatures - the minimum threshold needed for the consititutional court to assess whether or not to hold a referendum - by 30 September.

In recent days the petition received a surge of signatures, helped by a major social media campaign and the fact that people can sign online via Italy's digital identity system SPID. 

On Tuesday the +Europa leader Riccardo Magi announced that the target of half a million signatures had been achieved, six days ahead of the deadline.

Ce l’abbiamo fatta!

In pochissimi giorni 500.000 cittadine e cittadini hanno firmato per il #ReferendumCittadinanza.

Hanno dimostrato che, quando il Parlamento non trova il coraggio di cambiare leggi ingiuste, possono mobilitarsi e farlo loro stessi, grazie alla Costituzione.… pic.twitter.com/Dr2MfdTNB2

— Più Europa (@Piu_Europa) September 24, 2024

Writing on social media, Magi said the people who sign the petition are seeking "something simple, almost banal: those who choose Italy to live, study, love and grow, those who imagine their future in our country, are Italian", adding that "it is only the first step towards a more just law that recognises each one of their daughters, each one of their sons, as Italian."

Before the petition reaches the constitutional court, however, it will first have to be assessed by the court of cassation.

Italy's right-wing prime minister Giorgia Meloni poured cold water on the push for a referendum on the matter, telling reporters on Tuesday that Italy already "has an excellent citizenship law" and that she didn't "see the need" to change the system.

Photo RAI News