Former Cassation Judge Criticizes 2025 Italian Citizenship Reform

A former judge from the Italian Corte di Cassazione published a critical study on the citizenship by descent reform approved in 2025. Umberto Scotti points out flaws in how the Italian government conducted changes to ius sanguinis, especially regarding the retroactivity of new rules and the absence of transition mechanisms for those who had already initiated processes before the reform.

Who is Umberto Scotti and What He Said

Umberto Scotti is a former judge at the Corte di Cassazione, the highest court of Italian justice in civil and criminal matters. His background in the judiciary lends technical weight to the analysis he published in the legal journal Giustizia Insieme, which specializes in debates on law and justice in Italy.

In his study, Scotti makes clear that he is not opposed, in principle, to a review of ius sanguinis rules — the right to citizenship by descent without generational limits that existed in Italy for decades. His criticism does not fall on the existence of a reform, but on the manner in which it was developed and implemented by the Italian government in 2025.

According to Scotti's analysis, the discussion about limiting citizenship transmission to distant descendants is legitimate and has been debated for years in Italy. The problem, in the former judge's view, lies in the legislative technique used to promote the change, which allegedly ignored already consolidated rights of millions of Italian descendants scattered worldwide.

Main Criticisms of the Reform

The former judge concentrates his criticisms on three central points of the text that reformed access to Italian citizenship.

The first is the retroactivity of the new rules. For Scotti, the reform not only changed the criteria going forward, but affected people who, under the previous legislation, were already considered Italian citizens from birth. This means the new text retroactively affects the individual's own legal status, not merely ongoing administrative or judicial processes — a distinction Scotti considers legally delicate.

The second point is the lack of transition rules. According to the study, a reform of this magnitude should have provided mechanisms to individually assess situations already established before the change, preventing people born decades ago from automatically losing a status they carried from birth.

The third point criticized by Scotti is the situation of minors. The former judge notes that the reform did not satisfactorily resolve cases involving minor children of descendants, leaving a legal gray area that, according to him, will still generate disputes in Italian courts.

Distinction Between 'an' and 'quomodo'

One of the central points of Scotti's study is the distinction between the an and the quomodo of the reform — that is, between the possibility of reforming the law and the manner in which such reform was conducted.

The former judge recognizes as legitimate the concern of the Italian legislator with unlimited citizenship transmission to descendants with no effective ties to Italy, a phenomenon that has intensified in recent years, especially among Italian heritage communities abroad. In this sense, Scotti does not deny that a real problem exists for the Italian State to address.

His criticism, however, falls entirely on the quomodo — the manner in which the reform was made. For him, the government could have opted for a prospective change, with clear transition rules and respect for already consolidated legal situations, without resorting to retroactivity that affects people's material rights from birth.

"The question is not whether Italy can reform ius sanguinis, but how that reform was legally constructed," summarizes Scotti's analysis, according to Italianismo.

Referral to European Justice

Scotti's study gains even more relevance in light of a recent decision by the Corte Costituzionale. Through ordinanza nº 147/2026, the Constitutional Court decided to consult the Court of Justice of the European Union on the compatibility of the new citizenship law with European Union law.

For Scotti, this move signals a shift in the Constitutional Court's own position on the issue. This is because, previously, in sentenza nº 63/2026, the same Court had validated central aspects of the reform. The fact that the Court now invokes the EU Court of Justice indicates, according to the former judge, that relevant doubts still exist about the legality of the new model under European standards.

It is important to note that the Corte Costituzionale and Corte di Cassazione are distinct bodies within the Italian judicial system, with different competencies — the former judges the constitutionality of laws, while the latter standardizes the interpretation of law in common courts.

What This Means for Descendants

The new chapter opened by the consultation with the Court of Justice of the European Union keeps the scenario open for thousands of Italian descendants, including Brazilians with applications in progress or still pending analysis. The decision from European justice may directly influence how the reform will be applied — or reassessed — by Italy itself.

Given this scenario of legal uncertainty, lawyers following the issue have reinforced the importance of seeking specialized guidance before making decisions about citizenship processes. Those who have already gathered documentation or are in the process of organizing certificates can benefit from services like certificate searches in Italy, essential to support any request, whether through the remaining administrative route or through the judicial route.

Raízes Italianas continues to monitor developments in the reform and the consultation with the Court of Justice of the European Union. More updates on this topic can be found in the Italy News section, as well as content related to the daily lives of Brazilians in the Life in Italy section.

Umberto Scotti's position reignites the debate about the limits of legislative action when it involves rights already incorporated into people's legal heritage. While the Court of Justice of the European Union does not rule, the expectation among Italian descendants in Brazil and other countries is that the decision will bring more clarity on the future of ius sanguinis.

Do you want to know if you have the right to Italian citizenship? Speak with specialized advisory services.

Source: Italianismo