Obtaining Your Italian Ancestor's Birth Certificate

One of the essential documents required for Italian citizenship by descent is the birth certificate of your Italian ancestor who was born in Italy. This is because Italian citizenship through descent is recognised if you directly descend from someone who is or was Italian, therefore you must prove this connection.

Birth certificates are official documents issued by public authorities, containing information extracted from public registers. In Italy, there are different types of birth certificates, and they are issued by civil registrars.

Obtaining a birth certificate from Italy is a simple process. However, challenges may arise if you do not have the exact details about your Italian ancestor or if the birth occurred so long ago that a physical copy is difficult to retrieve.

In this article, I will guide you through the process, from gathering the necessary information to receiving the certificate.

Table of Contents

• Gathering Information Before Your Request

• The Request

  • Where to Request

  • Essential Elements of Your Request

  • Which Certificate to Request

• Once You Receive the Certificate

  • Checks

  • Keep a Copy

  • Translation and Apostille

• Conclusion

Gathering Information Before Your Request

When requesting your Italian ancestor’s birth certificate, you must provide as much accurate information as possible. The more relevant details you have, the smoother the process. Especially having considered that registrars are not required to search for records or undertake any genealogical investigations. While you might be fortunate enough to find someone willing to help, their time and assistance will be limited (for example, if you know the year and month but are unsure of the exact date of birth).

Here are the key details of your Italian ancestor you should gather:

• Place of birth;

• Date of birth;

• Full name.

If you also have their parents’ names, this is not necessary but could be a great advantage.

If you are missing any of this information, you could talk to your family members. Do any relatives recall your ancestor's full name, date, and place of birth? Perhaps old family documents contain these details. If family knowledge is limited, you could explore online resources like Ancestors Portal, Ancestry, My Heritage, or Family Search. These websites might provide insights into your family history, including birth records. If independent research proves unsuccessful, consider hiring a professional genealogist. They have the skills and resources to investigate deeper into your family's past.

The Request

Some consulates have made forms available on their websites to guide you. If your consulate does not, know that the request does not need to follow a specific format. It can be as simple as “I am writing to kindly request the birth certificate" (Italian translation: “Scrivo la presente per chiedere cortese rilascio del certificato di nascita”). You can submit it either by email or traditional post.

You could also send a “PEC” (Posta Elettronica Certificata) which is a certified email, a special type of email that is legally equivalent to a traditional registered letter. There are several approved service providers where you can open your PEC account. A PEC account requires an Italian tax identification code ("codice fiscale") which, if you do not yet have it, can be requested through the relevant consulate of Italy if you do not live in Italy. If you reside in Italy, you can obtain your codice fiscale by visiting the local tax office “Agenzia delle Entrate”.

Where to Request

The birth certificate will be issued by the Comune (municipality) where your Italian ancestor was born, so this is where you will request it.

To obtain the certificate, contact the Ufficio dello Stato Civile (Registry Office) of that specific Comune. You can find their details by searching for the official website of the Comune using "Sito istituzionale Comune di [name of the Comune] Ufficio Stato Civile" in a search engine. The first part of the website address typically follows a format like:

“www.comune.NameOfTheComune.AcronymOfTheProvince.it”.

Of course, you could just search for the name of the Comune, adding “Sito istituzionale” and “Ufficio Stato Civile” would just help you narrow down your research.

Essential Elements of Your Request

When you submit your request for the birth certificate, you need to ensure that it is complete. Specifically it should include:

• All the relevant details about your Italian ancestor (full name; date and place of birth; and if you also have their parents’ names);

• Your personal details (date and place of birth; residential address; email address; your Italian tax identification code, codice fiscale, if you have one);

• A copy of your passport;

• Some Comuni may charge for posting the certificate, while others may not, so it is advisable to inquire about postage costs too, which will likely be requested to be paid via bank transfer;

• Because you are requesting a specific document that includes the names of your Italian ancestor’s parents, you should state the purpose of your request. You could write: “Chiedo il presente documento in quanto indispensabile per la mia istanza di riconoscimento della cittadinanza italiana” (English translation: “I am requesting this document as it is essential for my application for the recognition of my Italian citizenship”).

• A very important aspect to consider is that you must ask for the exact certificate. As mentioned earlier, there are different types of birth certificates in Italy. Keep reading in the next section to see which one to request.

Needless to say, the entire request must be written in Italian, but with online translation tools this process is relatively easy now.

Which Certificate to Request

It is important to specify the exact type of certificate you require. For your Italian citizenship by descent, you should request the certificate that is called “Estratto per riassunto dell’atto di nascita completo dell’indicazione della paternità e maternità”. This document will include the full names of your ancestor's parents, and any annotations regarding significant life events, such as marriage, adoption, change of citizenship, or death.

So, after what you have written above, in your request you could add: “Preciso che il documento richiesto è l’estratto per riassunto dell’atto di nascita, completo dell’indicazione della paternità e della maternità” (English translation: “I would like to specify that the required document is an estratto per riassunto of the birth certificate, which must include the names of the mother and father").

Once You Receive the Certificate

The response times of the Comuni can vary significantly. Some may reply to you within a few days, while others could take months. Sometimes, they do not reply at all, and you need to chase them regularly. This will likely cause frustration, but do not give up (unless you are writing to the wrong address). With Italian bureaucracy, patience is a virtue you will need. That said, in my experience, I have also dealt with many extremely helpful registrars who replied quickly too.

Checks

When you receive the certificate, check it has:

• The original signature and stamp of the registrar (these are what makes the document legal);

• Your ancestor’s full details, including their parents' names;

• Any relevant annotations related to their life events.

If the details on the Italian certificate do not match the information on the documents from the country where your Italian ancestor emigrated, you cannot ask the Italian registrar to change them. The Italian registrar only issues documents containing information that is present on Italian public registers. In cases of discrepancy, there are tools, like the "positivo/negativo" certificate, to help you address these differences. We will cover these in a future newsletter.

Keep a Copy

The Consulate or Comune (depending on where you are applying) responsible for your Italian citizenship application will require the original birth certificate. Since it will not be returned, it is a good idea to make a copy for your own records (and if you want to keep it as a token of your Italian roots!).

When you request the certificate, you could also ask for two originals. This way, you can keep one for yourself as an original, or as a backup in case the original you submit with your Italian citizenship by descent application gets lost during the process.

Translation and Apostille

Because you are using this document in your Italian citizenship by descent application, it will be submitted to Italian authorities, therefore no translation is needed, nor is an apostille required.

However, if you need to use the birth certificate in a non-Italian legal process, such as “One and the Same” document, you need it to be translated and apostilled.

If this applies to your case, I would highly recommended that you specify in your birth certificate request that the it will need to be apostilled. This is important because only certificates signed by registrars whose signatures are registered with the Italian Prefettura can be apostilled. To avoid the risk of receiving a certificate signed by someone whose signature is not on file, and having to start the process all over again, as the apostille cannot be issued in that instance, make sure to include this information in your request.

You could use the following phrase:

“Please note that this birth certificate will need to be apostilled, as it will be presented to a non-Italian authority (Italian translation: ”Preciso che per il presente certificato di nascita sarà apostillato, poiché sarà presentato dinanzi ad un'autorità non italiana”).

Conclusion

Obtaining your Italian ancestor's birth certificate is an essential document in applying for your Italian citizenship by descent. This document serves as a link in the chain of evidence, proving your direct lineage to an Italian citizen.

Submit your request to the Ufficio dello Stato Civile of the Comune where your Italian ancestor was born. Be sure to request the “Estratto per riassunto dell’atto di nascita completo dell’indicazione della paternità e della maternità”, and keep a copy before submitting the original document to the relevant Italian authority.

As always, I wish you good luck in your quest for Italian citizenship!

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Disclaimer: This content is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not exhaustive, does not constitute legal advice, and does not establish or replace a lawyer-client relationship. The individuals named in the examples are not real people but fictional characters used to help explain Italian law in a more practical way. We do not assume any responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, or consequential damages arising from the use or misuse of any content on this newsletter/website or the content of pages linked to or from it. If you need legal assistance for your specific case, you must hire a legal professional.