In a historic decision published on May 12th (Sentence 13818/2026), the Corte di Cassazione reaffirmed that the Italian blood right, or ius sanguinis, is an “absolute subjective right of constitutional relevance”, which arises with the holder and is imprescriptible. The decision establishes a crucial legal counterpoint to the recent “Tajani Decree”, which imposed more restrictive criteria for the recognition of descent.
The point of greatest impact for Brazilians is that the decision legitimized the judicial route to obtain citizenship. The Court decided that the interest in taking legal action does not only occur when there is a formal refusal from the State, but also when there are impediments, difficulties or delays that make access to the administrative system impossible — a scenario that describes the reality of thousands of descendants who face years-long queues and flaws in the consulate scheduling system in Brazil.
Furthermore, the new jurisprudence sees citizenship as a right that the individual already has since birth and not a concession from the State, and administrative inefficiency cannot be an obstacle to its formal recognition, according to Gabriel Ezra Mizrahi, founder of Clube do Passaporte, a consultancy specializing in European citizenship and migration planning,
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According to experts, the decision legally shields legal proceedings, ensuring that the Italian Judiciary continues to be the safe path for those seeking their rights in the face of the saturation of consular services.
“This sentence was important for Brazilians because it means that all descendants who were unable to recognize their nationality due to the State’s administrative failure can recognize it in a judicial manner. Given the ineffectiveness of the Brazilian Consulates, which are currently analyzing the 2015 requests, and the rights of Italian descendants already obstructed even before the Tajani Decree, all Brazilians, without exception, can use the judicial route to recognize this right”, assesses the expert, adding that “It is a victory for the Italian nationality process for Italian descendants”.
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Important detail
The Court of Cassation has the final say in the interpretation of common law. But in the Italian legal system, only the Constitutional Court, similar to the Brazilian Federal Supreme Court, can give the last word on the matter. However, although the Constitutional Court is not bound by the decisions of the Cassation Court, it can observe the Court’s interpretation of Italian laws. Therefore, many experts believe that this legal turnaround signals that any political attempt to restrict access to citizenship will encounter a barrier in the country’s highest civil courts.
For now, for the thousands of descendants with documents ready or processes underway, the sentence will act as a new hope.
