Given how long it takes to complete an Italian citizenship application, and the very long waits many people have to endure, it is natural to wonder what stage your application has reached.<\/p>\n
When you check the Ministry of the Interior portal<\/a>, you find messages such as:<\/p>\n But what do these words mean?<\/p>\n It is hard to understand exactly which stage you are at when you receive these messages. Yet it is very important to know.<\/p>\n If you want to send a sollecito<\/strong> (formal reminder) because you have been waiting years for citizenship, you need to know which office is handling your application. Otherwise, sending emails will be pointless.<\/p>\n To know exactly whom to contact, you first need to understand how the procedure works, from when you submit the online form to when you take the oath and receive citizenship.<\/p>\n Here are the stages of an application for Italian citizenship by residence.<\/p>\n Portal message in Italian: \u201cSono in corso verifiche istruttorie sugli elementi acquisiti relativi a chiarimenti e integrazioni con altri uffici coinvolti nel procedimento\u201d<\/strong>.<\/p>\n First of all, you submit the application online. You fill in the forms, attach the documents (in PDF) and pay a \u20ac16 marca da bollo (revenue stamp) and a \u20ac250 fee.<\/p>\n The data is stored in CIVES, the IT system that gathers all the information about you. This is the istruttoria<\/strong> (examination) stage, carried out by the Prefettura (Prefecture, the local office of the Interior Ministry), the Questura (police immigration office) and the Ministry of Justice.<\/p>\n Portal message in Italian: \u201cSono stati acquisiti elementi istruttori e cognitivi, oggetti di necessari accertamenti utili alla definizione del procedimento\u201d<\/strong>.<\/p>\n This means that the offices have collected all the relevant data.<\/p>\n Portal message in Italian: \u201c\u00c8 in corso di predisposizione il decreto conclusivo del procedimento\u201d<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Don\u2019t be misled by the word \u201cfinal\u201d. It does not mean this is the last stage, but that the Prefettura is about to give its final opinion before sending everything to Rome.<\/p>\n Many people remain stuck at step 1\/2 for years and then suddenly find themselves at step 4. In fact, the delays are due to the huge number of applications swamping the Prefetture.<\/p>\n Most applications get stuck at the Prefettura, because the preliminary checks have found problems with the various requirements<\/strong> (income, residence, certificates, etc.).<\/p>\n Once the Prefettura sends the application to the Ministry of the Interior, the procedure is completed relatively quickly. Only those flagged as dangerous<\/strong> in the State\u2019s classified records will face problems after step 4<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Portal message in Italian: \u201cLa procedura di Cittadinanza \u00e8 conclusa e il relativo provvedimento \u00e8 stato inviato agli Organi competenti per i conseguenti adempimenti e determinazioni\u201d<\/strong>.<\/p>\n The application is now in the hands of the Ministry of the Interior<\/strong>: Department for Civil Liberties and Immigration \u2013 Central Directorate for Citizenship.<\/p>\n Together with the Department of Public Security, checks are carried out on files covered by State secrecy to assess whether the individual poses a danger.<\/p>\n If there are no problems, the file goes to the President of the Republic, who signs the decree granting citizenship.<\/p>\n Portal message in Italian: \u201cL\u2019istruttoria si \u00e8 conclusa favorevolmente; \u00e8 in corso di trasmissione il provvedimento di concessione alla Prefettura che ne curer\u00e0 la notifica. Se risiede all\u2019estero, il decreto sar\u00e0 inviato all\u2019Autorit\u00e0 Consolare\u201d<\/strong>.<\/p>\n You can breathe a sigh of relief. You have almost made it. Citizenship has already been granted to you<\/strong> and you are just waiting for notification from the Prefettura (or from the Embassy, if you live abroad).<\/p>\n Portal message in Italian: \u201cPratica definita. Ricever\u00e0 una comunicazione dalla Prefettura\/Consolato\u201d<\/strong>.<\/p>\n From now on, it is up to you. You have 6 months to take the oath<\/strong> at the Comune (town hall). After that, citizenship will be granted to you.<\/p>\n Remember that applications for citizenship by marriage are handled entirely by the competent Prefettura.<\/p>\n If you have been waiting years for your citizenship, rely on us to send a reminder to the competent authority and receive your documents promptly.<\/p>\n This content provides general information and does not constitute legal advice.<\/p>\n What the status messages on the Interior Ministry portal mean for your Italian citizenship application, from Prefettura checks to the oath.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":6701,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[74],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6703","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-italian-citizenship"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shimmigrations.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6703","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shimmigrations.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shimmigrations.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shimmigrations.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shimmigrations.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6703"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.shimmigrations.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6703\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shimmigrations.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6701"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shimmigrations.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6703"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shimmigrations.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6703"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shimmigrations.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6703"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
What happens in steps 1 and 2 at the Prefettura?<\/h2>\n
\u201cChecks are under way on the information gathered concerning clarifications and additions with other offices involved in the procedure\u201d<\/h3>\n
What does step 3 mean?<\/h2>\n
\u201cInvestigative and background information has been gathered and is subject to the checks needed to conclude the procedure\u201d<\/h3>\n
What does step 4 mean?<\/h2>\n
\u201cThe final decree of the procedure is being prepared\u201d<\/h3>\n
What happens in step 5 at the Ministry of the Interior?<\/h2>\n
\u201cThe citizenship procedure has been completed and the related decision has been sent to the competent bodies for the consequent formalities and determinations\u201d<\/h3>\n
What does step 6 mean?<\/h2>\n
\u201cThe examination has been concluded favourably; the decision granting citizenship is being sent to the Prefettura, which will notify it. If you live abroad, the decree will be sent to the Consular Authority\u201d<\/h3>\n
What does step 7 mean?<\/h2>\n
\u201cApplication finalised. You will receive a communication from the Prefettura\/Consulate\u201d<\/h3>\n
What else should you know?<\/h2>\n
Which other guides might be useful?<\/h2>\n
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