Italy’s Citizenship Law Fails to Ease Court Backlog, Says Court President

The President of the Venice Court of Appeal,Rita Rigoni,stated that recent⁢ legislative changes aimed at regulating⁤ Italian citizenship applications have not significantly reduced the⁤ backlog of cases. This declaration was made on Friday, January 30, 2026, during the opening of the judicial year.

Persistent Backlog in Citizenship Cases

Rigoni emphasized that the number of pending cases continues to rise, notably within the specialized section dealing with international protection. “Regrettably, we must also note this year the enormous⁢ backlog ⁣of cases in this section,” she stated.

As of June 30, 2025, the court was handling 30,728 citizenship-related‍ cases. This represents 78.90% of all cases managed by the specialized section, 65.85% of all disputes before the courts of Venice, and approximately 44% of all citizenship-related legal ⁣actions currently being processed in Italy. ⁣ Italian Ministry of Justice

Rigoni also highlighted the disparity between the demand‍ for services and the resources available to the court. “Despite being a⁤ district court, it’s human and material resources are significantly⁣ lower than those of the major ⁤metropolitan ⁣courts,” she noted.

Limited Impact of Recent Reforms

The recent legislative changes, stemming from the Tajani Decree (Law decree No. 50 of may 20,2024),modified the criteria for recognizing citizenship and adjusted the unified contribution fee to 600 euros‍ per applicant. The government’s intention was to ⁤curb the increase in legal challenges related to citizenship.

However, Rigoni believes the impact of these changes has been limited. “The ⁢reforms, regarding the unified contribution and the ⁤conditions for obtaining citizenship, currently under review by the Constitutional Court, have only led to a slight decrease in the number of new ⁣applications,” she explained.

despite these adjustments, between January 1 and september 22, 2025, 10,660 new cases were registered with the courts – a figure comparable to the total number of cases opened throughout the entire year 2023.