We shall analyse the situation of non-EU citizens married to Italian citizens. Law 91/1992 art. 9 they can apply to naturalisation after six months of marriage or after three years of marriage if they live abroad.
The cases that we study through out the e-mails we often receive most of all talk about foreigners that got married with Italian citizens and that live in Italy. According to ministerial instructions naturalisation should take the most 730 days.
This is to say that naturalisation proceedings take two years to be over (though we well know that it usually take about three years). This is rather worrying, I do not think that there are other countries that officially take so long to put the word end to a normal procedure.
Our webpage users complain because of awaiting times and they ask us how to quicken proceedings. Some users told us that they tried to get in touch with qualified administrations in order to know the reason of the delay. Most of times Home Office says that Public security department authorisation is still missing. Some of our webpage users say that they referred to Prefecture, where application to naturalisation was given in, but Prefecture did not have any answer.
Prefecture are usually rather quick in getting the inquest ready (the inquest is the application ready with all documents). The problem is at Home Office. Here proceedings slow down in times.
When we talk about naturalisation in case of marriage to Italians, we are not talking about a discretional concession, though. We are talking about a right as Cassation court underlined.
Cassation court sentenced that since law on citizenship provides for specific times within which to refer of impedimental matter (in case of marriages to Italian citizens), when times are over naturalisation cannot be refused.
Interested citizens can go straight to Civil court and they can simply ask for a sentence that assesses their citizenship. Once documents prove that all requisites are available, that the two years time expired, magistrates can only assess naturalisation.