It only takes a few minutes of researching Italian citizenship through ancestry to discover it gets complicated. Quickly. The good thing is that there’s no shortage of support. There are hundreds of people who have gone through the process and are willing to share their experience. Plus, there are professionals who work every day to help people obtain their citizenship.
We talked previously about the benefits of DIY vs hiring service providers as well as the risks of choosing the wrong provider. Which leads to a critical question…
“How do I choose a good service provider?”
This and the next couple articles in this series are focused on equipping you to hire the right support for your Italian citizenship. Whether you’re looking for a single document retrieval or full-service assistance, you want to make sure they’re a good fit for your case.
What to look for in a service provider
There are a few key items that can help you readily identify service providers who are reputable and a good fit for your case. And every green flag has an opposite red flag, so let’s look at them together.
Makes accurate eligibility determinations
The paths to Italian citizenship eligibility are very nuanced. In addition to the primary eligibility factors, there are also many edge cases. For example, if your Italian-born ancestor was born or lived in certain comuni within certain time periods, your eligibility may be affected.
Italy in its current form of government is actually a very young country. Changes to citizenship laws and political boundaries over time have affected the ability for some people to pass Italian citizenship to their descendents. One of the biggest examples of this is the 1948 rule, which allowed women to pass on Italian citizenship to their children, something not possible before.
With all these minute details, it’s incredibly important that a service provider knows how to properly determine your eligibility and the citizenship paths available to you. This process typically starts with the most common disqualifiers and then works towards the less common scenarios. They will know exactly the questions to ask to determine both opportunities and roadblocks for your case.
Another critical aspect of making accurate determinations is basing final eligibility assessments STRICTLY on approved documentation. Some of our clients—who are now Italian citizens—were previously told they were ineligible by other providers based on census records or ship manifests. While these documents may be indicators, that’s all they are.
A service provider who determines ineligibility based on unapproved documents, is either lazy or too busy to review your case properly. Similarly, a provider who claims you are eligible without the proper documents should be avoided at all costs. It’s a recipe for wasting a lot of time and money at best, or ending up stranded or ineligible at worst. We’ll talk more about proper eligibility documentation in the next article.
Admits when they don’t know
No single service provider knows everything. The details of your specific case is a combination of complicated citizenship laws and the unique story of your family history. While many service providers have encountered hundreds of cases, there’s always the possibility of a unique pairing they haven’t seen before.
For good service providers, this isn’t an issue because they already approach every case with the mindset that it’s not going to fit perfectly into any one box. They expect bumps and detours along the way. And since they are expecting it, they are better equipped to adapt to issues if and when they arise.
This also means that good service providers have no problem telling you when they don’t know something. They’ll also tell you whether they’ll be able to find an answer or if your case is not a good fit for them. If your prospective service provider makes up answers on the spot or makes large decisions in your case based on assumptions, this is a red flag.
Knows what is legal, required, and expected
We talked a lot in the last article about the lack of governing oversight in this industry, so we won’t spend much time on that here. It’s important that your service provider knows two things about Italian citizenship law and the related legal proceedings: the laws themselves and how the authority reviewing your specific application interprets those laws.
If you spent any time in the dual citizenship Facebook groups or subreddits, you’ve probably seen cases where people have their cases delayed or rejected by an authority even though the law appears to be on their side. This is because requirements are different from one consulate or comune to the next. Even though the law may seem clear on a matter, it’s very common for these authorities to enforce them in different ways. And while it may seem (or actually be) unjust or unfair, these authorities are the ones making the decisions. It’s best to go into those situations with a provider who has expertise applicable to your needs and how you plan to apply. Which brings us to the next thing to look for…
Focuses on what they do best
We’ve said it before: there are many reputable and competent Italian citizenship service providers out there. It’s also true that no single service provider is good at everything. In fact, a sign of a good service provider is that they know their strengths and focus on them.
For example, some service providers offer only document retrieval services. Within that, some narrow their focus even further on only retrieving certain types of documents or documents from specific countries or areas.
Some Italian citizenship assistance providers may only offer support for certain methods of applying. For example, we currently focus on apply-in-Italy jure sanguinis and 1948 cases. When it comes to consulate applications, we have the expertise to help people understand the differences between and make a decision on applying at a consulate or in Italy. We don’t have the nuanced information to accurately guide people through the specific details for what their consulate will or won’t require, so we don’t offer consulate-specific support. There are other providers who are much better equipped to support people who choose to apply that way.
Knows where (and where not) to apply
Within a service provider’s area of expertise, they should know exactly where and when to apply. Applying for Italian citizenship at a consulate outside of Italy is relatively clear (and limited). The consulate you apply through is determined based on your address. When you apply is based on when—or if—your consulate releases appointments and if you’re fortunate enough to get one.
Applying in Italy is also based on where you have legal residency. And since most people don’t already have residency in Italy, service providers can be strategic in choosing where to have them establish residency.
How is this strategic? A comune is a government office roughly equivalent to city hall. So you can imagine how busy and overwhelmed comuni are in the more densely populated and tourist areas of Italy. This almost always means longer processing times and more bureaucracy (if you can believe that).
On the end of the spectrum, very small comuni may not be familiar with the jure sanguinis process, leading to stalled applications or them not accepting the application in the first place. There’s a balancing act of comune size and capacity to ensure the provider isn’t overwhelming the staff. And similarly to consulates, each comune can have different requirements or interpretations of the law to account for.
Service providers or citizenship attorneys who place you in a large city—or worse, who let you choose your own comune—are not likely to be able to provide the eventual support you’ll need to see your citizenship through to completion.
Understands sequencing and critical timelines
This process is full of delicate sequences with precise timing that must be accounted for. One example is the order in which you retrieve and certify all your supporting documents. Another example for those applying in Italy involves perfectly sequencing the steps of establishing residency in Italy, submitting your application, and applying for subsequent visas, all while managing a specific timeline based on your tourist visa.
A good service provider will not only be clear about sequencing and timelines, they will be adamant about them. Some may even refuse to take on a case if the client doesn’t agree to follow the outlined steps. A service provider’s job is to get your Italian citizenship, and improper sequencing can derail the entire application process.
Communicates clearly
We added this after hearing from a client how important clear communication was to them when they were choosing a provider. We don’t have to tell you how much confusion and misinformation about this process exists or may not be applicable to your case. A service provider’s job is to cut through the noise and create clarity on what needs to be done for your specific case. A good service provider will know what is important and when it’s important. They will also set clear expectations about what is and isn’t possible, even if it’s not good news.
If a conversation with a service provider leaves you feeling more confused than before, it’s likely only going to get worse as you move forward.
Things that aren’t actually red flags
Now that we’ve talked about the major green and red flags, there are a couple things that many people think are red flags and actually aren’t. Let’s talk about them before we wrap up.
Doesn’t teach you every step of the process
The research-intensive nature of pursuing Italian citizenship can feel like you’re studying for a doctorate. You have to hunt for dates and names and documents, keeping them all straight, and finding connections. Sometimes it involves long-passed family members that nobody remembers, making it even more difficult. Then you have to take all that research and evaluate it against the legal process itself to determine what’s applicable and what’s not. You learn a LOT in the process and many people end up becoming very knowledgeable.
It makes sense then that many people bring that same mindset into their conversations with their service providers. The tension, however, is that you’re hiring a service provider to do a specific job. People don’t expect their CPA to teach them how to file taxes or their attorney to teach them how to file lawsuits. Similarly, your service provider isn’t there to teach you the nuances of Italian citizenship law or how to do the process yourself; they’re there to get you recognized as an Italian citizen.
Similar to CPAs and attorneys, there will be areas of the process that require some level of education and good service providers will do so willingly. The key is to understand that it’s not a red flag if your service provider doesn’t teach you everything they know.
Doesn’t disclose proprietary or process information
Many providers have worked for years to develop their systems and processes for effectively and efficiently providing their services. This is a huge benefit to you, allowing you to take advantage of their expertise and avoid the pitfalls they see others make all the time.
As such, it’s common for service providers to not disclose proprietary information or detailed process information. A document retrieval provider shouldn’t be expected to tell you which government agencies documents must be retrieved from, what forms are required, where to submit them, or how to expedite the process. You’re hiring them for this expertise, they’re not going to give it away. If you have these questions specifically because you doubt their competence, then there are probably bigger underlying issues anyway.
Additionally, many providers don’t disclose certain internal process information for various reasons. For example, we don’t disclose which comune a client will be placed in until we have reviewed all of their documents and they have signed a contract and paid a deposit. We do this to protect the privacy of other clients, to not overwhelm comuni staff, and to place clients in the comune that best fits their specific case.
These situations are not uncommon and your service provider should be able to provide a clear explanation as to why they disclose certain information.
Use the tools and your intuition
The goal of this series of articles is to equip you with the tools you need to choose the right provider for your case. Putting them all together in context will put you in a position to have a strong foundation of trust with your provider and set you up for success. That said, it’s also important to use your intuition. Some providers may not “feel” like the right fit even though they seem to check all the boxes, which could indicate potential frustrations down the road.
Up next? We’re discussing the authoritative documents for proving citizenship eligibility (and why other documents are insufficient).
