Before I can be recognized as Italian, various Italian consulates in the United States must officially certify that neither I, nor my children (who are applying with me), nor my father (through whom I claim Italian-ness deriving from his father), ever renounced our right to Italian citizenship. Apparently they would somehow know if we had, but since none of us had any idea we theoretically qualified for this honor until we began the current application process, I am pretty certain that no such renunciation will turn up.
However, the Italian consulate in New York is reportedly sitting on everyone's paperwork, for some unknown reason, and so we much wait patiently until they get around to doing whatever it is they do, at which point our applications will proceed. Eventually all the requisite forms will get back to Montagano, the little town in Molise where we applied for recognition this summer, and will be officially transcribed into the town records. At that point we can return there and get our official Italian identification cards. We'd hoped that might happen as early as next month, but now it looks like it will be sometime in 2018. Pazienza!
Really, though, it's just as well. During the winter Montagano is often covered in several feet of snow, a bit daunting in a mountain town full of winding roads and steep staircases. I'd just as soon go in the spring, when the wildflowers are blooming and hopefully all the paperwork will be fully ripe.
In the meantime, citizenship is not a requirement for purchasing Italian property, so we can proceed with our real-estate fantasy even before the citizenship comes through. Non-citizens do pay higher real estate taxes, but apparently we can get a rebate on the tax payment once I am able to prove that I truly am una cittadina italiana.
1 comment:
Good info. Appreciate the update. Now, what are you eating and seeing? Where are you sleeping? How’s your Italian? Why are there no pictures? Love, A Voracious Reader
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