The Dream:

My company has offices in Milan, so my fantasy is that my boss will let me work out of that office for several months so I can test the waters and really get to know what Italy is about. This would be much easier if I were a citizen.

Still dreaming, it will work out so good that I'll find a way to stay and live happily ever after!!

The reality though is that being a dual citizen gets me access to work and own land in ANY EU country, which really expands my horizons. Additionally, I could work for a foreign company while still in the US via "remote access" or something.

It just opens up a lot more options for me both for work and personally.

It has also been a dream of my wifes to live in a foreign country for a few months. A 2 week vacation just isn't enough to get to know a place, you know?

Mike,

I am very interested in your experience at the consulate. I have many of the same issues in terms of spelling of last names being changed - or even complete first names being changed. Salvatore->Samuel and Carmello->Charles. Antonina->Antonia->Anna. This seems like a pretty normal thing - and am hoping that they (Italian consulate) see it all the time.

Lets us know what you find out. Good luck - we are all cheering for you!

Italian bureaucracy at its best! My wife (an Italian citizen by birth) still has trouble because some documents have "Maria Paola" as her middle names, whilst others have "Maria P." The lack of the remaining four letters has caused no end of trouble - Good luck Mike, and keep us posted - I'm next for Italian citizenship through marriage (if the "P." allows )

If you think I was joking. Think again. I deal with Italian bureaucracy on a daily basis. Italy is inundated with many conflicting and confusing rules, regulations and laws, with inconsistency in many areas.

Italian bureaucrats have invented obstacles for every occasion and purpose and this is why it is so crucially important that you follow a certain procedure, making sure that you cross every T and dot every I not only once, but a number of times. Just one mistake in the paperwork can cause endless frustration.

Different names or spellings may seem normal, but the final decisions are made at the Italian end and not in any consulate. If a bureaucrat in a public office somewhere in Italy is not satisfied, then I am afraid you will be in for some testing times.

__________________
CJ
Magical Marche &
Luchetti & Partners Studio Legale Tributario

Just a quick update:

We finally got to the Boston Consulate (through a terrible snow storm) just a few weeks ago.

While the Signore was very pleasant person, he said very little. Kinda' reminded me of Mr Rogers.

Anyway, the suggestion to bring copies of the paper work is a good one....he took our copies saving time during the meeting, and hopefully putting us on better terms.

He quickly reviewed the paper work, matching people and time lines and noted that the names and dates in places did not match.

He took our copies and said he would review them more in depth over the next several weeks and that we were to call him back in late January for our next steps.

So not too much came out of the meeting, other than the fact that the Consulate didn't flat out deny my claim, but other than that, not a very productive meeting.

Regarding the name and date "errors", he wasn't sure how Italy would react to the descripancies, so he said not to do anything until we hear back from him in January. He also told us to hold off on any apostali and any translation, just so we don't waste time/money on something that isn't needed.

He also strongly suggested that when we do get things translated, that we use a recommended translator from the US State Dept that the documents came from just to move things along a little easier. Hopefully those recommended people will know better how the documents should be translated per that state.

So, look for another update in late January!

Thanks to everyone on this subject. I am currently in the application process, my appointment at the Italian embassy in New York City is late May 2009...i found your comments helpful and would appreciate hearing more. i too will keep the Forum posted on my progress and experiences.

when i lived in ostia, i had to go to the u.s. embassy and was told by the man in charge there that italian bureaucracy was the worst of any country.
I remember going from place to place in ostia with my husband trying to get a work permit. it was crazy. they ask stupid questions. to me it was like they really don't have a lot to do and keep you running in circles so you don't notice.
so yes, i would say be patient, be polite, but be exact or you will waste a lot of time. i mean, a lot of time and money. And make sure you ask a lot of questions to make sure you're understanding what they're telling you!

I was very surprised to hear from the Italian Consulate at 3:30pm on a Friday...we are talking about Italy you know!

Anyway, he said everything was OK, even the dates. There are discrepancies but he will move forward as is.

I need to call the Houston Consulate for an "OK" on the weak paperwork I have from my practice marriage, and then we start getting apostalli (which I always spell wrong!) from the state departments of NY, Texas, Mass and Illinois.

Not huge progress today, but at least we didn't get sent back months, or kicked out entirely...it was possible we would have had to get the date's all fixed, which would be near impossible on records for dead people.

But it was nice he called and we can still move forward.

does the stuff you do in illinois have to deal with the consulate in Chicago? If so, i'm sorry ahead of time.

I started this last week on mine. I went and got all the birth and death certificates minus my fathers which is out of state. Took a couple hours but I got them and I didn't feel like sitting in rush hour traffic to get the apostille so I'll do that next week possibly. Then I do have to get Marriage and divorce certificates but they are all instate too just a hundred miles the opposite direction. The only part that will take a while I think is getting the stuff to prove my ancestors were never naturalized and getting the birth certificates from Italy.