A new language test for Italian citizenship has recently been added in an amendment to the immigration and citizenship law D.L. n. 91 of 5th February 1992.
Last month amendment 14.7 of the Decreto Sicurezza was approved in the Camera, confirming the requirement that all those applying for Italian citizenship under Article 5 of the 1992 law (marriage grounds) and Article 9 (residence grounds) must pass an Italian language test to the minimum level of B1 (pre-intermediate).
Article 9 of D.L. n. 91/1992 has now been amended to include Article 9.1, which states:
‘The granting of Italian citizenship pursuant to Articles 5 and 9 is subject to possession by the interested party of an adequate knowledge of Italian, not less than level B1 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR)’.
This is expected to be shown by production of:
“un titolo di studio rilasciato da un istituto di istruzione pubblico o paritario riconosciuto dal Ministero dell’istruzione, dell’università e della ricerca e dal Ministero degli affari esteri e della cooperazione internazionale o dal Ministero dell’istruzione, dell’università e della ricerca, ovvero a produrre apposita certificazione rilasciata da un ente certificatore riconosciuto dal Ministero dell’istruzione, dell’università e della ricerca e dal Ministero degli affari esteri e della cooperazione internazionale o dal Ministero dell’istruzione, dell’università e della ricerca.”
The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (known in Italian as Quadro Comune Europeo di Rigerimento per le Lingue (QCER)) states that in order for an applicant to have a B1 level of knowledge, he/she should be able to do the following:
- Can understand the main points of clear standard input on familiar matters regularly encountered in work, school, leisure, etc.
- Can deal with most situations likely to arise while travelling in an area where the language is spoken.
- Can produce simple connected text on topics that are familiar or of personal interest.
- Can describe experiences and events, dreams, hopes and ambitions and briefly give reasons and explanations for opinions and plans.
The following Italian language certificates have been approved by the CEFR: CELI, CILS and PILDA.
The online application has not yet been amended, but there is already an indication on the Ministero dell’Interno portal that applicants from 1st December may be contacted to integrate their documentation.
