Citizenship by Descent: How to Claim a Passport Through Ancestry

Citizenship by descent — also called citizenship jure sanguinis (by right of blood) — is the most cost-effective route to a second passport. If you have a parent, grandparent, or in some cases great-grandparent who was a citizen of a qualifying country, you may be entitled to claim citizenship at a fraction of the cost of any CBI programme. The total cost is typically USD 2,000-15,000 in legal and administrative fees, compared to USD 100,000+ for the cheapest CBI option.

Countries Offering Citizenship by Descent

Italy — Unlimited Generational Depth

Italy's citizenship by descent provisions are among the most generous globally. Under Italian nationality law (Law No. 91/1992 and prior provisions), you may be eligible if:

• An ancestor was born in Italy (or in territories that were Italian at the time)
• The chain of descent from the Italian ancestor to you is unbroken by voluntary renunciation
• The Italian ancestor did not naturalise as a citizen of another country before the birth of the next person in the chain (or did so after 1948 for maternal line claims)

There is no generational limit — claims going back to great-great-grandparents and beyond are possible.

Process: Apply through an Italian consulate in your country of residence or through a municipality (comune) in Italy. Consular appointments can have waiting lists of 1-5 years, so many applicants establish temporary residency in Italy to process through a comune (which takes approximately 3-6 months).

Cost: EUR 300-500 in government fees, plus EUR 2,000-10,000 in legal and document retrieval costs.

Timeline: 6 months to 5+ years depending on the processing route.

Ireland — Grandparent Rule

Ireland grants citizenship by descent to:

• Children of Irish citizens: Automatic citizenship, regardless of birthplace
• Grandchildren of Irish-born citizens: Eligible by registering through the Foreign Births Register
• Great-grandchildren and beyond: May be eligible if the intermediate generation registered their citizenship before the birth of the next generation

Process: Apply to the Department of Foreign Affairs for entry in the Foreign Births Register. Once registered, you can apply for an Irish passport.

Cost: EUR 278 application fee, plus document retrieval costs.

Timeline: 12-24 months for Foreign Births Register processing (significant backlog).

Advantage: Irish citizenship grants EU citizenship, including full freedom of movement across the EU.

Poland — No Generational Limit

Poland grants citizenship by descent with no generational limit, provided:

• An ancestor held Polish citizenship
• The chain of descent is documented
• The ancestor did not voluntarily renounce Polish citizenship

Polish citizenship law follows the principle of jure sanguinis — citizenship passes automatically from parent to child regardless of birthplace.

Process: Apply through a Polish consulate or the provincial governor (voivode) in Poland.

Cost: PLN 219 (approximately EUR 50) government fee, plus document retrieval and translation costs.

Timeline: 3-12 months.

Advantage: EU citizenship with full freedom of movement. Poland also has no wealth tax and a relatively favourable tax regime for certain income types.

Hungary — Simplified Naturalisation

Hungary offers a simplified naturalisation process for persons of Hungarian descent:

• Ancestors who were Hungarian citizens (including those from historical Hungarian territories now in Romania, Slovakia, Serbia, Ukraine)
• Basic Hungarian language proficiency required (conversational level)
• No residency requirement

Process: Apply at a Hungarian consulate or in Hungary. A language interview is conducted.

Cost: Minimal government fees, plus language course costs (EUR 500-3,000).

Timeline: 3-12 months after language interview.

Advantage: EU citizenship. Hungary also offers a flat 15% personal income tax rate.

Germany — Post-War Restoration

German citizenship by descent is available through several routes:

• Standard descent: Children of German citizens are German citizens, regardless of birthplace (with some limitations for births abroad after 1999)
• Article 116 restoration: Descendants of persons persecuted by the Nazi regime (stripped of citizenship between 1933-1945) can claim German citizenship
• Former German territories: Persons of German ethnic origin from Eastern Europe may qualify under the Federal Expellee Law

Process: Apply through a German embassy or the Federal Office of Administration (BVA).

Timeline: 6-24 months.

Advantage: EU citizenship, one of the world's strongest passports (190+ visa-free destinations).

Portugal — Sephardic Jewish Descent

Portugal historically granted citizenship to descendants of Sephardic Jews expelled during the Inquisition. However, this route was significantly restricted in 2022:

• Applications are now assessed under stricter criteria
• Demonstration of "effective connection" to Portugal is required
• The programme has been subject to political controversy

Current status: Still technically available but much harder to qualify for than before 2022.

Spain — Sephardic Descent (Closed)

Spain offered a similar programme from 2015-2019. It is now closed to new applications.

United Kingdom — By Descent

UK citizenship passes by descent to:

• Children of British citizens born abroad (first generation only)
• Not available to grandchildren unless specific conditions are met (such as the parent registering the child or the parent having lived in the UK for 3+ years)

The UK's descent provisions are more restrictive than most European countries.

Greece — By Descent

Greek citizenship is available to persons of Greek descent:

• Children and grandchildren of Greek citizens
• Ethnic Greeks from diaspora communities (through special naturalisation)
• Documentation requirements can be challenging for older claims

Lithuania, Latvia, Romania, Croatia, Czech Republic

All offer citizenship by descent with varying generational limits and documentation requirements. These are particularly valuable for descendants of Eastern European emigrants who left in the 19th and 20th centuries.

The Documentation Challenge

The primary obstacle to citizenship by descent is documentation. Applicants typically need:

• Birth certificates for every person in the chain of descent (from ancestor to applicant)
• Marriage certificates showing name changes
• Death certificates (in some cases)
• Naturalisation records (to prove the ancestor did not renounce citizenship)
• Immigration records (ship manifests, visa stamps, census records)
• Civil registry documents from the ancestor's country of origin

Documents must typically be:

• Obtained in original form or certified copies
• Apostilled under the Hague Convention
• Translated by a certified translator into the target country's language
• Recent (some countries require certificates issued within 6 months)

Document retrieval from Italian, Polish, or Hungarian archives can take months and may require in-country research.

Cost Comparison: Descent vs CBI

Route	Cost	Timeline	Passport Strength
Italian descent	EUR 2,000-10,000	6 months-5 years	190+ countries (EU)
Irish descent	EUR 1,000-3,000	12-24 months	190+ countries (EU)
Polish descent	EUR 500-3,000	3-12 months	190+ countries (EU)
Hungarian descent	EUR 1,000-5,000	6-12 months	190+ countries (EU)
Dominica CBI	USD 120,000+	3-4 months	145+ countries
St Kitts CBI	USD 275,000+	3-6 months	156+ countries
Malta CBI	EUR 750,000+	12-36 months	190+ countries (EU)

Citizenship by descent delivers EU passport strength at a fraction of CBI cost — but only if the ancestral connection exists.

Key Takeaways

• Citizenship by descent is the most cost-effective route to a second passport, typically costing EUR 2,000-10,000 vs USD 100,000+ for CBI
• Italy and Poland offer unlimited generational depth, making them accessible to anyone with documented Italian or Polish ancestry
• Ireland's grandparent rule is straightforward but processing backlogs can exceed 2 years
• Hungary requires basic language proficiency but has no residency requirement and processes relatively quickly
• Document retrieval is the primary challenge — expect to invest months in obtaining birth, marriage, and naturalisation records
• EU citizenship by descent (Italy, Ireland, Poland, Hungary, Germany) delivers a passport equivalent to Malta's EUR 750,000+ CBI programme
• Every applicant pursuing CBI should first investigate whether citizenship by descent is available — it is almost always the better option if the ancestral connection exists