last step in dual citizenship and now stuck

Over 25 million Italians have emigrated between 1861 and 1960 with a migration boom between 1871 and 1915 when over 13,5 million emigrants left the country for European and overseas destinations.
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tdigeronimo
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last step in dual citizenship and now stuck

Post by tdigeronimo »

I have ALL necessary documents for dual citizenship in long, certified form with apostille seals from both US and Italy and with translations. Now what? I call and email my consulate and get no response. No one answers the phone, or it is busy, or I leave a message that goes unanswered. I send emails. Nothing. I just want to know what is the next step. Reading the website, it looks like I make an appointment to present the papers. True? And it can take months to get that appointment? True? Can the process be handled in Italy? My son is being recruited to play for the Italian Baseball League and they have been helpful in getting the necessary documents. Maybe they could handle the citizenship paperwork on their end since it's going to eventually go to Italy anyway?

Does anyone know what the steps are at this point?

Thank you
Theresa
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matta
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Re: last step in dual citizenship and now stuck

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tdigeronimo wrote:I have ALL necessary documents for dual citizenship in long, certified form with apostille seals from both US and Italy and with translations. Now what? I call and email my consulate and get no response. No one answers the phone, or it is busy, or I leave a message that goes unanswered. I send emails. Nothing. I just want to know what is the next step. Reading the website, it looks like I make an appointment to present the papers. True? And it can take months to get that appointment? True? Can the process be handled in Italy? My son is being recruited to play for the Italian Baseball League and they have been helpful in getting the necessary documents. Maybe they could handle the citizenship paperwork on their end since it's going to eventually go to Italy anyway?

Does anyone know what the steps are at this point?

Thank you
Theresa
Yes, you have to meet with your consulate. In the US, it's not atypical for appointments to take a year or more. It's also not unusual for some consulates to "shut down" the new application process to allow them to clear out a backlog.

Which consulate are you trying to contact?
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Re: last step in dual citizenship and now stuck

Post by PeterTimber »

Why not go to www.icapbridging2worlds.com who normally assist people obtaning dual citizenship and ask them (888-604-1970) why you canot get thru and how much would they charge you to intercede in your behalf in obtaining an appointment....Its not a cost your making, it is an investment!! Besides they may just advise you what to do and charge you nothing. =Peter=
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matta
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Re: last step in dual citizenship and now stuck

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Why would you use a service to make an appointment? Those services will not get you an earlier appointment, and cannot make an appointment - all they can do is call the consulate using the same number we all use.

You call the consulate and ask them to schedule an appointment. If the consulate doesn't answer the citizenship line, you call the main line. If they don't answer the main line, you call the embassy.
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Re: last step in dual citizenship and now stuck

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ditto... find the number for your consulate and call. no answer, keep calling. I had a hard time getting through to the Miami consulate, but after some persistence I was able to make my appointment just fine @ $2.49 per minute. About $13.00 in all and I think Miami is the only consulate that is charging for appointments at this time.
Can the process be handled in Italy? My son is being recruited to play for the Italian Baseball League and they have been helpful in getting the necessary documents. Maybe they could handle the citizenship paperwork on their end since it's going to eventually go to Italy anyway?
congratulations to your son on being recruited to play ball over there. you will have to apply for your citizenship here in the US. Don't be discouraged as it seems you have done all of your homework. Keep trying, you'll get through. What consulate is it you are trying to apply through ? Maybe others can chime in as to suggestions regarding contacting them ?
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Re: last step in dual citizenship and now stuck

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She stated she cannot get through to the consulate..so why would embassy be any better? You need 3rd party who may readily know how to solve problem NOW! =Peter=
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matta
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Re: last step in dual citizenship and now stuck

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PeterTimber wrote:She stated she cannot get through to the consulate..so why would embassy be any better? You need 3rd party who may readily know how to solve problem NOW! =Peter=
How is a service going to solve the problem? Do they have a cell phone number of the Consulate General?

The service you listed has people in two countries: the US and Italy. She's obviously not in Italy, and if she's in the US, we can probably help faster. That said, unless she's in Somalia, there's are Italian officials in her country that must be available to Italian citizens. What would an Italian do if his passport was stolen while visiting that country? What would an Italian with an emergency do?

If the consulate's general information line doesn't answer, then the embassy will. They may not be very helpful, but they might know some information or have a different number for the consulate. But I bet she's calling the citizenship line at the consulate. That frequently goes unanswered at many consulates.

That service that you're pushing won't help. They'll help tracking documents, guiding you through the process, translating papers, etc. but when it gets to the appointment phase, other than give you the consulate's phone number and some information about how backed up that consulate is (both of which we can do here for free), you're on your own.
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Re: last step in dual citizenship and now stuck

Post by jcat »

What is the Consulate ?
Also what hours of the day are you calling? Most consulates usually keep hours between 9:00AM - 12:00 if it is busy then the number you are trying is in service. It can be tough at times, along with all of the other steps involved, but in the end you will feel satisfaction in having done it on your own!
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Re: last step in dual citizenship and now stuck

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#rd party commercial people may have advanced knowledge in contacting consulate people...they are in business . =Peter=
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Re: last step in dual citizenship and now stuck

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maybe once tdigeronimo states the consulate in which she must apply to, there could be some doors open to him regarding appointment phone numbers.Miami has Abtram who makes their appointments and watch out, as they billed me three times for one call. They will not be able to apply through Italy if they reside in the USA.
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Re: last step in dual citizenship and now stuck

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In the words of Galileo..........."eppur' si muove!" =Peter=
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tdigeronimo
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Re: last step in dual citizenship and now stuck

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Thank you -- all of you who have offered advice. I am in NJ USA and working with the consulate in Newark. I am a teacher and can call only after 3 o'clock. I call and call and call every day over and over and the line is always busy. I am now completing the application that is offered online and is in Italiano. It asks for only a few of the documents to be sent by mail (copy of US driver's license, copy of birth certificate of grandparent proving Italian citizenship and certified copy of my husband's birth certificate. This is a problem because I've just sent the certified copy to the Dept. of Revenue for the apostille seal). I'm guessing that maybe after receiving these few documents THEN they will set up an appointment to see the rest by contacting me? I now see this process won't be completed by spring training in March, so I've sent word to the Godo baseball club asking their advice. But I will keep trying!
Thank you thank you for your kindness. It is refreshing after all the walls I've hit along the way on this quest.
Theresa
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Re: last step in dual citizenship and now stuck

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good to see your making some progress Theresa and good luck !
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matta
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Re: last step in dual citizenship and now stuck

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tdigeronimo wrote:Thank you -- all of you who have offered advice. I am in NJ USA and working with the consulate in Newark. I am a teacher and can call only after 3 o'clock. I call and call and call every day over and over and the line is always busy.
Ah. That's likely your problem. The citizenship offices often close early.

Can you not call during your lunch hour? It should just take a few minutes to schedule an appointment. Or have your son call.
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tdigeronimo
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Re: last step in dual citizenship and now stuck

Post by tdigeronimo »

Yes, we have both tried this and end up hungry and with no success. But now the baseball league manager is promising to move things along. I will let you know how this turns out!
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