Something strange is happening in Italy.

At a time when the country is aging rapidly, losing population, and struggling to fill jobs, it’s making it harder, not easier, for millions of people with Italian ancestry to claim citizenship.

For decades, Italy welcomed descendants of its vast diaspora through jure sanguinis—citizenship by blood. If you could prove your lineage, you could reconnect with your roots and, for many, build a future in the land of your ancestors.

But now? That door is quietly, stubbornly closing.

And it’s happening just as Italy faces one of the most severe demographic crises in the world.