Italy - Government
15 regions (regioni, singular - regione) and 5 autonomous regions (regioni autonome, singular - regione autonoma)
regions: Abruzzo, Basilicata, Calabria, Campania, Emilia-Romagna, Lazio (Latium), Liguria, Lombardia, Marche, Molise, Piemonte (Piedmont), Puglia (Apulia), Toscana (Tuscany), Umbria, Veneto
autonomous regions: Friuli Venezia Giulia, Sardegna (Sardinia), Sicilia (Sicily), Trentino-Alto Adige (Trentino-South Tyrol) or Trentino-Suedtirol (German), Valle d'Aosta (Aosta Valley) or Vallée d'Aoste (French)
National symbols
Five-pointed white star (Stella d'Italia).
The flag
The National Anthem
| Title | "Il Canto degli Italiani" (The Song of the Italians) |
|---|---|
| Lyric/music | Goffredo MAMELI/Michele NOVARO |
More about the government of Italy
| Date of Independence | 17 March 1861 |
|---|---|
| National holiday | Republic Day, 2 June (1946) |
| Legal system | civil law system; Constitutional Court reviews legislation under certain conditions |
| International law organization participation | accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction |
| Constitution | |
| History | Previous 1848 (originally for the Kingdom of Sardinia and adopted by the Kingdom of Italy in 1861); latest enacted 22 December 1947, adopted 27 December 1947, entered into force 1 January 1948 |
| Amendment process | Proposed by both houses of Parliament; passage requires two successive debates and approval by absolute majority of each house on the second vote; a referendum is only required when requested by one fifth of the members of either house, by voter petition, or by 5 Regional Councils (elected legislative assemblies of the 15 first-level administrative regions and 5 autonomous regions of Italy); referendum not required if an amendment has been approved by a two-thirds majority in each house in the second vote |
| Citizenship | |
| Citizenship by birth | no |
| Citizenship by descent only | at least one parent must be a citizen of Italy |
| Dual citizenship recognized | yes |
| Residency requirement for naturalization | 4 years for EU nationals, 5 years for refugees and specified exceptions, 10 years for all others |
| Executive Branch | |
| Chief of state | President Sergio MATTARELLA (since 3 February 2015) |
| Head of government | Prime Minister Giorgia MELONI (since 22 October 2022); the prime minister's official title is President of the Council of Ministers |
| Cabinet | Council of Ministers proposed by the prime minister, who is known officially as the President of the Council of Ministers and locally as the premier; nominated by the president |
| Elections/appointments | president indirectly elected by an electoral college consisting of both houses of Parliament and 58 regional representatives for a 7-year term (no term limits); prime minister appointed by the president, confirmed by parliament |
| Most recent election date | 24-29 January 2022 (eight rounds) |
| Election results | 2022: Sergio MATTARELLA (independent) reelected president; electoral college vote count in eighth round - 759 out of 1,009 (505 vote threshold) 2015: Sergio MATTARELLA (independent) elected president; electoral college vote count in fourth round - 665 out of 995 (505 vote threshold)
|
| Expected date of next election | 2029 |
| Legislative branch | |
| Legislature name | Parliament (Il Parlamento) |
| Legislative structure | Bicameral |
| Judicial branch | |
| Highest court(s) | Supreme Court of Cassation or Corte Suprema di Cassazione (consists of the first president, deputy president, 54 justices presiding over 6 civil and 7 criminal divisions, and 288 judges; an additional 30 judges of lower courts serve as supporting judges; cases normally heard by 5-judge panels; more complex cases heard by 9-judge panels); Constitutional Court or Corte Costituzionale (consists of the court president and 14 judges) |
| Judge selection and term of office | Supreme Court judges appointed by the High Council of the Judiciary, headed by the president of the republic; judges may serve for life; Constitutional Court judges - 5 appointed by the president, 5 elected by Parliament, 5 elected by select higher courts; judges serve up to 9 years |
| Subordinate courts | Various lower civil and criminal courts (primary and secondary tribunals and courts of appeal) |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | |
| Chief of mission | Ambassador (vacant); Chargé d’Affaires Alessandro GONZALES (since June 2025) |
| Chancery | 3000 Whitehaven Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 |
| Telephone | [1] (202) 612-4400 |
| FAX | [1] (202) 518-2154 |
| Email address and website | washington.ambasciata@esteri.it https://ambwashingtondc.esteri.it/ambasciata_washington/en/ |
| Consulate(s) general | Boston, Chicago, Houston, Miami, New York, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, San Francisco |
| Consulate(s) | Detroit |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | |
| Chief of mission | Ambassador Tilman J. FERTITTA (since 6 May 2025); note - also accredited to San Marino |
| Embassy | Via Vittorio Veneto 121, 00187 Roma |
| Mailing address | 9500 Rome Place, Washington DC 20521-9500 |
| Telephone | [39] 06-46741 |
| FAX | [39] 06-4674-2244 |
| Email address and website | uscitizenrome@state.gov https://it.usembassy.gov/ |
| Consulate(s) general | Florence, Milan, Naples |
| National heritage | |
| Total World Heritage Sites | 60 (54 cultural, 6 natural) |
| Selected World Heritage Site locales | Historic Center of Rome (c); Archaeological Areas of Pompeii, Herculaneum, and Torre Annunziata (c); Venice and its Lagoon (c); Historic Center of Florence (c); Piazza del Duomo, Pisa (c); Historic Centre of Naples (c); Portovenere, Cinque Terre, and the Islands (Palmaria, Tino and Tinetto)(c); Mount Etna (n); Cultural landscape of the Benedictine settlements in medieval Italy (c); Church and Dominican Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie with “The Last Supper” by Leonardo da Vinci (c); City of Vicenza and the Palladian Villas of the Veneto (c); Crespi d'Adda (c); Early Christian Monuments of Ravenna (c); Historic Centre of the City of Pienza (c); Cathedral, Torre Civica and Piazza Grande, Modena (c); Costiera Amalfitana (c); Villa Romana del Casale (c); Archaeological Area and the Patriarchal Basilica of Aquileia (c); Cilento and Vallo di Diano National Park with the Archeological Sites of Paestum and Velia, and the Certosa di Padula (c); Historic Centre of Urbino (c); Villa Adriana (Tivoli) (c); Assisi, the Basilica of San Francesco and Other Franciscan Sites (c); City of Verona (c); Isole Eolie (Aeolian Islands) (n); Etruscan Necropolises of Cerveteri and Tarquinia (c); Val d'Orcia (c); Mantua and Sabbioneta (c); The Dolomites (n); Prehistoric Pile Dwellings around the Alps (c); Medici Villas and Gardens in Tuscany (c); Venetian Works of Defence between the 16th and 17th Centuries: Stato da Terra – Western Stato da Mar (c); Padua’s fourteenth-century fresco cycles (c); The Porticoes of Bologna (c); Evaporitic Karst and Caves of Northern Apennines (n); Via Appia: Regina Viarum (c) |
Key Political parties and their leaders in Italy
International organization participation
All Important Facts about Italy
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