Question: I’m a Nigerian living in Rome with a valid Permit of Stay for subordinate work. I regularised my status in the country in 2007 through the Quota Agreement (Decreto flussi). My child, who is ten years old, has been living with me for one year now but he doesn’t have the Permit of Stay. How can I regularise his status?
Answer: According to Article 19 of Law 286/98, a minor child (under the age of 18) cannot be expelled from Italy unless under exceptional circumstances. The minor child has a right to the Permit of Stay for minor age (permesso di soggiorno per minore età).
In case the minor child lives with a parent who is in the country legally, he/she is entitled to the Permit of Stay for family reasons if the parent meets the requirements for family reunification.
If the minor child is under the age of 14, the parent must apply for his inclusion in the parent’s Permit of Stay. This is done using the application kit available at the authorised post offices. After filling in the application kit, the parent and the child must go to the post office together to hand it over to the post office officer together with all the other required documents.
But if the child is older than 14 years of age, he must go together with the parent to the Immigrations Office at the Provincial Police Headquarters (Questura) to apply for the Permit of Stay for family reasons.
By Mascia Salvatore
Send us your legal questions
Please send us your legal questions on any immigration-related topic. Address all your questions to
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
