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Pratiq Heritage

Your Italian ancestor’s records, from the town hall to your door

Birth, marriage and death records from any town in Italy. We find the right office, request them in Italian with your authorization, follow up until they are issued and mail you the originals.

Woman at her kitchen table holding an Italian passport, with old family photos and documents
The first step to your Italian passport: your ancestor’s records.
From $249Originals by DHL Express included.
  • We find the right officeTown hall, merged towns, State Archive or parish: we work out who holds the record.
  • We don’t give upFollow-ups and calls in Italian, with no time limit, until the record is issued or the office answers in writing.
  • Originals to your doorCertified PDF by email as soon as it arrives, originals by DHL Express.

Order recordsSee prices

  • Secure payment by Stripe
  • Registered company, no. 16456616
  • Run by Italians, we write to Italy in Italian
  • Email update at every step

Choose your package

Single Record

$249

One record, when you know the town and the year.

  • One birth, marriage or death record, full copy (copia integrale)
  • Formal request in Italian to the right office, with your signed authorization
  • Follow-ups by certified email (PEC) and phone, with no time limit
  • Certified PDF by email as soon as it arrives
  • Original mailed to you by DHL Express

Best for: You know the town (comune) and roughly when the event happened.
Timing: Usually 3 to 8 weeks, depending on the town hall.

Order the Single Record
Most chosen

Ancestor Pack

$499

Up to 3 records of the same ancestor, with research included.

  • Up to 3 records of one ancestor: birth, marriage and death, full copies
  • Research in the digitized Italian archives (Portale Antenati) if the town or dates are uncertain
  • We work out the right office: town hall, merged towns, State Archive or parish
  • Follow-ups by certified email (PEC) and phone, with no time limit
  • Certified PDFs by email, originals by DHL Express
  • A plain-English summary of what each record says

Best for: You are preparing a citizenship application, a court case or your family history.
Timing: Usually 4 to 10 weeks, depending on the town hall.

Order the Ancestor Pack

Consulate-Ready Pack

$899

Everything in the Ancestor Pack, plus the extra Italian certificates consulates ask for.

  • Everything in the Ancestor Pack
  • Historical residence and citizenship certificates from the town registry, where your consulate requires them
  • Apostille on the Italian records, if you need them outside Italian consulates
  • Consistency check of names and dates across the Italian records
  • One contact person for the whole file

Best for: You have a consulate appointment or a lawyer, and want the Italian side done in one go.
Timing: Usually 6 to 12 weeks, depending on the offices involved.

Order the Consulate-Ready Pack

From your ancestor’s town to your Italian passport

An Italian passport, the right to live and work anywhere in the EU, the town your family left a century ago. For descendants who qualify, it all starts with the same thing: your ancestor’s Italian records. That is the part we take care of.

Elderly couple looking through an old family photo album
Your family’s storyThe names and faces your grandparents talked about.
Young man smiling outside an Italian town hall with a folder of documents
The town where it beganEvery record still sits in the comune your ancestor left.
Mother and daughter reading an old Italian civil record together
The papers that prove itOfficial copies, in your hands, to pass on or to file.

Start with your ancestor’s records

Illustrative photos. Eligibility for citizenship depends on your line and dates: ask your consulate or a lawyer. We retrieve the records.

How it works

  1. Tell us about your ancestor. Name, town and approximate dates. Not sure about the town? The Ancestor Pack includes the research.
  2. Sign the authorization online. It takes a minute with your finger or mouse: no printer, no notary.
  3. We request the records in Italian. A formal request by certified email (PEC) to the office that holds them, with your authorization.
  4. We follow up until they arrive. Reminders and phone calls in Italian, with no time limit. You get an email at every step.
  5. You receive them. Certified PDF by email, then the originals by DHL Express, with a plain-English summary.

Why not write to Italy yourself?

You can, and some people do. Here is what we take off your hands:

  • Finding the right office: villages are recorded by the town they belong to, towns merge, and older records sit in State Archives or parishes.
  • Writing a formal request in Italian, with the authorization and the reason that make the office release a full copy.
  • Sending it by certified email (PEC), the channel Italian offices answer.
  • Following up by email and phone in Italian, for as long as it takes.
  • Checking that the record is the version you need and that names and dates match.
  • Mailing the originals to you and explaining in English what they say.

Our persistence guarantee

We keep working on your request, with follow-ups, calls and new requests to the right office, with no time limit and no extra fees, until the record is issued or the office confirms in writing that it cannot be found.

Who uses it

  • Descendants preparing an Italian citizenship file for a consulate or a court.
  • Lawyers and consultants who need the Italian records for their clients.
  • Families tracing their history or settling an inheritance in Italy.

We retrieve documents; we do not give legal advice. What consulates usually ask for.

Records by town

We request records from all of Italy’s towns. Find your ancestor’s town to see where its records are kept.

Who we are

Pratiq is an online service run by Italians that deals with Italian offices on people’s behalf: registered letters, cancellations, land-registry searches and now family records. We work from San Marino, a short drive from the Italian offices we write to, and we answer every email ourselves.

Read our story · support@pratiqonline.com

Frequently asked questions

How long does it take?

It depends on the town hall: usually 3 to 8 weeks for a single record and 4 to 10 weeks for the Ancestor Pack. Some offices take longer; we keep following up and tell you what is happening.

What do I receive?

A certified PDF of each record by email as soon as it arrives, then the originals by DHL Express, with a plain-English summary of what each record says.

Which version of the record do you request?

The full copy (copia integrale), the “extended” version consulates usually ask for. If your consulate or lawyer needs a different version, tell us in the order.

What if the record can’t be found?

We keep working on your request, with follow-ups, calls and new requests to the right office, with no time limit and no extra fees, until the record is issued or the office confirms in writing that it cannot be found. If an office confirms that no record exists, we send you its written answer, which is official evidence in its own right. Our fee covers the research and requests, so it is not refunded.

Can you tell me whether I qualify for Italian citizenship?

No. We are not a law firm and we do not give legal advice. Since the 2025 reform, eligibility depends on your line and dates: ask an Italian citizenship lawyer or your consulate, and we will get the Italian records they need.

Do I need to sign anything?

Yes, a short authorization that you sign online while ordering. Some offices also want a copy of your ID: if so, we email you to ask for it.

How do I pay?

By card, Apple Pay or Google Pay through Stripe, in US dollars. Shipping of the originals by DHL Express is included.

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