A/HRC/4/19/Add.4 page 14 27. Asylum is currently regulated by the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, article 10.3 of the Constitution, the Dublin Convention, article 1 of the Martelli Law, the Bossi-Fini Law, as well as Legislative Decree 140/2005.21 The Italian authorities acknowledged that there is still no Organic Law on the right to asylum as referred to in the Constitution. 28. The Bossi-Fini Law, through its implementing decree, has decentralized the refugee status determination procedure by establishing seven Local Asylum Commissions (LAC) throughout the territory as first instance administrative bodies and a National Asylum Commission (NAC) as the coordination body. LACs are responsible for examining applications, interviewing the asylum-seeker and granting asylum or humanitarian protection in accordance with the law. NAC may revoke or terminate the status granted. Upon refusal of asylum status the applicant is entitled to appeal the decision before the civil courts, though the appeal does not suspend the expulsion order or its execution. Asylum-seekers are held in “identification centres” while the first instance decision on their refugee status is being adopted, which may take 20 or 35 days in accordance with the urgent and ordinary procedures provided in Bossi-Fini Law.22 Asylum-seekers may also be held in reception centres in those municipalities that have joined the Asylum-Seekers Protection System. F. Citizenship 29. The current citizenship law adopted in 1992 adheres to the principle of jus sanguinis by which the transmission of citizenship takes place by descent from Italian citizens, while the principle of jus soli (the acquisition of citizenship by birth on a given territory) is confined to particular cases.23 30. A new draft Law on Citizenship is being examined by Parliament. The draft law introduces three major changes. First, regarding the acquisition of citizenship by minors, the law introduces the principle of jus soli, in addition to the principle of jus sanguinis as foreseen in the 1992 law in force. Children born in Italy to foreign parents will no longer need to reside continuously in Italy from birth to the age of 18 years to obtain Italian citizenship if one of their parents was either born in Italy or legally resident for at least five years at the time of birth. In both cases, parents of minors are required to have a minimum annual income.24 Regarding 21 Legislative Decree 140/2005 was adopted in implementation of European Directive No. 2003/9/CE establishing minimum standards for the reception of asylum-seekers. 22 Two different procedures are foreseen by the Bossi-Fini Law. A simplified procedure applies to asylum-seekers who were arrested due to illegal entry or attempted illegal entry, or who are irregularly staying on the Italian territory, or who applied for asylum after receiving an expulsion or rejection order; an ordinary procedure applies to those asylum-seekers who do not qualify for the simplified procedure. 23 24 See Law No. 91 of 5 February 1992. The said income conditions refer to the annual income required in order to obtain a long-term EU residence permit, the latter being the “minimum pension” granted by the State, which at the end of August 2006, stood at 4,962.36 euros (equivalent to 381.72 euros x 13 months).