Dear GirlLegal: I have a right to Italian citizenship by marriage, but in order to get it I have to provide my criminal record from everywhere I’ve lived. In my case it will be a statement of some sort to the effect that I have no criminal record, but I’ll need it from several states and a few foreign countries. Do you have any idea where I would go or who I would ask for that? The states are Maine, Maryland, Colorado and California.

Dear Apricotia: One of the ways you can obtain Italian citizenship is by way of marriage, and you can still keep your American citizenship if you choose. But, you may need to provide your spouse’s documents such as birth certificate, etc. While it is not necessary,  your spouse’s Italian birth certificates should be with the apostille to guarantee there are no questions as to the validity of the documents. You should contact the Italian Consulate in your state of residence to determine whether you an apostille or even a translation for your American documents is needed. I hope the following information helps you.

In order to obtain a statement of your criminal history (or in your case, lack thereof), you may need to obtain a State Police Clearance letter from each state you resided in. It is best to have this letter signed by an official and not just an administrative clerk. You may even need an FBI Clearance from the United States; and this would include a letter and fingerprint card. It may be a good idea to contact the Italian Consulate in your state of residence to determine if you need one of these, or both.

First, you should determine the state police entity in your state. Some states have a Department of Justice, others have a State Police Department, and others have a Department of Public Safety, or State Sheriff’s department. Contact the state entity to obtain further instructions to request your criminal clearance letter. When speaking to them you should be clear that you may need a notarized criminal clearance letter from the State (not from a City or County). Most of the time, they will know exactly what you need. Most states do fingerprint checks, but not all. Fingerprint clearances are better if you have the option.

You should call around to your local police stations and find out which location closest to you does fingerprinting. Some larger cities have private companies that also offer fingerprinting services. Make sure that the correct cards are used, and find out which days and during what hours they will fingerprint. It is generally a good idea to get two (2) sets of fingerprints in case one gets smudged or unreadable.

Second, for FBI Clearance you should use the FD258 fingerprint card which you can download here: http://www.fbi.gov/hq/cjisd/pdf/fpcardb.pdf (the FBI will accept it on regular copy paper. Make sure that your name, date of birth, and place of birth are printed on the top of the card. After being fingerprinted, take the card home and prepare a written request to the FBI for a copy of your criminal record. More detailed instructions for obtaining FBI Clearance can be found if you click on this link: http://www.fbi.gov/hq/cjisd/fprequest.htm. These instructions include a sample cover letter to mail with the fingerprint cards when requesting your clearance.

Again, you should confirm this information with Italian Consulate in your state of residence.

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