The international protection: the esito (outcome) and the ricorso (appeal)

The ricorso (appeal) is a practice to request the modification of a civil court decision.

If you applied for international protection and you have received a negative outcome, or have obtained a type of protection other than refugee status, you can appeal to have your application reviewed.

How to file a ricorso

You can file a ricorso within 15 or 30 days (depending on your case) from the notification of the decision of the Commissione Territoriale. Instead, you will have 60 days if you don’t live in Italy. To appeal, you need the help of a lawyer. If you do not have sufficient financial resources to pay a lawyer, you have the right to be assisted for free by an “avvocato d’ufficio“.

After filing the ricorso you can get a “permesso di soggiorno per attesa esito ricorso” that allows you to stay in Italy until the judge’s decision. To get this permesso you must apply to the Questura with the help of your lawyer. This permesso is valid for 6 months and can be renewed if you have not received a response within 6 months.

There is not always a hearing for the ricorso. The hearing is when you have to show up in front of the judge with your lawyer and possibly answer some questions from the judge. The judges will decide whether or not to schedule a hearing based on the information and documents in their possession. The court must decide on your case within 4 months of submitting your ricorso. However, it is possible that the court takes longer than 4 months.

If your ricorso has been rejected, or if you have had a negative response, you can file a new ricorso to the Corte Suprema di Cassazione.

However, if new elements emerge for consideration (for example: if you have additional documents proving your personal history or if the situation in your country has changed) and you have given up on your previous application, you can submit a new application for international protection. It is important that, in case you have new relevant elements, you submit a new request for international protection as soon as possible.

The ricorso to the Supreme Court of Cassation

If the court has rejected your ricorso, you can appeal to the Corte Suprema di Cassazione.

The Corte di Cassazione is the highest court in Italy. There are no others above this court. Therefore the decision of the Corte di Cassazione is final at the national level.

The ricorso to the Corte di Cassazione can only be filed with the help of a lawyer specialised for this type of court. Therefore, the lawyer you will have to contact must be an avvocato cassazionista.

The ricorso to the Corte di Cassazione must be made within 30 days from the communication of the court decision on the first ricorso.

The Corte di Cassazione must decide on your ricorso within 6 months. The time before receiving an outcome may be longer. Also in this case you have the right to remain in Italy until the judge’s decision.

If the decision of the Corte di Cassazione is negative, you will receive an ordine di espulsione (expulsion order). An ordine di espulsione means you have to leave the country.