Italy's highest administrative court, the Council of State, has ruled that the formation of a family in Italy cannot guarantee that immigrants will be allowed to stay. The case related to a migrant convicted of serious crimes.
"The formation of a family on Italian territory cannot be a shield or absolute guarantee of immunity from the risk of having a residence permit revoked or its renewal denied," the court declared.
The Council of State was ruling on the case of a migrant convicted of drug-related crimes whose residency had been denied.
The regional administrative tribunal in Genoa ruled in favor of the immigrant in the first instance, saying that "the presence of duly demonstrated family ties had to be taken into account.
The higher court has now overturned that ruling, saying that there "is a level of seriousness beyond which the criminal behavior is intolerable for the host state, such as to warrant refusing residency."
The immigrant implicated in the case has two convictions, the most recent concerning transportation of 3kg of hashish.