Antonio Scarati in early January 2022, went well and truely above and beyond with his genuine level of care, and professional customer service which ALL who work in Italian bureaucracy globally should aspire to emulate. I phoned him on the afternoon the day before before Australia Day in 2022, seeking some general guidance in relation to the questions I had around the recognition of fathers Italian Citizenship based on a set of documents I had. He advised based on what I explained he was of the view my fathers Italian citizenship would be recognised. Ohh I might also add I was phoning from Queensland not Victoria. The rule is all matters relating to Italian citizenship need to be directed though the Italian consulate responsible for the state in which person enquiring reside. I was happy with his advice and the customer service he provided. To my total amazement I received an unexpected call from Antonio the day after Australia Day, and he offered to personally review the documents I had in my possession if I wanted to email him a copies for his review and post review he would provide me his written formal opinion on whether my father would be considered as an Italian Citizen. What an absolutely exceptional level of professionalism and customer service going well beyond what was required. Antonio Scarati is an absolute credit to the Italian Consulate in Melbourne and deservesu recognition accordingly by senior management at the Consulate and Embassy. Truely a standard others who work on the Italian bureaucracy should aspire to and follow. Regards Claudio Raiola

So, after months of trying, someone finally answered. I must say thank you Antonio. You have made me embarrassed to even call myself of the same race as you. I called to ask for information he refused to give me any information, rather just redirect me to do my own research, which I have. Hoping to get some clarity instead of waiting two years to receive any sort of information, I thought I would call as any normal person would. Refusal to help a fellow Italian, and with someone in dire circumstances in the time that he took to hold his nose up at me he could’ve just given me some basic information. My mother is dying. She has Alzheimer’s and I care for her , I just wanted to know whether Her passport is usable even though is it has expired or is an Australian passport valid? What do I need? He just says God be with me. I wouldn’t need God to be with me if you could just help me but you refusal of it, just shows how inhumane you are. you are a disgusting organisation corrupt pigs.

How wonderful that you are open to the public 18 hours per week, when normal businesses are open to the public 40+ hours per week, a slight difference? don't you think Also you mention that the phone lines are open 1:30-2:30pm Tuesday to Thursday - wow!! a whole hour, seriously? I think you have brought the Italian work culture to Australia and it just does not fit. My parents are elderly and do not use the internet or website, so how is that helpful? I am sure you do work, but it is very frustrating to have such restrictive times dictated by you to fit in with. Other people work as well and cannot always accommodate your time frames. So hard to get hold of in business hours, particularly when they are only open part time. Why do they not work full days, like everyone else? Surely there are enough Italians in Australia to warrant them being open??? Weird.

We are extremely impressed!! My family has received excellent service from Antonio Scarati, Fredericka and Denise. They helped us to combine 3 adult appointments so we could make the trip to Melbourne together. Organising Italian citizenship for 3 people is a complex and lengthy process - obtaining all of the documentation required. So getting it right is vital! Antonio and Denise have gone out of their way to assist us with our numerous enquires so we can be confident our applications are accurate before we attend for our second appointments. We live more than 4 hours from Melbourne and Antonio has kindly organised a second group appointment for all 3 - again on the same day! We are very happy. We really appreciate the personalised service we’ve received. It’s been fantastic! Thank You so much Antonio Scarati, Fredericka and Denise!

I just renewed my passport, 10/10!!! Firstly, arrived I’ve been received nicely by the security assistant, and Carabiniere Antonio was professional and very kind, he’s true gentleman, in his distinct military behaviour is always calm and respectful to show me what to do once I was inside the waiting room. Then once at the desk I had the first approach with lady who help me a lot to fill the forms and look after my application, next I had my finger print done on an other desk, fast and quick, and in less then half an hour I’ve been called, PASSOPORT READY! CANNOT SAY THANKS ENOUGH TO THE SECURITY SERVICE AND THE DESK ASSISTANCE FOR THIS KIND AND PROFESSIONAL EXPERINCE! For a bit I felt the warm and excellent welcome that Italians are great for! Thanks again to everyone and office behind for the top service! Francesco

I recently had the pleasure of dealing with the Italian consulate, and I must say that the experience was excellent. The process for obtaining Italian citizenship was surprisingly easy and straightforward. The staff, including Antonio, were incredibly helpful and guided me through the necessary steps with patience and professionalism. What impressed me the most was the efficiency and security in handling citizenship and passport applications. The consulate staff ensured that my application was processed quickly and accurately. Thanks to their assistance, I received my Italian passport today, and I couldn't be happier with the service I received from the Italian consulate. A big thanks to Antonio and the entire team for their outstanding support!"

Finally after years of laughable customer service, the Consulate General of Italy in Melbourne has provided an outstanding service. The functionary we interacted with, Mr Antonio Mucci, was extremely professional, knowledgeable and provided detailed and prompt responses. The Consulate should be very proud of the professionalism Mr Mucci demonstrates to Italians and foreigners alike. The only suggestion I could make (not related to Mr Mucci) is to improve the admission process. There should be a ticketing process or something similar to regulate the queue of people waiting to get in the office. Many of them had the appointment at the same time so they had no idea how the line worked. A massive thanks to Mr Mucci for assisting us with our enquiry.

I tried to book an appointment a few months ago online and they were fully booked. So I visited the consulate and I was told to email them. I after I did, I was told to email back at the start of august and they will be able to squeeze me in for an appointment for a long stay study visa. I have emailed them many times since and visited the consulate twice, and have been sent away and told to continue to email them until they respond. My flight is in 2 weeks. Still haven’t heard. What surprises me is that it seems they have time to respond to all their fabricated reviews, however, are unable to respond to my emails. Please don’t bother responding to this review, rather, please respond to one of my emails re booking an urgent appointment.

On 14/2/22 I attended the consulate office in St Kilda Rd Melbourne with my 99 year old mother to arrange for authentication of signatures on various documentation and my mother’s passport photo and details, which are required in Italy to expedite actions required to be carried out by Banco Posta. The person attending to our requirements was Antonio Mucci from the legal department. His attitude and professionalism towards both of us was impeccable. He was very attentive to our requirements and he provided good advice on future requirements which I will need to action soon. A great experience for me which has engendered much confidence in me when future assistance is required. Many thanks to Antonio.

The Consulate General of Italy was horribly unresponsive. Their call line didn’t work, their website was extremely slow and I received a delayed and unhelpful response to my emails. After struggling to receive support I went there in person to try and book an appointment, but I was rudely told that they were unable to help me and referred me back to the website. I explained that I have attempted to contact them in many ways and showed them proof of the interactions and the faults with the website but they disregarded it. Due to their lack of understanding and support, I am now unable to attain a Visa to see my mother who I’ve been away from for months. I couldn’t be more disappointed.

Went in for the first time here and I must say the service received was fantastic! The location was easy to find and if taking public transport the tram stops practically outside the door. Leave about 10 minutes to get through at Reception as the receptionist is very thorough and makes sure everything is in order for you. Service is in general is really good and the staff take the time to explain the process and provide advise and assurance. I met with Antonio back-filling for Roberto and the service received was exemplary! I'm a very very happy customer today! Best way to contact the embassy is through email and my email was answered within a couple of hours.

Disappointing experience from an organisation that doesn't respond to proactive emails. Partially my fault for not following up/doing further research prior, but nothing stopping these 'officials' from upholding professional standards and abiding to honourable societal practices. i.e. take two minutes to assess circumstances before stealing $509.70 AUD. I walked up the the table, before a 'hello' there was the EFTPOS machine waived from behind the glass. Unethical practice and perhaps even unlawful in Australia (TBC pending advice). A poor reflection on Italy, not to mention bad karma for an official that appears to knowingly rip people off.

Such poor service and obviously don't care attitude. Going to Europe on a packaged tour, we need a Schengen visa because my wife is on Indonesian passport, needed to obtain a UK visa first 3 months prior to travel then Schengen but the Melbourne office only do limited number about 12 appointments a week so they are booked out approx 5 months ahead, according to the visit Italy official site melb should use VFS however they no longer do this, also you can not use the interstate consulates even though they have alot of of free bookings as they do about 12 a day overall I wouldn't ever recommend the consulate or even attempting to go to Italy

I am not requiring anything currently. I have had interactions in the past. I was reviewing the reviews. It is interesting to see that the consulate responds to good reviews but not to situations where there is a problem. It seems that the organisation cherry picks. If a situation is a simple box ticking exercise then you are in luck. If it requires at little thought it is put in the too hard tray and who knows when it will be looked at. It all suggests of some operational problems in the organisation. Has an audit been done recently? Just focusing on the easy things is not the way that an organisation strives for excellence.

Update: someone canceled their booking and i was lucky enough to grab the spot. I now have a visa to Italy. Apart from the booking, the service is great and straightforward. I wish to apply for a Schengen visa for a conference in Milan at the end of August, but the latest available time for an appointment is at the end of September. I tried to contact the Consulate by using the contact form on the website but the form was not found. I called them and no one answered. Attending the conference is very important for my career, but at this point, I feel a bit helpless and hopeless that I could make it to Italy in time.

I applied for Citizenship and found the staff at the Consulate very helpful and friendly. The details regarding the application process and documents required are clearly stated on their website. At my second appointment I had an error on one of my documents but instead of sending me away having to make another appointment, the person helping me gave me his email and said to contact him once I had the correct paperwork and he'd fit me in as soon as possible. True to his word, he did exactly that and now I'm proud to say I'm an Italian Citizen. Many thanks to all the staff at the Consulate.

Yesterday I had the privilege of accompanying my grandaughter for an appointment re becoming an italian citizen, from the moment we started our interview with Antonio Scarati I realised how at ease he made us both feel, his patience and compassion for us knowing how nervous we both felt was so very comforting, he explained everything to us with great patience and clarity. Thank you Antonio for making our visit such a pleasure and am praying the outcome will be in our favour. For a short while I felt like I was actually in Italy praise the lord.

I had a very easy experience. They require 3 different appointments in person, the first appointment was easy. The second I came in & had a miscommunication about my appointment, it had been canceled but I was not aware. I then got my second appointment rescheduled and let them know about what had happened. Without asking, they automatically moved my second and third appointment together because of the miscommunication I had. I was very very happy. I couldn’t be more thankful. I was served by la trippa who helped me! Thank you again!

i have yet to know someone that has had a 5 star experience at the italian consulate. i suspect that all or most of the 5 star reviews are fake. how is it possible that there are only 5 and 1 star reviews. when there is a 1 star review a reference is made to the majority of 5 star reviews. antonio mucci must spend most of his working hours at the consulate creating fake accounts. the employees get away with providing a terrible service because there is no accountability. am utter disgrace.

Over the last few months both my mum and I have experienced wonderful service at the consulate where we recently applied for our long stay visas. The receptionist and all the staff we encountered were so helpful. Both Antonio and Roberto who looked after us were really lovely, kind, patient and understanding and gave us amazing service. It was so nice to be in a place with such excellent customer service and friendly faces. Thank you to Antonio, Roberto and the team.

Earlier this week I visited the italian consulate in melbourne to apply for my Italian citizenship and found the whole experience easy and straight forward thanks to Mr Scarati. I had prepared all my documents and had them apostiled and translated before the appointment which also helped make the process swift and simple. Mr Scarati was very thorough and helpful in answering all of my questions and made the whole process and experience very positive. Grazie mille!

Very appreciative of Mr Antonio Scarati and the team. I had a strange issue with documents of my grandparents', and after speaking with Antonio on the phone he allowed me to come in without an appointment so that he assess the documents. He was very helpful, friendly and considerate of the situation and explained things very clearly and thoroughly. Thank you for your taking time out of your day to see me Antonio, you have been a pleasure to speak with!

My daughter and I have to personally thank Antonio Mucci at the Italian Consulate in Melbourne. Antonio went above and beyond to help us meet our tight deadline to get a study Visa. Even when the systems were down and he knew our travel dates were only a couple of days away, Antonio kept up updated via email every step of the way. Thank you Antonio, it makes travel to Italy even more exciting. We are very grateful for your attentive service.

I am very happy with my experience at the Italian Consulate. Although my translation was not exactly correct the lovely Chiara and Antonio Scarati went above and beyond to help me - As I had returned for a second time to submit the documents! She let me send the translation to her email and fixed any errors. They also allowed me to return without booking an appointment online. Antonio was also very helpful and understanding. Grazie a tutti

I found myself needing to make a urgent power of attorney, in the online booking calendar it was not possible to book quickly, on Friday I sent an email and in less than an hour you replied to come the following Monday at 10am. On Monday in 15 minutes I obtained the necessary document, and I found a friendly and efficient environment, helpful staff who pleasantly surprised me. Thank you very much for your availability and understanding

Our journey to obtain Italian Citizenship and Passports has been a very smooth and wonderfully positive experience. We wish to particularly acknowledge and thank Mr Antonio Scarati at the Melbourne office for his professionalism, clear instruction of the process and absolutely outstanding customer service!! Mr Scarati you truly are an exceptional ambassador for Consulate General of Italy. Grazie Mille. Vincent & Karen Cirillo

My first appointment to apply for citizenship on the morning of 10 Dec 21 was attended to by Mr Scarati. His calm and professional approach ensured I fully understood the process, in particular what was required to efficiently get through the second stage. The key is to come prepared with all the relevant documents described on the website, ensure you have confirmed your appointment and follow the advice provided on the day.

We needed assistance with an Italian bequest and decided to seek help from the Italian Consulate. There we met the very helpful Mr Antonio Mucci. He was very thorough in his explanations and provided us with all the details we needed to get our issue underway. He also provided us with a list of lawyers that were able to assist us in our enquiry. Thank you Antonio, for your patience and kindness. You come highly recommended.

I was applying for a workers holiday visa, after struggling to get an appointment online before my flight, I called the consulate and spoke to Antonio Mucci, who fit me 2 days later! He was so kind, helpful, and friendly and even gave me some great travel tips! He got my visa processed quickly and smoothly. Excellent service, thank you so much Antonio, I really appreciate it, it was lovely meeting you! All the best!

I recently went through the process of applying for my Italian Citizenship by decent - the Melbourne Consulate made it an easy experience and the team are very friendly and thorough. I would recommend coming prepared to save yourself some time if you are going through this process. Their website provides the information you need to do this. Thank you to the team members for your great service and expertise.

The most helpful and kind professional, Antonio Mucci, assisted me with all the paperwork and questions I had, I got everything solved in half and hour. He knew all about the topic and explained everything very detailed to me. Finally a professional that shows that cares and wants to help as well as giving the best customer service. I am so happy to have him in my new city of residency. Thank you Antonio.

I attended an appointment here last week. I received great service and the staff were friendly. David on the desk was happy and helpful. I had my appointment with Antonio. His knowledge and professional approach gave me the understanding and clarity as to exactly what I had and what I still needed. He was very genuine about providing the best help to me that he could. I could not have asked for more.

Italian citizen in Australia (Melbourne ) with non-urgent need for passport renewal... appointment made by online three days ago... went to the Italian consulate this morning as per appointment with old passport, 2 photos, completed form and money .. .. new passport ready in 15 minutes. Super helpful administrative staff. Well... I think it's fantastic!! Thanks for your professionalism

Would like to thank Mr.Antonio mucci for assisting me with the Atto notorio. He called me personally to ask me what I needed and I was able to reach him whenever I had questions about the documents required. Everything went smoothly on the day of the appointment but I would ask witnesses to keep an hour of their time at the least. Overall I was very happy with Mr.Antonio’s services.

I received great service here. It was a fast process and all the people who served me were absolutely lovely! Fortunately, because they had someone else cancel their appointment they were able to help me with my needs rather than having to book another appointment (which could have been a 6 month wait). They really went above and beyond and I left feeling so happy!!

I used to dread going to the Consulate! And now it is an absolute pleasure. Today I was amazed at how friendly and helpful everyone was. I was not berated about why I need a visa, why my Italian is terrible, why my documents weren't acceptable which was all customary in my previous experiences. Today was just so easy and friendly. Thank you for doing a great job!

Here I want to thanks to the officer Roberto M, he is very helpful and friendly, because my flight is coming in next 2 weeks, I was worried about the Visa and sent the email to the office, Roberto replied email quick and clearly, he helps me to get VISA in a short time, thanks so much for taking the time to help me, really appreciated!it’s a good experience

Had a lovely time at my long awaited appointment today being taken care of by the lovely Albano. While my case is a little complicated, the team was super friendly and helped me with everything I needed to get the process started to claim my citizenship. I look forward to returning in 14 months to submit my docs (unless I can snag an earlier appointment)

I found the consulate extremely helpful and generous with their time as I was working through my citizenship application. Mr Scarati was very knowledgeable of the requirements of citizenship and helped me work through my documentation very thoroughly. He was very generous with his time and I was very impressed with the quality of the service

Whao! I had the pleasure to be supported by Antonio Mucci. His level of professionalism and efficiency is second to none. Special power of attorney done in 20 minutes. Antonio explained everything to me and my mother. The Italian consulate is lucky to have him. Thank you so much Mr Mucci I have completely changed my view on our Consulate.

HELP!!! I really don't know what to do!!!! We need to apply for a Schengen Visa and I cannot make an appointment online, can someone please give us some advice on how to make an appointment? I called the Melbourne Consulate, no one picked up the phone. I emailed, I got a reply email saying, Email us later, we are fully booked.

The Consulate General of Italy and the staff member Roberto are amazing!!! Thank you for all the help and understanding you kindly offer. We booked a trip and then applied for visa to Italy, at first we were desperate and gravely anxious that we won't get it before the flight, but Roberto made it work! Grazie Roberto!!!!

I sent some queries about driver licences (Italian and Australian) and Mr Antonio Mucci promptly answered to my questions via emails (I know that calling and reaching someone is almost impossible task). I hope everything will go smoothly on the 15th of August, when I have my appointment booked. I'll keep you posted!

Very straight forward process! The customer service is so helpful - from the minute I entered the consulate, Nino at the desk answered all our questions and gave us all the information on what to expect in the future. Receiving citizenship has been a long, but rewarding process which Nino helped tremendously!

Awful customer service. Unable to call them because their line was out of service everytime it was open. I had an appointment and they cancelled 20 minutes before when I had already arrived. They said they were going to call to reschedule and I never got a call. Went in to resolve it and they turned me away.

11.02.2022 Excellent service at the Italian Consulate, including security and receptionist! Thanks to Roberto M, without him I would not have been able to obtain the renewal of my Italian driving license in time. Also, thanks to the administrative assistant Antonio Mucci who made the process smooth and fast.

I had a wonderful experience today applying for my Italian citizenship. I was initially very nervous, but Antonio Scarati made me feel very comfortable and at ease. The service was very clear and I am confident in the next steps I need to take to proceed to the next stage. Thank you for an excellent service!

I applied for the Italian citizenship by descent. The consulate explained the process in a friendly and professional manner. It was an easy process overall. They were very helpful in any questions I had through my application process. The staff were just all amazing and I couldn’t thank all of you enough!

Was there last time for visa application. Very fast and efficient, from the time of submission and to the time receiving passort with visa. As long as you have all documents, no problems at all. Only disadvantage is a long wait - have to wait for 3 month for a appointment slot you have to do online.

I have had the best experience with dealing with this consulate. I would always remember Mr. Antonio Mucci, who has helped me through with my declaration of value. He was always supportive and he understood my problem with a kind attitude and provided me guidance to help me obtain what I wanted.

Today I applied for my Italian citizenship and was feeling quite nervous but thanks to Basilio's professionalism he quickly calmed my nerves. He was very helpful in answering my questions and was thorough, kind and patient. The whole experience was very positive thanks to Basilio. Grazie mille!

There are only 5 stars on google review but Antonio Mucci deserves 10 stars! He was very friendly, super helpful & professional. He explained thoroughly and assisted me through my whole application - very prompt and smooth process. Thank you Antonio & all the best with your career!

I needed a student visa three weeks before I went to Italy and Antonio Mucci was super helpful in allowing the time to explain what visa I needed and provided clear and super friendly service. I couldn't believe how efficient and fast it was. Thanks so much for the help!!

The amazing service at the consulate helped with the process of applying for citizenship. Nino explained all the steps I needed to take on my first appointment to my last just recently. The process of citizenship was very simple and straight forward by the consulate!

I have wanted to get my Italian passport for awhile, today I submitted all my appropriate paper work. The process takes a lot of effort, I was assisted by Vota Antonio who gave me great guidance on all the paperwork thankyou for or your help Antonio …

Today was my first time at the Cosulate and I'm beyond happy/satisfied with my experience. Super friendly and helpful staff. To sum up, I have never expected that a visit to a Consulate could be so much fun! I'm looking forward to my second appointment :-)

Please be warned that the latest available Schengen visa application as of March 28th is June 8th 2023. Otherwise the website is very straightforward and they are very prompt with their email response if you contact them through their official website.

I was very stressed and in a rush to get my Italian student visa approved before my departure date, however, Antonio Mucci was so helpful and managed to get me an appointment. He approved my visa and I was in and out in half an hour! Excellent service!

We visited the Italian Consulate today and received great service from Antonio Mucci. He was very helpful, and thorough with our enquiry. He made sure all aspects were covered to ensure there were no issues in the future. Thank you!

I am trying to email the Consulate to get Italian equivalent of Australian ACCC and/or Consumer Affairs but found it impossible to send ( get ) through. The web site kept rejecting the submitted message. Anyone can help?

Good morning staff Just got my passport renewed this morning Easy process with the appropriate paper work Great staff from the police officer to the front receptionist to the background staff took me 55 minutes Grazie

Website links are always down, the support form crash, the feedback form crash, no one ever picks up the phone. I called 43 times now, and only Tuesday to Thursday from 1;30 to 2;30? I wish it was a joke! RIDICULOUS

The process of citizenship was made easy by the excellent, very helpful staff at the consulate. He told us all the information and documents we need and what we will need for future appointments. very informative.

Nov 2023 - You are not allowed to bring the laptop inside, bring a pre-paid registered envelope, they don't issue the passport straight away like the used to. Quick and easy, 15/20 min and it's all done

I had such a positive and wonderful experience at the Consulate. Antonio Mucci was so incredibly helpful, I was able to deal with a private matter quickly and he made the process stress free! Thank you.

I have been this morning to renew my Italian License. Antonio Mucci was very professional, friendly and really helpful along all the process. In just 10 minutes I was ready to go. Very good experience.

Wonderful service from Antonio. He helped me navigate a very difficult process in applying for my citizenship. I can not thank him and all of the staff at the consulate enough for all of their help!

Yesterday I received fantastic support with my citizenship application. The consulate gave me every opportunity to ask questions to ensure I understood what they needed. Friendly, welcoming staff!

Very good experience here applying for Citizenship and obtaining a passport. They were even able to help with some outstanding issues while I was in Italy! Antonio is very helpful. Grazie ragazzi.

Once I had satisfied all of the bureaucratic requirements, I found them extremely responsive. To get a renewed passport was actually quicker than my Aussie one ( 5 days compared to 7).

Excellent. Friendly staff , very professional service exactly as one of the best world’s embassy.. Thank you very very much guys for your job… all the best …. Grazie …

The citizenship process was very smooth and clear. Staff were friendly and Antonio in particular was very helpful throughout the citizenship and passport application process.

I had an issue with my citizenship application process and Mr Scarati was very helpful in assisting me to resolve the issue promptly. Thank you to all the consulate staff!

Antonio Mucci is one of the best officers I have ever met. Consular assistance and support are professional and exact. A rare exemplar of a fine-tuned and working office.

Unbelievably fast service. We had to renew the kids passports, had all documentation ready and we received them in 40 minutes. Grazie al personale del consolato.

Had an unexpectedly fantastic experience at the consulate today. All the staff were so lovely! Many thanks to Mr Scarati for his help and good humour.

I had a wonderful experience here! They really help you through the process and makes everything easy and fast! Thanks for excellent service!

Antonio Mucci was incredibly fast in delivering my Codice Fiscale, after only one business day had passed. Thank you for your help.

Giuseppe was a very professional and courteous officer helping my elderly mother who doesn’t speak English or Italian.

Extremely helpful, friendly and fast. I had the choice of speaking either English or Italian. A very good experience.