Entry and residence in Italy

EU, EEA and Swiss citizens

Citizens of a European Union member state, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland enter Italy with an identity card or passport and need neither a visa nor a residence permit. After three months of stay they must register with the population register of the Comune where they live (iscrizione anagrafica). Besides the identity document, the Comune asks for proof of one of the conditions set by EU law: an employment or self-employment relationship; or sufficient resources and comprehensive health cover (pensioners and economically inactive people); or enrolment at an approved educational establishment, together with health cover and a declaration of sufficient resources. The registration certificate must be issued immediately and may not cost more than an identity card for Italian citizens. Failure to register may be fined, but is not in itself a ground for expulsion.

After five years of legal and continuous residence the right of permanent residence is acquired automatically. The permanent residence document (attestazione di soggiorno permanente), issued by the Comune on request with proof of the five years, is optional; the right is lost only after an absence of more than two consecutive years.

Non-EU citizens: stays up to 90 days

For tourism, business, visits or short courses the Schengen rule applies: at most 90 days in any 180-day period, counted across the whole Schengen area and not just Italy; the European Commission publishes a day calculator. Whether a visa is needed depends on nationality: Annex I of Regulation (EU) 2018/1806 lists the countries whose citizens must apply for a Schengen type C visa, Annex II those who are exempt. The guided procedure at vistoperitalia.esteri.it, based on nationality, country of residence, purpose and length of stay, says whether a visa is required and which documents to submit; submitting documents does not guarantee issuance, and checks may be repeated at the border.

Anyone entering Italy from another Schengen state, without a border check, must file a declaration of presence (dichiarazione di presenza) with the questura of the province where they are within eight days of entry; anyone arriving from a non-Schengen country fulfils the obligation with the stamp placed in the passport at the border, which should therefore be checked. In a hotel, the copy of the declaration signed with the manager replaces the one at the questura and should be kept.

ETIAS, the electronic travel authorisation for visa-exempt citizens, was not in operation when this page was checked: the European Commission's official page states that no applications are being collected and that the start date will be announced some months in advance; the fee stated is 20 euro. Until it starts, nothing needs to be done.

Non-EU citizens: stays over 90 days

Staying more than 90 days requires a national type D visa, issued by the Italian embassy or consulate of the country of residence for a specific purpose (employment, self-employment, study, family reunification, elective residence, research, medical treatment, religious reasons, volunteering, working holiday, adoption, mission). A D visa is valid from 91 to 365 days and, during its validity, allows movement in the other Schengen states for 90 days in every 180. Within eight working days of entry the residence permit must be requested for the same purpose as the visa. The most common purposes for people relocating are described in the list below; detailed requirements are in the vistoperitalia.esteri.it fact sheets and on consular websites.

The residence permit, step by step

1. Within eight working days of entry

   The permit application must be filed within eight working days of entering Italy and for the same purpose as the visa (art. 5, para. 2, TUI).

2. Postal kit or questura

   For most purposes (work, family, study, research, elective residence, long-term residence, renewals) the application is filed with the yellow-band kit, available at all post offices and to be handed in at Sportello Amico post offices (one kit per person, with ID). Work and family permits with a nulla osta are requested at the prefecture's Sportello unico per l'immigrazione; other purposes directly at the questura. Affiliated Comuni and patronati help fill in the kit free of charge. Costs listed by Poste Italiane: a 16 euro revenue stamp, 30 euro to the postal operator, 30.46 euro for producing the electronic permit, plus the variable contribution by type and duration, which the law sets between a minimum of 80 and a maximum of 200 euro (art. 5, para. 2-ter, TUI; amount set by decree of the Ministry of Economy).

3. Receipt and appointment

   On submission you receive the receipt (ricevuta), with the codes to track the case on the Portale Immigrazione, and the letter with date, time and place of the appointment at the questura. The receipt proves the application and allows you to stay in Italy pending the decision: keep it with the passport (first issue) or with the expired permit (renewal).

4. Questura: photo and fingerprints

   At the appointment the questura takes fingerprints and collects the documents. The status of the case can be followed online until you are called to collect the electronic permit.

5. Renewal

   Renewal is requested from the questore of the province where you live at least ninety days before expiry (art. 5, para. 4, TUI, text in force); the renewed permit may not last longer than the initial one, unless otherwise provided.

6. Integration agreement

   Anyone applying for a first permit of at least one year signs the integration agreement, structured in credits, committing to integration goals (language, civic education) during the permit's validity. Losing all credits leads to revocation of the permit, with exclusions for asylum, family reasons, long-term residence and other cases (art. 4-bis TUI).

7. EU long-term residence permit

   After holding a valid permit for at least five years, with an income not below the annual amount of the social allowance and after passing an Italian language test, you can apply for the open-ended EU long-term residence permit (art. 9 TUI).