Skip to content
Borgonova
Find my town

The guide · relocating to Italy

Moving to Italy

Moving to Italy is five decisions made in the right order: the visa, the town, the house, the paperwork once you land, and the tax. Get the order wrong and it costs you months or money; get it right and it is far simpler than the forums make it sound.

This is the whole of it, with the figures, for anyone relocating to Italy from abroad.

Updated September 2026 · figures from ISTAT

Build my relocation planFind my town

How to move to Italy: the short version

  1. Pick the visa that matches your income — or none, with an EU passport.
  2. Choose the town before the house. It decides your tax, your services and your neighbours.
  3. Secure somewhere to live — a lease or a purchase — because the visa asks for it.
  4. Apply at your consulate, then enter Italy and file for your permesso within eight working days.
  5. Register residency at the comune, sort health cover, and see a commercialista before your first Italian tax year.

Which visa you need to move to Italy

EU, EEA and Swiss citizens need no visa. For everyone else the visa is decided by how you will pay your way — and each one forbids something. The full visa guide is here.

VisaForThe catch
Elective Residency VisaPeople living on pensions, rents, dividends or savings.It forbids work of any kind, including remote work for an employer at home. The income must be passive and provable, and consulates read this strictly.
Digital Nomad / Remote Worker visaEmployees and freelancers working remotely for a non-Italian employer or clients.Introduced in 2024 and still applied unevenly between consulates. Expect to prove qualifications, at least six months of relevant experience, health cover and accommodation.
Self-employment visa (lavoro autonomo)People setting up or freelancing in Italy itself.Capped by the decreto flussi quota, which opens for a matter of days each year. Plan around the quota calendar or plan a different route.
Work visa, sponsored by the employerPeople with an Italian job offer.The employer applies for the nulla osta, not you, and it also runs through the decreto flussi quota. Nothing starts until they act.

The order it happens in

For someone moving from outside the EU. EU citizens skip the visa and the permesso; the rest is the same.

  1. Three to five months before

    €200–€600

    1. Book the consulate appointment first, then gather the papers

    The appointment is the bottleneck, not the paperwork — some consulates release slots months out and they go in minutes. Book it, then work backwards: proof of income, proof of accommodation in Italy, health cover, criminal record certificate, all translated and legalised.

  2. Two to four months before

    €116–€160

    2. Apply for the Elective Residency Visa

    People living on pensions, rents, dividends or savings. It forbids work of any kind, including remote work for an employer at home. The income must be passive and provable, and consulates read this strictly. Consulates look for roughly €38,000 a year, and more is safer than the minimum.

  3. Before or on arrival

    no fee

    3. Codice fiscale

    The number everything else hangs off — bank, utilities, the deed. Free, from the consulate before you go or the Agenzia delle Entrate once you are there. Do it before you need it, because you will need it suddenly.

  4. Within 8 working days of landing

    €100–€160

    4. Permesso di soggiorno — the yellow kit

    You collect the kit at a Poste Italiane sportello amico, fill it in, pay, and are given a questura appointment. The eight-day clock is real and starts the day you enter. The card itself can take months to arrive; the receipt is what you live on meanwhile.

  5. Once you have somewhere to live

    €16–€50

    5. Residency at the comune (anagrafe)

    This is the step that makes you resident rather than a visitor, and it is what the 7% regime, the health service and the tax year all key off. A vigile urbano will call at the address to check you actually live there.

  6. After residency

    €2,000–€4,000

    6. Health cover — SSN or private

    Non-EU residents on a non-working visa register with the SSN voluntarily: roughly 7.5% of worldwide income with a floor of about €2,000 a year for elective residency. Private cover can be cheaper while you are young and healthy, and worse later.

  7. Within 12 months of residency

    €0–€200

    7. Driving licence

    Check whether your country has a conversion agreement with Italy. If it does not, you retake both tests in Italian within twelve months of becoming resident.

  8. From day 183

    €400–€1,200

    8. You become tax resident

    More than 183 days in a calendar year, or residency registered for most of it, makes Italy tax your worldwide income. The double-taxation treaty stops you paying twice, but it does not stop you filing. Talk to an Italian commercialista before your first Italian tax year, not during it.

What moving to Italy costs

In fees alone — visa, permits, translations, health cover, the licence and tax advice — a non-EU couple should budget roughly €2,832–€6,370 in the first year. For EU citizens it is closer to €416–€2,950. That is before somewhere to live.

If you are buying, add the purchase costs — notary, registration tax and a survey — which the property guide breaks down, and the renovation, which in the cheapest towns is most of the bill.

Where to live in Italy

72.1% of Italy's comuni had fewer residents in 2025 than in 2019. That decline is why houses are cheap, why comuni run schemes to attract people, and why the south carries a 7% tax on foreign pensions. These regions are emptying fastest:

Or browse all twenty regions, or answer a few questions and we will match you to towns.

Living in Italy: the pros and cons

The case for

  • Houses in the small towns cost a fraction of anywhere in the UK or US.
  • 2,344 comuni meet the test for a 7% tax on a foreign pension, for nine years.
  • Comuni that are losing people genuinely want newcomers, and some pay towards it.
  • A public health service you can join as a resident.

The case against

  • Bureaucracy is slow, paper-based and in Italian.
  • The towns where houses are cheapest are the ones losing their shops, schools and doctors.
  • Most foreign driving licences must be replaced by passing the Italian test.
  • Renovation almost always costs more than the house.

Moving to Italy from your country

The visa, the licence and the tax paperwork depend on your passport.

Moving to Italy: questions people ask

Can I just move to Italy?
If you hold an EU, EEA or Swiss passport, yes — you register your residence at the comune once you have been there three months. Everyone else needs a long-stay visa before travelling: which one depends on how you will support yourself, and applying from inside Italy is not possible.
How much money do I need to move to Italy?
For the most common non-working route, the elective residency visa, consulates look for roughly €31,000 a year of passive income for one person and around €38,000 for a couple. On top of that, the move itself — visa, permits, health cover, licence and first-year tax advice — runs to roughly €2,832–€6,370 in fees for a non-EU couple, before rent or a house.
Can I move to Italy without a job?
Yes, if you have passive income — a pension, rent, dividends or savings — through the elective residency visa. It forbids working at all, including remote work for an employer abroad. Remote workers use the digital nomad visa instead.
Does buying a house in Italy give you residency or citizenship?
No. Buying property in Italy does not come with a right to live there or a path to citizenship. A non-EU buyer still needs a visa to stay longer than 90 days in any 180, although owning a home counts as the accommodation the visa asks for.
Is there a program that pays people to move to Italy?
There is no national scheme that pays you to move. Some regions and comuni offer grants — Sardinia offers up to €15,000 towards buying or renovating a first home in its small towns — and many comuni sell houses for one euro. The biggest incentive is the 7% flat tax on foreign pensions in the southern regions.
How long does it take to move to Italy?
From a standing start, allow four to six months for a non-EU visa: the consulate appointment is the bottleneck, and slots can be months out. Once you land you have eight working days to file for your permesso di soggiorno.
Do I need to speak Italian to live in Italy?
Not for the visa, but for everyday life in the small towns where houses are cheap, yes — fewer people speak English outside the cities. The Italian driving test, which many foreigners must take within a year, is in Italian.
Where is the best place to live in Italy?
It depends what you want, but for most people moving from abroad the value is in the south and the inland hill towns: houses are cheapest where towns are losing people, comuni there are keenest to welcome newcomers, and a foreign pension can be taxed at 7%. Each region page ranks every town.

Keep reading