What is Italy’s AIRE and who needs to register?

What is AIRE?

AIRE (acronym for Anagrafe Italiani Residenti all’Estero) is a registry of Italians living abroad.

First established in 1988, it essentially holds the personal data, including address and vital records, of Italian citizens living outside of Italy.

AIRE records are managed directly by a person’s Italian municipality (or comune) of origin based on information provided by consular authorities abroad.

Who needs to register?

Registration with AIRE is mandatory for the following two categories of people:

• Italian citizens who transfer their residency abroad for a period of at least 12 months
• Italian citizens who already live abroad, either because they were born there, or because they became Italian citizens later in life, regardless of how they acquired citizenship

For people relocating abroad from Italy, the registration request must be submitted with the nearest Italian consulate within 90 days of arrival in the consulate’s jurisdiction.

People who fail to register with AIRE face a fine ranging from €200 to €1,000 for each year of non-registration, for a maximum of five consecutive years.

AIRE registration is not required in the following cases:

• Italian citizens who move abroad for a period of less than 12 months
• Seasonal workers
• Permanent civil servants and State employees working abroad
• Italian military personnel serving in NATO offices and facilities located abroad

Why should I register?

As mentioned above, registering with AIRE is a requirement for Italian citizens living abroad and there are penalties for failure to do so. 

However, registration is also important because it gives access to several key consular services and is a prerequisite for exercising important citizen rights, including:

• Voting by mail in Italian general elections and referendums, and voting to elect Italian members of the European Parliament
• Applying for the issuance of a new passport (or the renewal of an existing one), emergency travel documents, vital records and certificates
• Renewing an Italian driver’s licence

How can I register?

To register with AIRE, you’ll need to submit a signed application form and the required documentation (this usually includes a copy of your passport and proof of address) with the consulate that covers the jurisdiction where you live.

In the majority of cases, the entire process can be completed online by logging into the Italian Foreign Ministry’s FastIt portal.

For further information on how to complete your AIRE application, see the FastIt website or contact your nearest Italian consulate.

Registering with AIRE is free of charge and the effective date of registration corresponds to when the relevant comune in Italy receives your personal data from the Italian consulate.

This will be the comune where you lived prior to moving abroad or, if you gained citizenship by descent abroad, where your Italian ancestor was born. 

Following registration, it is each citizen's responsibility to communicate any changes to their personal details, including changes of address or in civil status. This can be done via the FastIIt portal or by contacting the nearest consular office.

Please note: if you successfully apply for Italian citizenship by descent from abroad, the registration with AIRE can sometimes be carried out automatically by the Italian consulate that handled your citizenship application.

What happens if I move to Italy?

If you relocate to Italy, your AIRE file will be closed as soon as you register as a resident in the Italian comune where you reside.

What happens if I move to another foreign country?

Italian citizens already registered with AIRE and moving from one country to another (for instance, from the UK to Germany) can update their address and country of residence using the FastIt portal.

Does AIRE registration mean losing access to Italy’s healthcare system?

Italian citizens registered with AIRE lose access to Italy’s national public healthcare system (Sistema Sanitario Nazionale, or SSN) upon registration.

However, in the case of temporary stays in Italy, they can access urgent medical services free of charge for up to 90 days per year provided that they have no other insurance policy, either public or private.

Access to Italy's SSN is automatically reinstated when establishing or reestablishing residency in Italy.

For more information about AIRE, see the Italian Foreign Ministry’s website.