Americans in Italy: Hiring an ancestry detective and bringing pets from the US
How can you bring your pet from the US to Italy and what's the role of an 'ancestry detective' in helping you uncover your Italian origins? We explore in our latest Americans in Italy newsletter.
Welcome to our regular look at everything you need to know about life in Italy for The Local’s readers from the US. This newsletter is published monthly and you can receive it directly to your inbox before we publish by going to newsletter preferences in ‘My Account’ or following the instructions in the newsletter box below.
If you're a pet owner who's planning on relocating from the US to Italy, one of the first things you'll want to do is make sure you can bring your furry friend with you.
Bringing a domestic animal into Italy from the US means getting to grips with plenty of rules and paperwork - but the good news is you most likely won't have to quarantine your pet on arrival, and most Italian ports and airports are authorised entry points.
The rules for dogs, cats, and - interestingly - ferrets are the same when it comes to importing a pet into the EU; you'll need an animal health certificate from a USDA-authorised vet and to make sure they're vaccinated against rabies.
If you have a rabbit, bird, turtle or other animal, on the other hand, there are slightly stricter rules in place, but you should still be able to bring your pet over without too much difficulty.
Can I bring my pet from the USA into Italy?
What's involved in bringing your dog from the US to Italy? Photo by Gabriella Clare Marino on Unsplash
If you're vaguely aware of having Italian roots and want to learn more - either out of personal interest or to pursue an Italian citizenship application - you may want to engage the services of an Italian ancestry detective, a profession that's increasingly on the rise in Italy.
Fabio Cardile, from Palermo, Sicily has been working in the field for over 25 years, and has investigated the Italian ancestries of the likes of John Travolta and Jill Biden.
He starts by searching state records online and then going in person to local parishes, churches and graveyards, where the only documents available are sometimes hundreds of years old and in Latin.
“In the hardest cases all clients are able to give me is their last name and I need to trace back in time the origin of it and the location in Italy where still nowadays there are similar-sounding names,” says Cardile.
How ancestry detectives help Americans and Brits find their Italian roots
Putting together your Italian family tree often involves visiting local authority offices and churches in person to access records. Photo: Andreas SOLARO / AFP
Under incoming changes to the EU's border system, Americans and other third country nationals will soon have to pay a fee to enter Italy.
The charge won't set visitors back by too much, however: it costs just €7 (free for over 70s and under 18s) and is valid for multiple trips to the EU over a three-year period.
There's also currently no fixed date for the introduction of the ETIAS system, which is modelled on the US's ESTA visa waiver program; it's provisionally scheduled to become active in 2024, but there have already been multiple delays, and it could well be pushed back until 2025.
That hasn't stopped Donald Trump from getting worked up about the scheme and promising to put an end to it if he were reelected - something that would in fact be beyond any US president's powers.
Will American tourists need to pay a fee to visit Italy?
Have your say: If you'd like to share your opinion or tell us about an experience you've had while living in Italy, please leave a comment below this article or get in touch by email.
And if you have any advice for other American readers who are considering moving to Italy, or questions of your own, you can add them to our ongoing survey here.
Thanks for reading and please get in touch with us by email if you have any feedback on this newsletter.
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Welcome to our regular look at everything you need to know about life in Italy for The Local’s readers from the US. This newsletter is published monthly and you can receive it directly to your inbox before we publish by going to newsletter preferences in ‘My Account’ or following the instructions in the newsletter box below.
If you're a pet owner who's planning on relocating from the US to Italy, one of the first things you'll want to do is make sure you can bring your furry friend with you.
Bringing a domestic animal into Italy from the US means getting to grips with plenty of rules and paperwork - but the good news is you most likely won't have to quarantine your pet on arrival, and most Italian ports and airports are authorised entry points.
The rules for dogs, cats, and - interestingly - ferrets are the same when it comes to importing a pet into the EU; you'll need an animal health certificate from a USDA-authorised vet and to make sure they're vaccinated against rabies.
If you have a rabbit, bird, turtle or other animal, on the other hand, there are slightly stricter rules in place, but you should still be able to bring your pet over without too much difficulty.
Can I bring my pet from the USA into Italy?
If you're vaguely aware of having Italian roots and want to learn more - either out of personal interest or to pursue an Italian citizenship application - you may want to engage the services of an Italian ancestry detective, a profession that's increasingly on the rise in Italy.
Fabio Cardile, from Palermo, Sicily has been working in the field for over 25 years, and has investigated the Italian ancestries of the likes of John Travolta and Jill Biden.
He starts by searching state records online and then going in person to local parishes, churches and graveyards, where the only documents available are sometimes hundreds of years old and in Latin.
“In the hardest cases all clients are able to give me is their last name and I need to trace back in time the origin of it and the location in Italy where still nowadays there are similar-sounding names,” says Cardile.
How ancestry detectives help Americans and Brits find their Italian roots
Under incoming changes to the EU's border system, Americans and other third country nationals will soon have to pay a fee to enter Italy.
The charge won't set visitors back by too much, however: it costs just €7 (free for over 70s and under 18s) and is valid for multiple trips to the EU over a three-year period.
There's also currently no fixed date for the introduction of the ETIAS system, which is modelled on the US's ESTA visa waiver program; it's provisionally scheduled to become active in 2024, but there have already been multiple delays, and it could well be pushed back until 2025.
That hasn't stopped Donald Trump from getting worked up about the scheme and promising to put an end to it if he were reelected - something that would in fact be beyond any US president's powers.
Will American tourists need to pay a fee to visit Italy?
Have your say: If you'd like to share your opinion or tell us about an experience you've had while living in Italy, please leave a comment below this article or get in touch by email.
And if you have any advice for other American readers who are considering moving to Italy, or questions of your own, you can add them to our ongoing survey here.
Thanks for reading and please get in touch with us by email if you have any feedback on this newsletter.
Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
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