If you're thinking of moving to Italy and don't have citizenship of an EU country, your first step will be applying for an Italian visa.
Italy has a variety of different visa types depending on what you intend to do here – e.g. work, study, retire, or join a family member – and whether you plan to move for good or just pay an extended visit.
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If you just want to stay for a limited amount of time, you may not need to pay anything at all: EU nationals and residents of some non-EU countries, including the US, the UK and Canada, enjoy visa-free travel under the EU’s 90-day rule.
For visitors from countries that do require a visa, a 90-day Schengen visa typically costs €90 for adults and €45 for children between the ages of six and 12.
Visitor visas for children under six are issued free of charge. Other exemptions or discounts may apply to certain categories of people, including students, researchers and participants in cultural, sporting, or educational events.
If you want to stay in Italy long term, Italian visas are relatively cheap – the standard cost for a long-stay visa is €116, although as with a visitor’s visa, certain groups (such as students and minors) are entitled to discounts or exemptions.
Compare that to the roughly €1,000 that the UK charges for work-related visas, and it seems pretty reasonable.
The visa fee itself, however, is often the least costly part of the application process.
Some Italian visa types – including the elective residency visa for retirees and the digital nomad visa – require you to show both proof of private health insurance and proof of accommodation in Italy (either via a property ownership deed or long-term rental contract).
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In some countries, Italian consulates outsource the process of gathering applications and managing appointments to third-party companies, which may charge their own processing fees.
The digital nomad visa (DNV) also requires applicants to have their professional and educational qualifications notarised, apostilled and professionally translated into Italian before being certified by the Italian consulate – all of which can end up costing in the thousands of euros.
One of the DNV’s first successful applicants told The Local that she spent almost €8,000 between application fees, translations, notary fees, certifications, apartment rental costs and health insurance.
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Regardless of which long-stay visa you use to enter Italy, once you arrive in the country, you’ll also need to apply for a permesso di soggiorno (residency permit).
This costs between €40 and €100 depending on how long your permit is valid for, plus another €76.46 in various processing and postal fees and taxes.
If you plan on staying in Italy, then your permesso will need to be regularly renewed.
Most permits must be renewed annually or every two years (though renewal procedures are currently affected by major backlogs) at the same cost as the initial application.
After five years of continuous residency, you may be eligible to apply for a long-term/permanent permit.
Besides permit application or renewal expenses, you should also factor in the costs of registering with Italy’s national health service (sistema sanitario nazionale, or SSN).
While some categories of foreign resident can register with the SSN for free, others – including those in the country on an elective residency visa and diplomats – need to pay a minimum annual fee of €2,000 (students, au pairs and religious personnel are eligible for a discounted rate).
Even if you're registered, Italy’s healthcare system isn’t always free at the point of use; for some services, you’ll need to make a co-payment fee known as a ‘ticket’.
Once you’ve lived in Italy for 10 continuous years (less time in some circumstances), you may be able to apply for Italian citizenship through naturalisation if you meet specific income and language requirements.
READ ALSO: What's the difference between Italian residency and citizenship?
The fee for this kind of citizenship application is €250 – though between certified translations and language certificates, it’s common for the entire process to end up costing several times this amount.
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