Italy Digital Nomad Visa: Requirements, Income and How to Apply

The Italy digital nomad visa lets you live in Italy while you work remotely, as a freelancer or for an employer based in Italy or abroad. You need a recognised degree or enough professional experience, at least six months of experience in the work you’ll do from Italy, about €24,790 a year from that work, and a registered lease in Italy before you apply. The permit lasts a year, you can keep renewing it, and after five years you can apply for permanent residency.

At a glance

Minimum income	About €24,790 a year (about €2,066 a month), before tax
First permit	1 year
Renewable?	Yes, every year
Apply from inside Italy?	No, only at a consulate abroad
Leads to permanent residency?	Yes, the EU long-term permit after 5 years
Special tax regime	Impatriati regime: 50% of qualifying income tax-free for 5 years
Freelancers and business owners?	Yes, under the “digital nomad” category, which Italian law uses for self-employed people

Who can apply for the Italy digital nomad visa?

You can apply if you’re a non-EU citizen, a highly qualified worker, and you have at least six months of experience in the work you plan to do from Italy. Italy opened the visa in April 2024, and it has two categories:

• Digital nomads: freelancers, consultants and other independent specialists
• Remote workers: employees or contracted collaborators who can do their job entirely remotely

In Italian law, a “digital nomad” is a self-employed remote worker and a “remote worker” is an employee or contracted collaborator. Neither label means you’ll be moving from country to country. The visa expects you to live in Italy, with a lease covering the whole visa period and a residence permit tied to your Italian address.

You show you’re highly qualified in one of three ways:

• A bachelor’s, master’s or doctorate degree, recognised in Italy through CIMEA or a Declaration of Value
• For licensed professions, such as architects, engineers and teachers, an attestation from the relevant Italian authority
• A higher professional qualification plus at least five years of experience in the field, documented job by job. For managers and specialists in IT, it’s three years of experience within the last seven

Freelancers can show their six months of experience with tax returns, client invoices or professional memberships, and employees with payslips, tax returns or an employer letter. Italy’s general entry rules also apply, so certain criminal convictions can lead to a refusal.

Remote workers have two extra requirements. Your salary has to meet the level set by the relevant Italian collective agreement, and it can’t be below the national salary figure published by ISTAT, Italy’s statistics office. That can be higher than the €24,790 minimum. You may also need a letter from your employer, signed by an executive or legal representative, confirming the company hasn’t been convicted of certain offences, such as breaking labour laws, in the past five years. New York and Toronto ask every remote worker for this letter, and London only asks for it when the employer is based in Italy.

Business owners can apply as digital nomads, the independent specialist category, with their contracts and invoices. On the five-years-of-experience route, the consulates ask for the position you held, whether owner, partner or employee, so experience as a company owner counts. Applying as an employee of your own company is less clear. In many countries, including the UK and the US, a company is a separate legal entity from its owner, so it’s normal to own a company and be employed by it, with or without being a director. Italy hasn’t published how it treats an applicant who owns their employer. The remote worker route also needs an employment contract and a salary that meets Italian pay standards, and the set-up has tax consequences in more than one country, so get professional advice before you rely on it for a visa application.

Unlike most of Italy’s work visas, this one has no annual quota, and you don’t need a work permit (nulla osta) before you apply. The consulate makes the whole decision itself, though, and consulates don’t all apply the rules in the same way.

What’s the minimum income for the Italy digital nomad visa?

You need a legal income of at least three times the level Italy uses to exempt people from healthcare charges. In 2024 the New York consulate put that at €24,789 a year, or about €2,066 a month, before tax. The London consulate works from a higher base of €8,500, so it asks for at least €25,500 a year (about €2,125 a month).

The income has to come from the work you’ll do in Italy. Pensions, rent and investment income don’t count, even if they’re well above the threshold. If you’re a remote worker, your salary also has to meet the collective agreement and ISTAT levels above, so check the figure for your sector.

You can prove your income with payslips, tax returns, a W-2 or your three most recent bank statements. Several guides and applicants quote a higher figure of about €28,000, so confirm the number with the consulate handling your application.

Not earning €2,066 a month yet? The Portable Income Launchpad is a six-week programme for experienced professionals turning their expertise into remote income that meets a visa threshold like this one.

What health insurance do you need for the Italy digital nomad visa?

You need health insurance that covers medical treatment and hospital stays in Italy for the whole time you’ll be there. That’s the rule in the decree that created the visa, and it doesn’t set a minimum amount.

Consulates add their own conditions, so check the one handling your application:

• New York asks for cover of at least €30,000 (or $50,000) for medical expenses, hospital costs and repatriation for medical reasons. It wants a letter or certificate from your insurer, and won’t accept an insurance card on its own.
• London asks for insurance covering all hospital and medical costs for your entire stay.
• Toronto asks for insurance covering medical and hospital expenses in Italy for your entire stay.

If you can’t get a suitable policy before you apply, the New York consulate also accepts proof that you’ve bought Italian health insurance, or a signed statement (an affidavit) that you’ll buy an Italian policy when you arrive and before you go to the Questura.

The New York consulate says inadequate medical cover is the number one reason it refuses applications, so check that your insurer’s letter shows:

• Your name, and policy dates that cover the whole visa period
• That the policy is valid in Italy
• That it covers medical treatment, hospital stays and medical repatriation
• The amount of cover, which needs to be at least €30,000 if your consulate asks for that figure

You need to keep the insurance after you arrive, because the Questura only renews your permit while you still have it.

Can you bring your family?

Yes. Once you’re in Italy, you can sponsor your spouse and children under 18 to join you, including a spouse’s child from a previous relationship if the other parent consents. You can’t sponsor adult children or parents on this visa, even if they depend on you.

Your family doesn’t apply alongside you. The process starts at the Questura (the provincial police headquarters) where you applied for your own residence permit, under Italy’s standard family reunification rules, which set conditions on housing and income. Your family’s permits last as long as yours. Ask your Questura for the exact conditions before you plan your family’s move.

How long does the visa last, and can you renew it?

The residence permit lasts one year, and you renew it at your local Questura every year as long as you still have your work, your accommodation and your health insurance. The consulates don’t set a limit on renewals while you still qualify.

Your visa gets you into Italy. Within eight working days of arriving, you apply for the residence permit (permesso di soggiorno) at the Questura that covers your Italian address. Many Questure now take applications through the post office. The Questura also generates your Italian tax code (codice fiscale) when it issues the permit, if you don’t have one already. Many applicants need one earlier, because landlords ask for it before they’ll sign a lease. If you move house later, you have to tell the Questura that issued your permit.

Italy can revoke the permit if you stop meeting the visa’s conditions, or if you don’t keep up with your Italian tax and social security obligations.

How are you taxed in Italy on this visa?

You’ll usually become an Italian tax resident once you’re registered as resident in Italy or spend more than 183 days of the year there, and Italy then taxes your worldwide income. If you arrive part way through a year, you may not reach 183 days until your second calendar year.

Italy’s impatriati regime can cut your tax bill a lot. Under the rules in force since 2024, Italy taxes only 50% of your qualifying income earned there, up to €600,000 a year. That rises to 60% tax-free if you move with a child under 18 or have one while on the regime. It lasts for the year you move plus the next four. Both employees and self-employed professionals can use it, but you must:

• Not have been an Italian tax resident in the previous three years, or six to seven years if you keep working for the same employer or group you worked for abroad
• Commit to staying tax resident in Italy for at least four years, or repay the benefit
• Do most of your work in Italy
• Be highly qualified or specialised, which you’ll usually meet if you qualify for this visa

If you’re self-employed with a smaller business, you can also look at the regime forfettario, a flat-rate system for revenue up to €85,000 a year. It charges a single 15% tax on a fixed share of your revenue that depends on your type of work. The 5% start-up rate is only for a new activity, which usually rules out carrying on the freelance work you did before you moved. Freelancers also need an Italian VAT number (partita IVA), and usually have to register for social security with INPS unless a social security agreement with your home country applies.

This is general information, not tax advice. Talk to an Italian accountant (commercialista) who works with your home country before you move.

Does the Italy digital nomad visa lead to permanent residency or citizenship?

Yes. Your time on this visa counts under Italy’s standard residence rules.

After 5 years with a valid residence permit, you can apply for the EU long-term residence permit (permesso di soggiorno UE per soggiornanti di lungo periodo). This is Italy’s permanent residence permit for non-EU citizens. It replaced Italy’s own national permanent permit, the carta di soggiorno, in 2007, so there’s no separate national version. The status is permanent, and the card itself lasts ten years for adults before you renew it.

To qualify, you need income at least equal to the annual social allowance, and you need to pass an Italian test at A2 level unless you already have an A2 certificate or certain Italian school or university qualifications. Long absences interrupt the five years: six months or more in a row, or more than ten months in total, unless the absence was for military service or another serious, documented reason such as ill health.

Once you have it, you can work in Italy as an employee or as self-employed, so you’re no longer limited to remote work. It also lets you live in another Schengen country for more than three months, under that country’s rules. You can lose it if you spend 12 months in a row outside the EU, or more than six years outside Italy.

Italian citizenship by residence is open after 10 years of legal residence in Italy. You’ll need to show enough income to support yourself and a clean criminal record, and pass an Italian language certificate at B1 level.

How do you apply for the Italy digital nomad visa?

From your home country

You apply at the Italian consulate that covers where you legally live.

1. Secure your accommodation first. You need a lease, rental contract or deed in your own name covering the whole visa period. A rental contract has to be the standard residential lease (contratto di locazione ad uso abitativo), and your landlord has to register it with the Italian tax authority.
2. Get your qualification recognised through CIMEA or a Declaration of Value, or gather five years of employment records. This and the lease take the longest, so start both early.
3. Arrange health insurance that meets your consulate’s conditions.
4. Book an appointment at your consulate. Some consulates, such as Toronto, take applications by post and call you in later. Since January 2025, all national visa applicants have their fingerprints taken.
5. Submit the national visa form, photo and passport, with proof of income, experience, qualification, accommodation and insurance. Remote workers add their employment contract and employer letter. Some consulates, including New York, want your passport to be valid for at least 15 months after your travel date, with two blank pages.
6. Pay the national visa fee, about €116. You pay it in local currency, and the consulate updates the local amount every quarter.
7. Wait for a decision. The London consulate says digital nomad applications can take up to 120 days and remote worker applications up to 30 days. Toronto says some national visas take 45 to 90 working days. The consulate keeps your passport while it decides.
8. Travel to Italy and apply for your residence permit within eight working days.

Can you apply from inside Italy?

No. Unlike Spain, Italy only takes applications through its consulates abroad, so you can’t switch to this visa while visiting Italy as a tourist.

Why do applications get refused?

The New York consulate says inadequate health insurance is the number one reason for refusals. The consulate can also refuse you for:

• No lease in your name, or a lease that doesn’t cover the whole visa period. The consulate won’t accept hotel stays or offers of hospitality from friends
• A rental contract that isn’t the standard residential type, or that your landlord hasn’t registered with the tax authority
• Income from pensions, rent or investments instead of work
• A degree without CIMEA recognition or a Declaration of Value
• Gaps in the job-by-job paperwork for the five-years-of-experience route
• For employees, a salary below the collective agreement level or the ISTAT figure
• A passport without enough validity left

What applicants report

These points come from people who’ve written about their applications since late 2024, and from advisers who’ve reviewed approved cases.

• Finding a lease is one of the hardest parts. One applicant contacted about 100 people before she found a flat through a Facebook group. One review of approved cases found that landlords often want to see a visa before they’ll rent to you, though you need the lease to get the visa, and suggests property managers who are used to foreign tenants. Applicants have paid rent for months before they arrived.
• Waiting times vary a lot. An applicant at the London consulate got her visa 21 days after applying in July 2026. One review of approved cases found an average of two to three weeks, with a range from two days to 80 days. A self-employed applicant waited about four months, and one adviser says freelancers often wait longer than employees.
• Send far more income evidence than the checklist asks for. One application ran to about 800 pages, most of it invoices and bank statements. One review of approved cases found most applicants earned between €43,000 and €80,000, so if you’re close to the minimum, the rest of your file has to be very solid. The same review recommends a short financial summary in Italian, with figures converted to euros.
• If you’re paid through your own company, show the money reaching you. One business owner said the hardest part was proving her income reached her personal account. Applicants in this position have used personal bank statements with salary and dividend payments highlighted, business bank statements alongside them, tax returns covering several years, and a letter from their accountant confirming their earnings.
• Start your CIMEA certificate early. CIMEA’s official processing time is 60 working days. One guide based on applicant cases reports anything from a few days to several weeks, and one applicant said she could have applied months earlier if she’d checked the CIMEA portal for updates.

Sources for this section: an applicant’s blog (London consulate, August 2026), an applicant interview in Magic Towns (updated July 2026), the Magic Towns case review (updated October 2026), the Magic Towns CIMEA guide (updated October 2026), Italian Citizenship Assistance (April 2026) and Marco Mazzeschi (June 2026).

Who this visa suits

We think the Italy digital nomad visa suits you if you’ve been working in your field for a while and can prove it, ideally with a degree or a professional qualification. The income threshold is the lowest of the digital nomad visas we cover, so it works well if you already earn a steady remote income at or above that level.

It also makes sense if you’re thinking long term. After five years you can apply for the EU long-term residence permit, which is Italy’s only permanent residence permit, and after ten years you can apply for Italian citizenship if you want it. Because Italy’s permanent permit is the EU version, it also gives you an easier route to living in another Schengen country, under that country’s rules, without waiting the full ten years for citizenship.

Look elsewhere if you’re new to your field. You need at least six months of experience in the work you’ll do from Italy, and without a degree or licence you need a higher professional qualification plus five years of documented experience. It’s also a poor fit if you want to apply from inside the country or from wherever you happen to be, because Italy only takes applications at the consulate that covers the place where you legally live.

How Italy compares with other digital nomad visas

Country	Minimum income (a month)	First permit	Apply from inside the country?	Leads to permanent residency?
Italy	About €2,066	1 year, renewable	No	Yes, after 5 years
Spain	About €2,849	Up to 3 years, renewable	Yes, in some cases	Yes, after 5 years
Greece	€3,500	1 year, then 2-year permits	No, since February 2026	Partly, after 5 years
Portugal	€3,680	2-year permit, then 3-year renewals	No	Yes, after 5 years

Italy has the lowest income threshold of the digital nomad visas we cover. For the full side-by-side comparison, see our digital nomad visas page.

FAQ

What are the requirements for the Italy digital nomad visa? A qualifying profession (a recognised degree, a licence, or five years of experience), at least six months of experience in the work you’ll do from Italy, income of about €24,790 a year from that work, health insurance covering medical treatment and hospital stays in Italy (at least €30,000 of cover at some consulates), and a registered lease in Italy in your name.

Is it hard to get Italy’s digital nomad visa? The income threshold is the lowest of the visas we cover, but you need a lot of paperwork. The New York consulate says inadequate health insurance is the top reason for refusals, and a missing or unregistered lease or unrecognised qualifications also lead to refusals. Applicants say finding a lease is one of the hardest parts.

Do I need a degree? Not necessarily. Without a degree or licence, you can qualify with a higher professional qualification and at least five years of documented experience, or three years within the last seven if you work in IT.

Does my degree need to match my work? Not under the rules for the digital nomad route. The decree that created the visa defines “highly qualified” by your qualifications, so any degree from at least three years of higher education counts, as long as it’s recognised through CIMEA or a Declaration of Value. The remote worker route adds one more test: the job described in your employment contract has to be a highly skilled role. The consulate judges this from your contract and job description, and the rules don’t say it has to be in the same subject as your degree. If you qualify through five years of experience instead of a degree, that experience does have to relate to your profession or sector. Either way, you still need at least six months of experience in the work you’ll do from Italy. Consulates have discretion, so if you have more than one degree, lead with the one closest to your work.

Can I work remotely in Italy for a US company? Yes, on this visa. The remote worker category covers employees of companies based outside Italy, as long as you meet the qualification, income and salary rules. For any stay longer than 90 days, you need a long-stay visa such as this one.

Is it difficult for a US citizen to move to Italy? It’s manageable if you meet the income and qualification rules, which are the same for every non-EU citizen. Americans apply at the Italian consulate that covers the state they live in. The hard parts are usually getting a registered lease from abroad and getting your degree recognised.

Can I apply from inside Italy? No. You apply at the Italian consulate that covers where you legally live, then get your residence permit after you arrive.

Do I pay tax in Italy on this visa? Usually, yes. Once you’re tax resident, Italy taxes your worldwide income. The impatriati regime can make half of your qualifying income tax-free for five years.

Can a US citizen live in Italy permanently through this visa? Yes, over time. After five years of legal residence you can apply for the EU long-term residence permit, and after ten for citizenship.

If you don’t qualify: alternatives and similar visas

If your income comes from pensions or investments rather than work, Italy’s elective residency visa is designed for that, though it doesn’t allow you to work. Self-employed people can also look at Italy’s self-employment visa, which runs on an annual quota.

To compare other digital nomad visas, see our digital nomad visas page, or start with:

• Spain’s digital nomad visa, which you can apply for from inside Spain
• Portugal’s digital nomad visa, with its own route to permanent residency
• Greece’s digital nomad visa, with a 2-year residence permit after the first year

Sources

• Decree of 29 February 2024 setting the visa’s rules, Gazzetta Ufficiale n. 79 of 4 April 2024 (official; the full text is under “Atto completo”)
• Consulate General of Italy in New York: digital nomad / remote worker visa (official)
• Consulate General of Italy in Los Angeles: digital nomad / remote worker visa (official)
• Consulate General of Italy in London: digital nomad visa for the self-employed (official)
• Consulate General of Italy in Toronto: digital nomad and remote worker visa (official)
• Polizia di Stato: EU long-term residence permit (official)
• Italian Ministry of the Interior: citizenship (official)
• Assolombarda: the impatriati tax regime (employers’ association guide)
• Fiscozen: the flat-rate regime at 5% and 15% (tax adviser guide)
• Assolombarda: EU long-term residence permit (employers’ association guide)
• Italian Dual Citizenship: Italy’s digital nomad visa (legal services guide)
• Marco Mazzeschi: Italy’s digital nomad visa, pros and cons (immigration lawyer)
• Boundless: Italy digital nomad visa guide (immigration services guide)
• Italian Citizenship Assistance: 2026 guide to Italy’s digital nomad visa (citizenship services guide)
• Movingto: Italy digital nomad visa (immigration firm guide)
• Magic Towns: Italy’s digital nomad visa, a practical guide (relocation guide based on applicant cases)

Educational information, not legal, immigration or tax advice. Rules change, so check the official sources before you apply.