Episode Details

Luca: How are you, Anna?

Anna: I’m good. What about you?

Luca: I am doing great. It’s really good to see you for the last episode before Christmas. We’re gonna take a couple of weeks of well-deserved break.

Anna: And today we’re diving into one of the most interesting topics for remote workers and expats, which is Italy’s new digital nomad visa.

Luca: Yes. I’m so excited about that. And I know you’re excited about it too because you’ve been covering it assiduously for a couple of months now, haven’t you?

Anna: And I’m sure lots of people are interested as well.

Luca: The Digital Nomads Visa has been in the works for a while, and finally it’s live. The Italian government started talking about a couple of years ago, but as it happens in Italy, it only took off in, uh, May or June.

Can we talk a little bit about what it really takes to get [00:01:00] it?

Anna: The good thing is that it’s absolutely doable. Let’s break down what the visa is, uh, who it’s for and what the real world requirements look like.

Luca: The digital nomad visa, like other digital nomad visas in Europe, like the Portuguese one is probably the best known one, is aimed at non- European citizens who work remotely as the, as freelancers or the business owners or the employees of foreign companies.

It is valid for one year. It is renewable and it lets you live legally in Italy while earning more money from companies and customers based abroad.

Anna: Exactly. So, there are two broad tracks. The remote worker visa, if you are employed by a company, and then digital nomad visa, if you are employed or if you’re self-employed or freelance. The paperwork changes slightly depending on which route you’re taking, but the general [00:02:00] principles, let’s say, are the same.

Luca: Talking about what you need to qualify for the DNV, as we call it, income, you need to show earnings of at least 28,000 euro per year, which is the legal minimum.

Anna: But realistically, successful applicants tend to earn quite a bit more so based on real cases. Most approval came in the 43,000, 80,000 range.

Luca: And income alone is not enough for you to get the visa. You need to prove that you have financial stability historically.

With things like tax returns, bank statements, client contracts.

Anna: And a pro tip is to create an explanatory note in Italian. So this is like a financial cover letter.

Luca: Now, paperwork wise, as we said, you need two to five years of tax returns. Six to 12 months worth of bank statements, a lease or registered housing [00:03:00] contract. And we’re gonna get back on that point because it’s a bit of a sticky point in a second. A private health insurance policy, a degree or proof of professional experience for the sector you’re applying in. And, don’t be discouraged sworn translations in Italian for a lot of these documents.

Anna: So you need to prove you’ve got a place lined up before you even apply. So, 12 month lease registered with the Agenzia delle Entrate is the safest bet.

Luca: You are an expert in this topic. You also wrote an article this week, Anna, about, how tricky it is to get these 12 month leases so listeners can go to Magic Towns directly and read it.

It is, very, very interesting. It is true that the, for this particular type of visa some consulates accept Airbnb medium term rentals. So when in doubt go for a 12 month registered [00:04:00] lease.

Anna: And people often ask like, how much is this going to cost me? So let’s be honest. Mm-hmm. It’s not cheap, but. It’s not outrageous either.