How to move to Italy: step-by-step plan to residency

Moving to Italy from Russia is not one action but a sequence in which every step depends on the one before it: the permit motive determines the document set, the documents determine the D visa, the visa determines when you post the KIT, the lease determines your municipal registration, and that registration determines your medical card, your bank and your benefits. This page is the navigation hub for the whole path: it lays out the order of the steps and points to the detailed article on each. Material is drawn from the community and open official sources; it is not legal advice, and thresholds, amounts and deadlines change - check the current details on interno.gov.it and esteri.it.

Moving to Italy step by step: in short

1. Choose your permit grounds - everything else follows from the motive: Italian residence permit: all types and the route matcher.
2. Collect the documents and get a D visa for those grounds: visa D for Italy for Russians, the consulate in Moscow and in St Petersburg.
3. Budget two sums - a cushion for several months (the cost of living in Italy) and the rental move-in (what a rental start costs); transfer routes are in the tool how to send money to Italy.
4. Arrive and post the KIT for the permesso within 8 working days of entry: the KIT and the permesso, codice fiscale and residenza.
5. Rent under a registered lease and get residenza: renting a flat, registering at the anagrafe.
6. Set up: tessera sanitaria, a bank, SPID.
7. Work and taxes: work in Italy for Russians, work by city, money and taxes.
8. Family: school, family reunification.
9. The long haul: renewal, the long-term permit, citizenship.

Each step is covered in detail below, preceded by step 0: deciding whether Italy suits you.

Step 0. The decision: what Italy gives and what you put up with

Moving to Italy changes your whole life, and the decision is easier when both sides are written out honestly. The upsides the community names most often:

• Climate and geography: sea and mountains within an hour from almost anywhere, a long warm season.
• Safety: on open data Italy sits consistently in the calmer part of European rankings.
• Food and the quality of basic groceries at a moderate basket price.
• The public health service (SSN) - available on general terms once you are registered.
• Access to the whole EU: work, study, travel without visas inside Schengen.
• Preferential tax regimes for the self-employed and for new arrivals (verify the current terms).
• The prospect of long-term status and citizenship with continuous residence.

The downsides the community warns about just as regularly:

• Bureaucracy is slow and uneven: requirements differ from questura to questura.
• Salaries are lower than in northern Europe, and the north-south gap inside Italy is wide.
• Without Italian, the range of available work and everyday options narrows sharply.
• Renting without papers and proven income is close to impossible, and competition for housing is fierce.
• Waiting for the permesso can drag on for months, and that is a normal part of the process.
• Banks are cautious with new foreign clients, especially at the start.

Choose a country out of love, seriously and for the long term. Life is too short to fight bureaucracy all over again with every move.

Italy is not about fast money or perfect service; it is about a different rhythm - morning coffee at the bar, a walk to the sea after work, the market on Saturday. Many people used to the pace of a big city spend the first months irritated and then stop noticing. How that adjustment goes and what to do about it has its own article - emigration stress.

After four years it already feels like everything here is mine. The building across the street feels like home, and the magnolia under the window is an old friend.

Do not put it off if you know for certain you do not want to grow old where you are now.

Step 1. Choosing the grounds for your permit

This is the most important step: the motive determines your documents, timelines, taxes, right to work and how fast you reach long-term status. A mistake here costs months.

Of the routes that actually work, people most often look at study, self-employment, the digital nomad permit and family reunification. But there is no universally "best" grounds - you fit it to the specific situation: what you earn from, whether you have a degree and experience, whether you have relatives in Italy. Route first, documents second.

Choosing between self-employment and the digital nomad permit

If you work remotely for a foreign client, the digital nomad permit is usually faster and simpler, but the status is temporary, healthcare is more often covered by private insurance and tax follows the ordinary scale. If you expect to stay for the long term, self-employment works out better: a preferential tax regime, access to the SSN through contributions, the standard path to long-term status. A detailed comparison is in the article lavoro autonomo or the digital nomad.

The income threshold for the digital nomad permit is calculated from the annual assegno sociale: the benchmark is three times that figure, meaning around 24 800-28 000 euro a year per the community (chats also cite up to ~33 000 euro). Verify the exact threshold with your consulate and in the text of the decree in force; the requirements and the fine print are covered in digital nomad requirements.

Step 2. Documents for the consulate

Preparing documents is the longest stage. It is worth starting three or four months before you apply: legalisation and sworn translation take weeks, and the consulate may ask for something extra.

The basic set for any D visa:

• Passport - valid well beyond your planned entry and with free pages; if yours is running out, see a second passport.
• The D visa application form - filled in Italian or English, taken from the consulate's site.
• Photographs 3.5x4.5 cm - recent, on a white background.
• Proof of accommodation - a booking, a lease or an invitation from your host; there is a template for the dichiarazione di ospitalita.
• Financial evidence - statements and income certificates; requirements depend on the motive, see income for the permit.
• Health insurance - for entry and the first period; see insurance for the first year.
• Criminal record certificate - legalised and with a sworn translation; see the criminal record certificate.

Additional documents depend on the motive:

• Lavoro autonomo - the nulla osta from the Sportello Unico, proof of qualifications, sometimes membership of a professional body: the lavoro autonomo steps.
• Digital nomad - a contract or proof of freelance activity and income over the preceding period: requirements.
• Study - enrolment, proof of payment and of funds: universities.
• Family reunification - the nulla osta, proof of relationship and idoneita alloggiativa; the difference between reunification and coesione is set out separately.
• A degree for a regulated profession - recognition runs as its own track: recognising a foreign degree.

Start collecting documents at least four months out. Legalisation can take weeks, the translation another week, and then the consulate asks for something extra. A time buffer here is cheaper than postponing the application.

Step 3. How much money you need to move

Financial preparation is not only about the rent. It is the cushion, an understanding of the up-front payments, and a working way to receive money once you are there.

Set aside a safety cushion. Even in a well-equipped flat something is always missing and unexpected costs keep appearing.

The community counts two separate sums. The first is a cushion for several months of living: the breakdown by category and city is in the guide to the cost of living in Italy. The second is the cost of moving into a rental, which usually consists of a deposit of several months, the first month up front and the agency fee all at once; a worked example is in what a rental start costs.

How to receive and transfer money

Transfers from Russia to Italy have been complicated since 2022, and the workable routes keep changing. There is no point covering them in a general guide: this is a topic where currency and caution matter. Which routes work right now, with the months of their last successes and problems, is in the tool how to send money to Italy; the background and the risks are in the articles transferring money from Russia and moving money out of Russia. They also cover declaring cash on entry and which schemes the community considers risky. Alongside them see cash and currency exchange and banks for Russian citizens.

Belongings, pets, medicines

What to bring, from the experience of people who have moved:

• Belongings. Families more often buy extra checked bags from the airline than deal with cargo: it is predictable and free of customs hassle, and much is cheaper to sell and buy again on arrival. Routes and baggage are in getting to Italy from Russia; parcels sent after you, and why CDEK takes them reluctantly, are in parcels to and from Italy.
• Pets. An ISO chip, a rabies shot and, for animals from Russia and Belarus, a titre test; the main trap is leaving the transit zone on a connection. Step by step in how to bring a dog or cat to Italy.
• Medicines. A familiar drug is found locally by its active substance, and prescriptions come from the medico di base once you are in the SSN: medicine equivalents in Italian pharmacies. Check the EU import rules on salute.gov.it.

Step 4. Arrival and the first days

The visa is in hand and you have entered. Now comes the most procedural part, and some of it is tied to deadlines counted from the date of entry.

Codice fiscale

The tax code is issued by the Agenzia delle Entrate on presentation of your passport. Without it you cannot arrange a lease, a SIM card or a bank account. The procedure and what to do about a temporary code are in codice fiscale and residenza, and how the code itself is built is in the codice fiscale explained.

The KIT for the permesso

The KIT is a postal envelope with an application form, submitted at a Poste Italiane counter. It is paid for in several parts: the envelope itself, the revenue stamp and the cost of the electronic card - the amounts are modest per the community but they are revised, so check current values on portaleimmigrazione.it and at the counter. The full walkthrough, field by field, is in the KIT and the permesso.

Important: the KIT is submitted within the window that starts on entry - the community benchmark is the first working days; check the exact deadline for your motive on portaleimmigrazione.it. After posting you are left with the ricevuta, which stands in for the card while it is produced and with which you can work and travel with caveats - see travelling on the ricevuta.

Insurance or the SSN

If your motive does not give immediate access to public healthcare you need private insurance for the interim - insurance for the first year. For those who do enter the SSN, the procedure for the medical card is described in the SSN and the tessera sanitaria.

Temporary accommodation

The first weeks mean a short let or a hotel. Renting a permanent flat straight away without a codice fiscale and without the ricevuta is close to impossible, and that is fine: use the time to scout neighbourhoods.

The procedures do not actually take much time. A couple of hours a month is a small price for fitting a new family into a new country.

Step 5. Housing, the contract, residenza

Housing is the foundation of every other document. Without a registered lease there is no residenza, and without residenza there is no tessera sanitaria, no proper bank account, no ISEE and no calm permit renewal.

Find someone you know in the city you want to move to. We moved knowing nobody, and it was very stressful.

Step 6. Setting up: bank, healthcare, digital identity

Once you have the ricevuta or the card, a codice fiscale and residenza, you can arrange everything else. The order that saves time:

• Bank account. An Italian IBAN is needed for salary, rent and contributions. Which banks actually open accounts for new residents is covered in banks and money, which bank will open an account and banks for Russian citizens.
• Tessera sanitaria and a family doctor. Arranged at the ASL for your registered address; then you choose a medico di base - the SSN and the tessera sanitaria, the medico di base.
• SPID, CIE and PEC. Without a digital identity almost everything is awkward: the INPS and tax portals, booking a doctor, filing applications. See SPID, comparing SPID providers, PEC and CIE.
• Everyday life. Internet, furniture, the second-hand market, transport - do not buy everything at once, first work out what you actually need. Travel passes and trains are in the guide to transport and the abbonamento, and apps in the comparison of transport apps.

Step 7. Work and taxes

What you are allowed to do in Italy depends on your type of permesso: self-employment requires a Partita IVA, employment requires a contract, and for a digital nomad the work is tied to a foreign client. The overall picture of the labour market, contracts and pay is in the guide to work in Italy, and the sectors and pay in Milan, Rome, Bologna, Turin and the south are in work in Italy by city.

Self-employment

• Partita IVA - the tax number of a self-employed person, opened through the Agenzia delle Entrate, in practice almost always with an accountant: Partita IVA and business forms.
• Forfettario - a preferential regime with a reduced rate in the first years and a turnover ceiling; the rate, the ceiling and the profitability coefficient are all time-sensitive, so check current values in forfettario and taxes.
• INPS contributions - for many freelancers this is the Gestione Separata, where the contribution is a percentage of income: around 26% per the community, so verify the current rate on inps.it. How it connects to your future pension is in the pension system.
• The ordinary regime - if your costs are high, ordinario sometimes beats the simplified regime: the ordinary tax system.

The main thing to grasp before moving: compare the regimes on your own numbers, not on averages. On a modest income the gap between the simplified and the ordinary regime comes mostly from contributions; on a high one it comes from deductions, which the simplified regime does not allow. And count not only this year's tax but your future pension too: contributions are lower on the preferential regime. This is not tax advice - do the maths with an accountant.

Employment and remote work for a client abroad

Finding an employer in Italy is harder than it looks, and language counts for more than a degree - the market, contracts and workers' rights are covered in the guide to work in Italy. If you keep working for a client in another country, check the tax consequences separately: remote work for Russia and digital nomad taxes. The rule most often forgotten: once you live here long enough you become an Italian tax resident and declare worldwide income.

Step 8. Family: children, school, reunification, benefits

Moving with a family is its own track. Children adapt faster than adults, but the first months are hard on everyone.

School and nursery

Italian school is free and compulsory for every child regardless of the parents' status. One important practical point: the official enrolment window for the first year of school falls roughly in January, for the following school year; if you arrive outside the window the school still has to take your child, but per the community that means phoning round schools and going to the comune's education office. The procedure, school types and documents are in the guide to school in Italy and in the article on enrolling in scuola and asilo. Nurseries and the waiting list are covered in nido and the graduatoria, private and international schools in international schools.

Children adapt within a few months, and after six months they speak Italian better than their parents. The main thing is not to be afraid of the ordinary Italian school: language support for foreign children is provided there.

Family reunification

If you already hold the permit, a spouse and minor children are brought over through reunification: you need the nulla osta from the Sportello Unico, proof of income and the idoneita alloggiativa - the housing suitability certificate. The procedure is slow and per the community is measured in months. In detail: family and reunification, reunification or coesione, idoneita alloggiativa, a permit for a child.

The ISEE and benefits

The ISEE is the indicator of a household's economic position; benefits and discounts on nursery and study depend on it. It is prepared free of charge through a CAF or INPS. Which payments a foreigner with a permesso can claim - child benefits, the nursery contribution, targeted measures - is covered in benefits for foreigners and bonuses and concessions; the amounts there are tied to the ISEE and are revised, so check current values on inps.it. How the indicator itself is calculated is in the ISEE and the DSU.

Step 9. The long haul: renewal, long-term status, citizenship

Renewing the permesso

Since June 2026 (D.Lgs 83/2026) the renewal KIT is submitted no later than 90 days before the card expires - the law previously said 60 days. You need proof of income, housing and insurance or SSN cover. In detail: renewing the permesso; if you have spent long periods abroad, see renewal and absence from the country, and if you are refused, refusal and appeal.

Long-term status

After five years of continuous residence you can apply for the open-ended EU permit for long-term residents. Stable income, housing, knowledge of Italian and a clean record are checked. In detail: the EU long-term permit.

Citizenship

Naturalisation for non-EU citizens is usually counted from ten years of legal residence, and the review itself takes years; the rules and timelines have changed, so see the current position in the citizenship section and in the stages of the path to citizenship. Separate grounds are marriage and residence: by residence and by marriage.

The Italian language

The language is not a box to tick: long-term status requires a certified basic level, citizenship a higher one, and in daily life without it you functionally drop out. The free public courses and the exam are covered in Italian A2 and the CPIA and B1 for citizenship. It is worth starting before you move: the first months after arrival go on everyday logistics.

Learn the language in advance. We kept telling ourselves we would start once we had moved. And then the first stretch after the move goes on sorting out daily life, and there is neither energy nor time left for the language.

Driving licence

A foreign licence is valid in Italy for a limited period after you obtain residenza; after that you need an Italian patente. A direct exchange (conversione) is available only to citizens of countries that have a mutual-recognition agreement with Italy; look up the list of those countries on mit.gov.it - Russia is not on it, so the licence is obtained from scratch. The procedure, the exams and the costs are in conversion and getting a patente; after that you will want buying a car and RCA insurance.

What to remember

• Motive first, documents second. The permit grounds shape the whole path; fitting papers to somebody else's route is the most expensive mistake.
• Budget two sums of money. A cushion for living and, separately, the cost of getting into a rental - people confuse the two and underestimate the second.
• The first days are procedural. Codice fiscale, the KIT, the ricevuta - within the deadlines; everything else can be done gradually.
• Housing is paperwork, not comfort. Without a registered lease there is no registration, no medical card and no proper bank account.
• Patronato and CAF are free. You do not have to file most applications on your own.
• Start the language before you move. You need it for long-term status, for citizenship and simply to live.
• This is a distance measured in years. Permesso, renewals, long-term status after five years, citizenship later - each stage requires proven income, housing and patience.

Related articles

• Italian residence permit: all types and how to get one - which grounds fit your situation.
• Visa D for Italy for Russians - visa D types, documents and waits from the chats.
• Work in Italy by city - sectors and pay in Milan, Rome, Bologna, Turin and the south.
• Lavoro autonomo - the permit for the self-employed and entrepreneurs.
• Digital nomad - remote work for a foreign client.
• Residenza elettiva - passive income and pensions.
• Italy retirement visa - retiring on a pension: income, the 7% tax, healthcare.
• Moving to Italy from the UK - the same path from the UK: the London consulate, S1, the licence exchange.
• Family and reunification - spouse, children, coesione, documents.
• The KIT and the permesso - the central procedure of the first days.
• Codice fiscale and residenza - the first two documents you get once you arrive.
• Renting a flat in Italy - the search, the contract, the deposit, tenant rights.
• What a rental start costs - the up-front payment in money.
• The cost of living in Italy - the monthly budget by category and city.
• Work in Italy - contracts, pay, workers' rights.
• Money and taxes - the bank, the regimes, contributions, the tax return.
• School in Italy - enrolling a child and the structure of education.
• Renewing the permesso - deadlines, documents, the ricevuta.
• Italian bureaucracy - a map of the agencies and who does what.
• Patronato and CAF - free help with applications.

Official sources

• Ministry of the Interior, immigration and the permesso: interno.gov.it
• Ministry of Foreign Affairs and D visas: esteri.it
• The immigration portal, the KIT and application status: portaleimmigrazione.it
• Questuras and appointments: questure.poliziadistato.it
• Taxes, codice fiscale, Partita IVA: agenziaentrate.gov.it
• Contributions, benefits, pensions: inps.it
• Healthcare and the SSN: salute.gov.it
• School and education: istruzione.it

Frequently asked questions

Where do you start when moving to Italy?

Per the community, not with tickets but with choosing the grounds for your residence permit: the motive determines the document set, the taxes, the speed and your rights in Italy. First you pick the route (employment, self-employment, digital nomad, study, family reunification, residenza elettiva), then you gather the papers for it. Trying to retrofit documents to somebody else's route is the most common beginner's mistake. This is not legal advice.

How much money do you need for the first months in Italy?

Per the community the benchmark is a cushion covering about six months of costs, plus a separate sum for moving into a rental, because on signing you are usually asked for a deposit of several months, the first month up front and the agency fee all at once. The total depends heavily on the city: the north is noticeably more expensive than the south. Budget from your own city and your own flat offer rather than a national average. This is not financial advice.

What do you have to do in the first days after arriving?

Per the community the order is: the codice fiscale at the Agenzia delle Entrate, then posting the KIT for the permesso at the post office within the window that starts on entry (the benchmark is the first working days; check the exact deadline on portaleimmigrazione.it), then insurance or access to the SSN, and temporary accommodation. The receipt (ricevuta) for the KIT stands in for the card while it is being produced. Verify the exact sequence for your motive with the questura and on interno.gov.it.

Why does nothing work without a rental contract?

Because a chain hangs off it: a registered lease is needed for residenza (municipal registration), and residenza is needed for the tessera sanitaria, a proper bank account, the ISEE and a trouble-free permit renewal. Housing for a move is therefore a documents question, not a comfort question; short-stay options usually do not qualify for residenza. Check the conditions with your comune.

When can you enrol a child in an Italian school?

Italian school is free and compulsory for every child, foreign children included, regardless of the parents' status. But there is a difference between the normal enrolment window and enrolling mid-year: the official window for the first year of school falls roughly in January, for the following school year. If you arrive outside the window the school still has to take your child - in practice, per the community, that means phoning round schools and going to the comune's education office. Check the procedure on istruzione.it and with your comune.

Can you exchange a Russian driving licence for an Italian one?

Per the community a direct exchange (conversione) is available only to citizens of countries that have a mutual-recognition agreement with Italy; Russia is not on that list, so an Italian patente is obtained from scratch - theory and practical test. Look up the list of countries with an agreement on mit.gov.it: it changes, and claims in chats about particular countries should be checked there. You may drive on a foreign licence for a limited period after obtaining residenza. This is not legal advice.

How long is the path from the first permit to citizenship?

Per the community it is a marathon: the first permesso, then renewals, then after five years of continuous residence the option of the open-ended EU long-term permit, while naturalisation for non-EU citizens is usually counted from ten years of legal residence, and the review itself takes years. Income, housing and language are checked at every stage. Verify timelines and requirements on interno.gov.it - this is not legal advice.

Related materials - Guides

• How much a rental start costs in Italy
• Pets in Italy: rules, vet care, renting
• Moving to Italy from the UK: visa, S1, licence, tax
• Work in Italy for Russians: jobs and permit