Italy

Elective residence visa (visto per residenza elettiva). Residence for people who can live on passive income alone — no work permitted, savings or pensions only.

Free · The law behind every answer · Checked Sep 27, 2026

Elective residence visa (visto per residenza elettiva)

A national (D-type) visa converted into a residence permit, renewable annually or every two years.

Who qualifies

Passive income (pension, rental, dividends, annuities) of about €31,000/year for a single applicant, roughly 20% more per additional family member; the figure is set by consular practice rather than a fixed statutory number and varies somewhat by consulate.
Consolato Generale d'Italia — Visto per residenza elettiva
No employment of any kind is permitted, in Italy or abroad, on this visa.
Consolato Generale d'Italia — Visto per residenza elettiva
Proof of suitable long-term accommodation in Italy, and conversion of the visa into a residence permit (permesso di soggiorno) within 8 days of arrival.
Consolato Generale d'Italia — Visto per residenza elettiva

You keep your U.S. citizenship.

Does it fit your family?

3 questions, from the program’s own rules.

Steady monthly income, from any source?

Not legal advice.

What it takes.

Income: Steady income each month, rising with each person who moves.
Just you$2,842
2 people$3,410
4 people$4,546
Time: 2–4 months for the consulate decision.
Cost: About $500–1,000 in visa fees, translations and proof-of-funds documentation.
The hard part: Convincing the consulate the income is genuinely passive and large enough — practice varies noticeably between consulates.

Dollar figures are converted from the local currency at the rate the program’s research used; the official figure is in the local currency.

Citizens by 2040.

If your first permit is issued in 2027 and you keep living there, this is the road.

2027
First residence permit
1 year, renewable for 2 years at a time.
2028
Renew the permit
Filed before the old one lapses; renews for 2 years.
2030
Renew the permit
Filed before the old one lapses; renews for 2 years.
2032
Permanent residence
Five years holding a residence permit, an Italian A2 test (or an accepted certificate), income at least equal to the social allowance (assegno sociale), and suitable housing. Absences under 6 months in a row and 10 months in total over the five years do not break it.
2037
Apply for citizenship
With a language test.
2040
Citizenship
The decision usually takes 24–36 months.

Language: Italian at B1, shown by a certificate from an approved body (or an Italian school or university qualification).
Time away: Residence must be legal, continuous and unbroken, with registration at the town hall (anagrafe) throughout. Any period registered as living abroad, or struck off as untraceable, breaks the clock.
Two passports: Yes. You keep your U.S. citizenship.

Counts as long as you are registered at the town hall and live in Italy; renewal length is set by the Questura and is commonly two years.
The 24–36 months is the legal maximum for applications filed after 20 December 2020; I found no official figure for actual average times.
Income: the Prefettura page gives a floor of €8,263.61 a year for a single applicant; it is not a field here but applies.
Elective-residence renewal length (commonly two years) is Questura practice, not confirmed from an official page today.
The flat-tax amount (€200,000 a year, possibly raised for new arrivals by the 2026 budget) was not re-checked; only its 15-year limit matters here.

The law behind these dates

Italian Consulate Recife — Visto per residenza elettiva · checked 2026-09-24
Polizia di Stato — Permesso di soggiorno UE per soggiornanti di lungo periodo · checked 2026-09-25
Ministero dell'Interno — Concessione della cittadinanza per residenza (art. 9, Law 91/1992) · checked 2026-09-25
Ministero dell'Interno — Law 91/1992, art. 11 (holding another citizenship) · checked 2026-09-25

Living there.

Time you must spend there: No fixed day count, but the permit assumes Italy is your actual home; long absences can jeopardize renewal.
Tax: Makes you Italian tax resident if you spend 183+ days/year there or register with the comune; the flat-tax regime for new residents (Art. 24-bis) is available if you qualify (see IT-FLATTAX) but is a separate election.

We never file a tax return. We tell you what applies and brief the professional who does.

Start today.

Apply at the Italian consulate for your address with proof of passive income and Italian accommodation.Open consrecife.esteri.it ↗
Round up the papers.
- Proof of steady income: at least $2,842 a month
- Request your FBI Identity History Summary
- Health cover for the move
- A lease or other proof of where you’ll live in Italy
- Get the codice fiscale (Italian tax code)

Or let us run it.

$900for your first year as a founding member. Then $399 a year, automatically.Standard first year: $1,200. Everyone renews at $399.One membership, the whole family. Accounts and activation included.

20 steps, from the first paper to the passport. You do 5 of them: send what we ask for, sign, and show up. We run the rest, and keep every permit renewed on time. Accounts and activation are included, whether you move now or keep the plan ready. Accounts depend on provider availability. Government, record and approved third-party charges are extra.

Run it for my family →

ISSUED TO

YOUR FAMILY

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