Italy Digital nomad visa

Who the DNV is for

Italy’s digital nomad visa, created by an interministerial decree of February 29, 2024 and applicable since April 5, 2024, is for non-EU citizens who do highly qualified work remotely. It runs on two tracks: a digital nomad track for the self-employed and a remote worker track for employees and collaborators. Both must meet Italy’s highly qualified standard, which consulates phrase differently — Los Angeles accepts a degree, an official license, five years’ professional experience, or three of the past seven years for ICT specialists; New York shortens this to a degree or three years’ training or experience. You also need six months’ prior experience in your activity and annual income from lawful sources of at least three times the healthcare-cost-exemption level: EUR 24,789.93 per year, roughly EUR 2,065.83 per month.

One unusual feature: the decree allows your employer or client to be based inside or outside Italy, so Italian clients and employers are not excluded. Self-employed applicants must open an Italian VAT registration (partita IVA), and entry sits outside the decreto-flussi quota system, so no nulla osta is needed.

This visa is not for you if your work does not clear the highly qualified bar, if you cannot document six months of experience in your activity, or if your income falls short. Employees also need a contract or binding offer plus an employer declaration of no convictions under art. 22(5-bis) of the immigration act in the past five years.

How to apply, step by step

1. Check your consulate’s own page first. Posted income figures vary: New York and Los Angeles state EUR 24,789 per year, while Pristina and Singapore round the statutory base up to about EUR 25,500. Insurance floors differ by post too.
2. Assemble your evidence: income documentation, suitable accommodation in Italy, proof of qualification and of six months’ experience, valid health insurance, and — for employees — the contract or binding offer and the employer declaration.
3. Apply at the Italian consulate competent for where you live. The fee is EUR 116 (Paris takes it in cash only; Singapore charges the local-currency equivalent, adjusted quarterly). Toronto has required in-person biometrics since January 11, 2025.
4. Wait for a decision: roughly 4 to 18 weeks depending on the post. Paris quotes up to 30 days for remote workers and 120 days for digital nomads, Singapore up to 90 or 120 days, and Toronto 45-90 business days.
5. After entering Italy, apply to the Questura within 8 working days for the residence permit worded “nomade digitale - lavoratore da remoto.” Your codice fiscale is issued with the permit, and self-employed holders must open their partita IVA.
6. Renew annually. The permit runs for a maximum of one year and renews for as long as you keep meeting the requirements.

Taxes

No special tax regime attaches to this visa. Under the Agenzia delle Entrate’s rules, you become an Italian tax resident if, for the majority of the tax year — 183 days, or 184 in leap years — you have your habitual residence, domicile, or registry registration in Italy, or are simply physically present there, with fractional days counting. Presence alone is enough, which captures anyone spending most of the year in Italy on this permit.

Compliance is baked into the permit itself: the Questura notifies the tax agency, INPS, INAIL, and the labour inspectorate, and the permit can be revoked for fiscal or contributory violations. For social security, bilateral conventions apply where they exist; otherwise Italian rules apply for the permit’s duration. Law-firm analyses cite a Gestione Separata contribution of about 26% for the self-employed, but that rate is not confirmed on an official INPS page, and whether the separate impatriati 50% regime can reach nomad-visa holders is also unconfirmed in government sources. Outcomes depend on personal circumstances and treaty rules.

Health insurance

The decree explicitly requires health insurance covering medical care and hospital admission, valid throughout Italian territory for your entire period of stay. It sets no monetary minimum, but the New York and Los Angeles consulates require at least EUR 30,000 (or USD 50,000) of cover including medical repatriation — mirroring the Schengen standard — while posts such as Toronto, Singapore, Pristina, and Paris publish no amount. Check what your consulate asks for before you buy.

At the application stage, consulates accept private travel-medical or international health policies; you cannot point to Italy’s public SSN at this point. Once you hold a residence permit valid for more than three months and are not compulsorily insured, the Ministry of Health confirms you may enroll in the SSN voluntarily against an annual lump-sum contribution, though the official page does not state the amount. We compare policies that fit these requirements at /digital-nomad-visas/italy/health-insurance/.