Visas and permits

Italy Elective Residence Visa: Requirements and Process (2026)

By Vincenzo GrecoFacts checked October 24, 2026

Who it is for

People who settle in Italy and live on income not earned by working

Income

No euro figure in the decree; about €31,000 per person at 5 of the 10 US offices (October 2026)

Work in Italy

Not allowed

Housing

A registered lease or deed at most offices, before the appointment

Visa fee

$133.60 (October 1 to December 31, 2026, Los Angeles and San Francisco)

Processing

Up to 90 days, no rush service

After you land

Permesso di soggiorno within 8 working days; €116.46 for a first permit of up to 1 year

What the elective residence visa is

The elective residence visa (visto per residenza elettiva) is a national, long-stay visa. It is for people who want to settle in Italy and can support themselves without working.

Its legal basis is Interministerial Decree no. 850 of May 11, 2011, which defines Italy's entry visa types and their requirements. Point 13 of its Annex A covers elective residence and asks for two things:

• A home in Italy that you will make your residence.
• Ample resources that are your own, stable and regular, and can reasonably be expected to continue.

Your spouse, minor children and adult dependent children who live with you can get the same visa. The condition is that your resources are judged adequate for them as well.

The decree sets the national rule. Each consulate applies it through its own checklist, and the 10 US offices word theirs differently. Where they differ, this guide names the office.

How much income you need

The decree names no euro amount. It sets the floor at 3 times the annual amount in Table A of an Interior Ministry directive of March 1, 2000, on means of subsistence.

The decree does not convert that into euros, and no consulate page explains how its own figure relates to it.

Consulates that publish a figure use €31,000, as of October 2026:

• Houston: €31,000 for 1 person, €62,000 for a married couple.
• Boston: more than €31,000 a year for each applicant, dependents included.
• Detroit: a minimum of €31,000 a year.
• New York and the Washington embassy: about €31,000 per person for family applications.

Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, Philadelphia and San Francisco publish no figure. They ask for "substantial and steady" or "adequate" resources. None of the 10 pages says whether a figure is gross or net.

If your consulate names no amount, €31,000 per adult is the published benchmark elsewhere, not a rule there. Ask your consulate by email before you commit to a lease.

Which income counts, and which does not

The decree lists pensions, annuities (vitalizi), property, stable business activities, and "other sources" other than employment. The consulates fill in the detail:

• Pensions and annuities: pensions are on every checklist, and most also name annuities.
• Social Security: San Francisco lists it as passive income. New York, Boston, Los Angeles, Washington and Detroit ask for letters from the Social Security Administration.
• Investments: San Francisco, Miami and Detroit name stocks and bonds. Boston names trusts and investment funds.
• Rent and property: the decree names property; Los Angeles names rental income.
• Business income: most offices accept income from "stable economic and commercial activities".

Employment income does not count. New York and Washington say your funds must be in your name and cannot come from any employment. Los Angeles calls income from work "ineligible".

You cannot work in Italy. The decree describes living in Italy "without exercising any work activity". Los Angeles and Washington say holders may not work or seek employment "under any conditions". Houston adds that you may keep taking care of your own businesses held abroad.

Savings alone are not described as enough. None of the 10 pages says a lump sum can replace income. San Francisco wants 3 months of bank statements showing the passive income. Miami asks for letters giving each account's balance, plus a year of statements.

Proof of a home in Italy

The decree asks only for a home you will make your residence. The consulates are stricter:

• Registered: 9 of the 10 offices ask for a registered lease or deed, and 7 of them name the Agenzia delle Entrate (Revenue Agency). Los Angeles asks for proof of registration with a deed.
• In your name: New York, Washington, San Francisco, Miami and Houston say so explicitly.
• Long enough: New York, Washington, Chicago and Houston want the whole period; San Francisco, at least 365 days.
• Not a hotel: San Francisco and Houston refuse hotel stays and offers of hospitality, and Los Angeles refuses offers of hospitality. Chicago and Los Angeles refuse multiple bookings of houses or hotels. Miami refuses transitory leases.

Washington wants a hard copy of the registration proof at the interview. San Francisco says your contract must be materially similar to its sample.

Every office accepts a deed, so owners skip the lease problem.

If you rent, the landlord registers the lease. A lease for a non-resident tenant without a codice fiscale (tax code) can be registered with form 69, under Agenzia Resolution 5/E of February 14, 2023, as reported by IPSOA. See the renting guide.

Health insurance

At the visa stage, only 2 offices list insurance. Chicago asks for overseas health insurance covering 100% of medical expenses. Boston asks for a Schengen policy covering emergency evacuation and repatriation of remains.

Once you live in Italy, the law decides. Elective residence is not among the permits with mandatory enrollment in the Servizio Sanitario Nazionale (SSN, national health service). Under article 34 of Legislative Decree 286/1998, you must either:

• hold a policy against illness, injury and maternity, from an Italian or foreign insurer, valid in Italy, or
• enroll voluntarily in the SSN, which also covers dependent family members.

Voluntary enrollment costs an annual contribution: the same percentage Italians pay, on your previous year's total income in Italy and abroad. The minimum is €2,000 a year (October 2026).

The City of Florence's 2025 guide for migrants confirms that a permit issued on this visa gives the right to voluntary enrollment. See voluntary SSN enrollment.

In 2025, a Milan court asked the Constitutional Court whether some elective residence holders should get free, mandatory coverage. In ruling 97 of 2026, filed June 5, the Court read the law as already giving it to one group.

That group is people whose work or family permit was converted to elective residence after they received an Italian civil disability pension. If you arrive on the visa, the rules above apply.

Consulate-by-consulate requirements

Each office covers specific states, and you apply where you live. Dates are each page's last update or, for PDF checklists, the month uploaded.

Most offices reserve the right to ask for more and state that a complete file does not guarantee a visa.

Documents most consulates ask for

1. The national visa application form, signed in front of a visa officer.
2. A passport valid at least 3 months beyond the visa, with 2 blank pages. San Francisco wants 15 months from the application date.
3. A passport photo.
4. Proof that you live in the consulate's district, usually a driver's license or state ID.
5. Income proof: official letters from banks, financial institutions, pension funds and Social Security, plus your last 2 years of tax returns.
6. The registered lease or deed.
7. Marriage and birth certificates for a spouse and children who apply.
8. The fee by money order or cashier's check. Los Angeles and San Francisco charge $133.60 for a national visa (October 1 to December 31, 2026). Houston takes only USPS money orders.
9. A prepaid, self-addressed return envelope.

Since January 11, 2025, national visa applicants give fingerprints in person. Detroit lists the exemptions: G7 citizens on study visas, staff at military bases, and diplomatic visas. Elective residence applicants are not among them.

For how to authenticate US marriage and birth certificates, see apostilles for Italy.

How long it takes

Appointments are booked on Prenot@mi, the free online booking system. San Francisco, Miami and Detroit want the appointment within 6 months of your departure. Chicago accepts applications up to 180 days before you enter the Schengen area.

San Francisco warns that it is often booked out several months ahead. Residents of its district cannot apply at another consulate. Houston and Detroit want one appointment per applicant; San Francisco takes one adult and their minor children per appointment.

After the appointment, New York, Washington, Los Angeles, Houston and San Francisco say processing can take up to 90 days; Miami gives 90 days. San Francisco says it aims for 30. New York, Washington, Los Angeles and Chicago offer no rush processing.

San Francisco issues the visa for exactly 365 days.

After you arrive: the permesso per residenza elettiva

Within 8 working days of entering Italy, you apply for the permesso di soggiorno per residenza elettiva. Elective residence is on Poste Italiane's list of permits filed with a kit at a post office with a Sportello Amico counter.

Costs for a first permit of more than 3 months and up to 1 year, as of October 2026:

The permit lasts as long as your visa, per the Polizia di Stato (state police). At the questura (provincial police headquarters), you give fingerprints. If your permit lasts 1 year or more, you must also sign an accordo di integrazione (integration agreement).

Washington, Los Angeles and San Francisco tell you to keep copies of everything you gave the consulate. San Francisco notes that the immigration authorities in Italy may ask for them. The City of Florence's guide also lists proof of your resources for the kit.

The permesso di soggiorno guide walks through the kit. Then register your residence at the comune (municipality); see residency registration. For how both countries tax your pension and investments, see taxes in Italy for Americans.

Renewing the permit

Italian law asks you to apply for renewal at least 90 days before the permit expires. The questura checks again that you meet the conditions. A renewal cannot last longer than the original permit.

San Francisco and Miami describe a yearly check that you still meet all the requirements. The City of Florence's guide says the permit is renewable as long as the conditions last, with the same post office kit. See renewing a permesso.

Common problems and fixes

No appointment in sight. Applicants at Los Angeles, San Francisco and Houston report trouble finding open slots, which San Francisco itself warns about.

Book as soon as your consulate's window opens, and check daily for cancellations, as Miami advises. Booking is free: Detroit warns about third parties that charge to get you a slot.

A lease before the visa. Applicants report that housing proof is where plans stall. The usual cases: a lease signed sight unseen, a purchase not yet made, or an Airbnb booking that does not qualify.

For a landlord, a lease before the visa means committing to a tenant who may be refused. Ask your consulate in writing which contract it accepts, and look for landlords used to foreign tenants.

Silence after the appointment. Applicants at Philadelphia, Houston and Miami report long waits without replies, in Philadelphia past 90 days. Write once to the visa office's email with your appointment date. Washington asks applicants not to negotiate the issue date, and San Francisco advises against buying tickets before the visa arrives.

The wrong insurance. Applicants often ask which policy qualifies. Chicago's standard is 100% of medical expenses, and once you live in Italy, the policy must be valid there. Compare it with voluntary SSN enrollment.

Plans to earn a little. Applicants ask about consulting, selling paintings or book royalties. If you plan to work, look at the digital nomad visa or the self-employment visa. The City of Florence's guide says an elective residence permit can later be converted into a work permit.

Do you need help with this?

Retirees with a pension, Social Security and a home already in mind can usually do this alone. It gets harder when your consulate publishes no figure, your income mixes several sources, or the lease, appointment and move date must line up.