Obtaining Italian Residence Permit for Freelancers

Friends and professionals working remotely are often interested in our statistics on refusals when applying for a European residence permit on a visa for freelancers. By the way, many ask whether this type can apply for this type not only to sole proprietorships but also to employees for hire. We answer, today on freelancing work for people of various professions. These are information technology specialists, coaches, programmers, as well as doctors, teachers, online consultants from various fields, photographers, and many others. In the migration environment, they are also called digital nomads.

The success of obtaining a visa does not depend on the type of activity. The main thing is to be a professional in your field. In other matters, it is important to follow the conditions of the program of the chosen country. We immediately make a reservation that a residence permit in Europe does not give freelancers any special preferences and benefits. Moving to the EU countries, remote workers still rely on themselves. On the plus side, there is a higher standard of living and new opportunities for growth and learning.

In 2024, it is possible to obtain a visa for a digital nomad in 40+ European countries, but not all programs are relevant for Russians. Now one of the in-demand destinations for Russian citizens is Italy.

Visas for freelancers in Italy

To move with the subsequent obtaining of a residence permit in Italy, remote workers are offered several visa options depending on their needs:

• Digital Nomad - a relatively new type that does not imply the right to work within the country (the relevant decree appeared on the official portal only in April of this year);
• Lavoro Autonomo - suitable for remote workers, entrepreneurs, and businessmen planning cooperation with Italian companies;
• Lavoro Casi Particolari Previsti - for special categories of high-class professionals and managers
• Residenza Elettiva - visa for financially independent persons with stable passive income for the reason of their chosen place of residence (without the right to work).

Today we would like to share the story of our clients, who with the help of GARANT.in specialists became holders of Italian residence permits for FNP.

Client's story: obtaining an Italian residence permit for freelancers

In April of this year, Evgeny turned to our agency for consultation. The IT specialist (38 years old) had been planning to move abroad for a long time and was considering different options for his family. At the first meeting, we learned that he is engaged in website development and has been working remotely for a British IT company in England for almost 5 years. His wife Victoria is a neurologist by training. While on maternity leave, she also started working remotely - she consults patients online. Both spouses are self-employed and self-employed in Russia. The couple are raising a son (7 years old) and a daughter (1 year old).

They chose Italy for the move because Victoria suffers from a chronic lung disease, and this country (one of the few) has insurance for such working residents. Eugene also said that he and his wife had decided on the place of their future residence and even managed to live for a couple of months on the northern coast of the Mediterranean Sea in Savona on a tourist visa. The city was chosen with Victoria's health condition in mind.

In 2022, our client applied for a national visa D Lavoro Autonomo. At that time, the Digital Nomad law had not been finalized yet, so the permit for autonomous work with the right to engage in employment in Italy was analogous to the program for “nomads”. With the support of an intermediary in St. Petersburg, Evgeny rented an apartment in Italy and sent the documents to the consulate, but like many people at the time, he was rejected.

Now he asked us to check his candidacy to see if he was a potential recipient of a Digital Nomad visa for Italy. To qualify for the Digital Nomad an applicant must:

1. have an impeccable reputation (no criminal record in the last 5 years and no debts in the country of residence);
2. prove a remote income of 32,400€ or more for the previous year (depending on the established minimum in Italy);
3. open a deposit account in an Italian bank with a balance of at least 30,000€ (+5,000€ for an adult and +3,000€ for each child);
4. provide a valid work contract with a foreign company, concluded at least 1 year ago;
5. provide copies of the employer's company incorporation documents (the company must have existed for more than half a year);
6. to have medical insurance with 1-year coverage;
7. have a permanent residence address in Italy (buying or renting is suitable).

If we do not take into account the domestic work permit, the requirements for Lavoro Autonomo and Digital Nomad are not much different. To begin with, we decided to look into the reasons for the previous refusal. Our lawyers studied Eugene's documents from the first submission and assumed that the application was rejected due to the instability of earnings during the year. In principle for freelancers, it is, although the annual income corresponded to the established norm.

In 2.5 years, the family's financial situation has improved significantly. Eugene received an inheritance and now the family rents out 2 apartments in Moscow and 1 in St. Petersburg and also owns shares in a Russian company. Based on this argument, the specialists suggested they change the visa type to Residenza Elettiva. In this case, the collection of documents will take less time, and the number of required documents will be reduced almost 2 times, and the family will not need to separately apply for a residence permit on reunification. Work visas are always more difficult to obtain because of quotas for such applications.

Since now Eugene was not planning to operate in Italy and was going to buy real estate there, he agreed with our arguments. Having made sure that the applicants met the basic requirements, we concluded a contract and drew up a step-by-step plan. We had the following tasks: to find a suitable home in Savona, to collect a case of documents for a national D visa, to find a school for the boy, and to open an account in a local bank.

Preparing the file and buying a home

We started working on the case with a preliminary check on international databases to minimize the risk of rejection, in parallel, we looked for housing options, and Eugene began to collect financial documentation.

To get Residenza Elettiva for a family of 4 people you need to show a passive income of 31 000 € for the main applicant, +20% for the spouse, and 5% for each child, i.e. not less than 41 000 €/year. After a couple of weeks, he provided us with tax returns with explanations for the last 3 years. The total annual passive family income was 50,000€, where 80% was income from rental properties and 20% from stock dividend payments. We promptly made translations of the papers and apostilled them.

Having dealt with the most difficult part, our experts started looking for a house and a school for the boy. In the province of Savona, we found an excellent villa of 261 m2 100 meters from the sea for 900 000 €. Having received approval from Eugene, GARANT.in specialists applied to the Questura of Liguria to obtain a code fiscal. In 10 days we had an Italian tax number and a local SIM card, necessary to open a bank account.

Then we contacted the Italian bank on behalf of Eugene and helped the client to open the account remotely. Then we contacted a real estate agency and started the real estate purchase procedure. Step by step, the work looked like this:

• Checking the object's compliance with state registries;
• signing the purchase offer and preliminary contract;
• transfer of the down payment to the seller;
• the remote signing of the purchase and sale agreement;
• transfer of the entire price to the notary's account in Italy;
• obtaining the property certificate and cadastral extract.

All but the last point we managed to solve in 1.5 months. Then we enrolled the boy in the 1st grade of the local Elementary school and started to draw up documents for a national visa.

Obtaining a Residenza Elettiva visa and applying for a residence permit

By the time the case was submitted to the Consulate, we had the following documents in hand:

• copies and originals of clients' passports;
• copies of internal passports;
• marriage certificate;
• children's birth certificates;
• documents confirming ownership of Italian real estate;
• tax return for the last 3 years;
• confirmation of the child's enrollment in an Italian school;
• certificates of no criminal record;
• paid health insurance;
• completed application forms;
• motivation letter;
• paid checks for government fees and duties.

All with translations and apostilles. The application was considered for a little less than a month, after which I received a reply about the positive decision. In another 4 days, Eugene received passports with glued visas for 1 year by courier delivery and went with his family to Italy for their validation.

Already on the spot a couple of days after crossing the border, Eugene and Victoria went to the police station with the original documents. The future residents paid the fee, applied for a residence permit, and submitted biometric data. In June this year, Eugene and his family became the holders of Italian resident cards. Now they are enjoying life in the new place, organizing the house and preparing the child for the upcoming school year.

What are the advantages of the Residenza Elettiva visa?

The National Visa D Residenza Elettiva allows all family members to simultaneously apply for an Italian residence permit without an additional application for residence by reunification. The candidate becomes a tax resident only if he/she resides in the country for more than six months. In addition, holders of this type of permit can:

• move freely within the Schengen area;
• free to put children in public kindergartens and schools;
• in 5 years to obtain a residence permit in Italy, and then citizenship by naturalization;
• avoid lengthy processing of complicated documents such as Nulla Osta, etc.

High qualification and experience of GARANT.in specialists allows you to choose the best strategy in each specific case. If you are also planning to change your life for the better, we are ready to give you a helping hand!

Contact us!