Italian Visa documents

Understanding which Italian VISA documents you will need can be overwhelming. So let’s try to make things a bit easier to manage.

Italy is part of the Schengen area and this means that if you are citizen of the EU/EEA or Switzerland you don’t need a VISA.

However, if you want to stay in Italy for longer than three months, you still have to meet certain conditions and register for residency. If you are a non-EU/EFTA citizen, before you can move to Italy, you will have to get an Italian long-stay visa. After you have entered Italy, you have to apply for an Italian residence permit within eight days. 

Work permits and employment-based visas

The Italian work visa permit is a type of Italian Long-Stay visa. Before you can apply for an Italian work visa, you have to make sure that you can. That’s because the Italian government only accepts work permit applications for a few months every one or two years, depending on Italy’s job market and the state of immigration. In addition to that, there is also a set quota of how many works permits Italy will issue. 

What documents do you need?

When applying for an Italian work visa, you must have the following documents: 

• Copy of your signed work contract.
• Completed Italian Long-Stay Visa Application form.
• Passport 
• Proof of accommodation in Italy.
• Proof of sufficient financial means.
• Proof of paid visa fee.
• Diplomas/other certificates.

Long-term visa for Italy

This is the type of visa you have to apply for if you want to stay in Italy longer than 90 days. However, a long-stay visa isn’t the only permission you need if you want to live in Italy.

With an Italian long-stay visa, you can enter Italy. After that, you have to get your Italian residence permit, which is what authorizes you to stay in Italy for longer than 90 days. You cannot apply for an Italian residence permit if you are in Italy with a short-stay visa.

The type of long-stay visa that you apply for depends on the purpose you want to live in Italy for. So, if you want to go to Italy to study, work, or join a family member, you have to apply for a respective visa.

The most common types of Italian long-stay visas are:

• The Italy Work Visa – is available to foreign nationals who want to move to Italy for work. You already need to have a job in Italy before you can apply.
• The Italy Study Visa – students over 18 who are already enrolled in an Italian educational institution can apply for this type of visa.
• The Italy Family Visa – is available to foreign nationals who want to join a family member who has Italian citizenship or an Italian permanent residence permit.
• The Italy Self-Employed Visa – is available to entrepreneurs who wish to open a business or self-employed individuals wanting to work in Italy.
• The Italy Working Holiday Visa – is a type of visa available only to nationals aged 18-30 from countries that are part of a working holiday program along with Italy.
• Italian Retirement Visa – which is available to those persons who can financially support themselves without working in Italy.

Long-term visa application

The documents that are needed to support an Italy long-stay visa application change based on your purpose of travel as well as your country. Depending on the type of visa you apply for, you may need authorization from competent Italian authorities. However, there is a set of standard documents everyone must have, such as:

• A long-stay visa application form, completed, dated, and signed.
• Valid passport/travel documents with at least two blank pages. It must have been issued in the past ten years and be valid for another three months after you intend to leave Italy.
• Photocopies of your passport’s bio-data pages as well as all previous visas.
• Health insurance of at least €30,000 ($ 34,120), covering all possible arising medical emergencies.
• Civic documents, such as birth certificates, marriage certificates, etc.
• Paid visa fee, which changes depending on your purpose of travel.

The Italian visa application center or representation in which you apply will provide information regarding any specific documents that you need.