domicile.wiki

Italy

Taxes, residence and daily life for people moving to Italy: for a wealthy family, an expat employee and a remote worker. Researched .

Open Italy in the interactive guide

At a glance

For an EU-citizen family of five living off a €30M portfolio, the guide's default reader. The interactive guide recomputes everything for other passports and situations.

Score for a wealthy family
74 / 100
Can EU citizens live here?
free: register as an EU citizen
Can US citizens live here?
income of €31,000 a year · Elective residence visa
Other passports
income of €31,000 a year · Elective residence visa
Tax on a €30M portfolio
€183,330 a year · Family holding company (S.r.l.) with participation exemption
Wealth tax
limited
Children inherit
low tax
After 60 years
€189,324,000 of €30,000,000 (with no tax at all: €286,928,000)
Living costs, family of five
€231,871 a year
EU member
yes
Currency
EUR
Capital
Rome

Tax on investments, inheritance and wealth

Ordinary residents pay a 26% substitute tax on capital gains and on dividends (domestic and foreign; foreign dividends taxed on the amount net of foreign withholding, without credit) and 0.2% a year IVAFE on foreign financial assets (stamp duty on Italian accounts), plus 1.06% IVIE on foreign real estate. Inheritance and gifts to each child are tax-free up to EUR 1 million, then a flat 4%. New residents can opt for the Art. 24-bis TUIR lump sum: EUR 300,000 a year for those moving from 1 Jan 2026 (EUR 50,000 per family member), covering all foreign income and gains (except qualified holdings sold in the first 5 years), IVAFE/IVIE and, reportedly, inheritance/gift tax on foreign assets, for up to 15 years. Regional and municipal surcharges on income are covered by a separate regions file.

Income tax for employees and remote workers

National IRPEF is 23% to EUR 28,000, 33% to EUR 50,000 and 43% above. With the Lombardy regional surtax (1.23% to 1.73% by income) and the Milan municipal surtax (0.8%, exempt below EUR 23,000) the marginal rates in Milan are about 25% to 45.5%. Employees pay 9.19% pension contributions; the self-employed (Gestione Separata, VAT number, no other cover) pay 26.07% up to a cap of EUR 122,295.

How to get residence

EU citizens only register. Non-EU citizens (US and others) can use the investor visa (from EUR 250,000 in a start-up), the elective residence visa (about EUR 31,000 a year of passive income, no work) or, since March 2026, a digital nomad visa (about EUR 28,000 a year).

RouteKindWhoStatusIn short
EU free movement (anagrafe registration)Free movementEU citizensopenEU citizens register with the municipality after 3 months; permanent residence after 5 years.
Investor visa: innovative start-upInvestor residenceUS citizens, other passportsopenA 2-year permit for investing EUR 250,000 in an innovative start-up; the cheapest of Italy's four investor routes.
Investor visa: Italian company, donation or government bondsInvestor residenceUS citizens, other passportsopenOther investor routes: EUR 500,000 in an Italian company, EUR 1 million philanthropic donation, or EUR 2 million in government bonds.
Elective residence visaPassive income / retirementUS citizens, other passportsopenFor people living on stable passive income who do not work in Italy; the income benchmark is set by consulates, about EUR 31,000 a year.
Digital nomad and remote worker visaDigital nomadUS citizens, other passportsopenFor highly qualified remote workers earning about EUR 28,000 a year from non-Italian clients; consulates have accepted applications since March 2026.
Work permits (Decreto Flussi, EU Blue Card)WorkUS citizens, other passportsopenNon-EU workers are admitted through annual quotas (Decreto Flussi) with an employer's nulla osta; the Blue Card covers highly qualified staff.

Citizenship: 10 years of legal residence for most non-EU nationals (4 for EU citizens per general knowledge), with Italian language (B1, general knowledge) and integration requirements; the investor visa does not shorten it. Citizenship by descent was tightened by Decree-Law 36/2025 (converted into Law 74/2025).

Inheritance law and trusts

Children, a spouse and parents are protected by fixed shares (for example half of the estate for one child). A foreign resident can choose the law of their nationality (EU Succession Regulation art. 22), though Italy's reserved heirs may use a clawback in some cases. Italy recognises trusts under the Hague Convention but has no trust law of its own; private foundations are limited.

Daily life, scored out of 100

From public indicators (World Bank, UNDP, Transparency International and others); higher is better.

MeasureScore
Safety and personal security79
Political and institutional stability63
Corruption and government integrity56
Legal system and property rights65
Healthcare quality and access88
Education quality58
Human development and quality of life83
Infrastructure and connectivity84
Cost of living and housing73
Business opportunities and economy73
Cultural fit and lifestyle38

Regions

Research notes

Italy — family-office tax dossier

Last reviewed: 2026-10-15 Tax year: 2026 Reviewer: research agent (Claude), unreviewed by a tax adviser

Summary

Ordinary residents pay:

Inheritance and gifts to each child are tax-free up to EUR 1 million, then a flat 4%.

New residents can choose the Art. 24-bis TUIR lump sum instead. For moves from 2026 it is EUR 300,000 a year, plus EUR 50,000 per family member, for up to 15 years.

This file covers the national level only. Regional and municipal rules are in a separate regions file.

Residence and eligibility

Capital gains

Dividends

Inheritance and gifts to children

D.Lgs. 346/1990, as amended by D.Lgs. 139/2024 (PwC):

Wealth tax

Recorded as limited (PwC):

Special regimes

Holding structures

Family holding company S.r.l. (holding_srl, structure)

An Italian S.r.l. holds the directly held shares. It is scored because it gives the largest advantage among the Italian options: about EUR 260,000 a year against about EUR 520,000 personally on the app profile, payout included. The 1.2% only holds for a buy-and-hold share book in a company that passes the non-operating company test (below). Re-verified against the statute texts on 2026-10-15.

Company taxation (kept separate from personal tax)

Cost of living notes

Milan.

Open questions

Sources

Change log

Residence and succession sources

Tax sources are cited in the research notes above.