How to retire to Italy
Planned correctly, retirement in Italy offers both an adventure and a laidback lifestyle, cheaper living costs and more sun!
It’s a country that offers fantastic options for retirees, and you’ll get a warm welcome from Italians and expats alike. Whether you want to unwind in its beautiful countryside, immerse yourself in its rich history and culture, or kick back on its glorious coastline, you will never be bored in Italy.
However, retiring to Italy is a legal and financial process that can get complicated and costly if you get it wrong. Here, we outline the essentials for anyone looking to retire to Italy from overseas.
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Why retire to Italy?
1. Four seasons in the sun
Italy enjoys over 2,500 hours of sun each year, compared to the UK’s meagre 1,400 hours. Warm weather is good for your health (and not just because it encourages you to get up and about), especially for arthritis and respiratory conditions. Do check the sunshine hours for the region you’re interested in though, as some see more distinct seasons with serious wrap up warm winters. For maximum sun, look to the south and the islands.
2. Affordable homes
Italy’s famous one-euro homes are a real estate prospect for those willing to pull their sleeves up and craft their dream home (a potential retirement project?). If you’d prefer somewhere that needs less work, you find a small village home or one-bedroom apartment for less than €100,000. But even at higher budgets you get a lot more for your money, with glorious costal villas for the price of a poky London or New York apartment.
3. Lower cost of living
On a like-for-like basis, it’s typically a lot cheaper to live in Italy than the UK and the USA. In the Property Guides Cost of Living Index, Italy was revealed to be more affordable than its European neighbours, Portugal, Greece, Cyprus and France. It is particularly budget-friendly for home maintenance, leisure and cups of coffee (even with its superior quality).
4. Endless exploring
Italy holds the crown for the greatest number of World Heritage sites in the world – perhaps see if you can tick them all off. If you’re active, you can enjoy strolls (& sips) through vibrant vineyards and Italy’s charming coastline. You’ll be spoilt for choice!
5. Italian feasts
Italy is rightfully famous for its delicious cuisine, luckily, it’s affordable too. From classics like pizza, risotto and gelato to regional favourites like orecchiette, nduja and arancini, there is much to devour. Plus, a Mediterranean diet is supposed to increase longevity and reduce the risk of heart disease and cancer.
Visa and residency options
Retiring to Italy as an EU citizen
For those with an EU passport (Ireland included), you can easily move to Italy with minimal paperwork and come and go without the need for a visa.
If you plan to stay long term in Italy, you will have to apply for residency. This must be done within eight days of your arrival in Italy.
Learn more about applying for residency and the requirements today
Retiring to Italy as a non-EU citizen
For non-EU citizens, there are two routes to living in Italy and they each depend on how long you want to stay there. If you want to move there permanently, you will need to apply for a long-stay visa.
However, if you want to split your time between Italy and another country, you can benefit from the EU visa policy which states that non-EU nationals need a visa to enter the Schengen area for a visit of up to 90 days in any 180-day period. Visas for stays exceeding 90 days are subject to national procedures. Find out if you need a visa to visit Italy here.
No visa route: 90-day rule
Non-EU citizens are classed as third-country nationals in Italy, meaning they can come to Italy without a visa for up to 90 days in every 180.
You can use your 90 days as you wish, either staying for 90 days in a row or breaking it into smaller chunks. Either way, you cannot be in Italy (or the other 26 Schengen Area countries) for more than 90 days in a 180-day period. Some retirees may find that 90 days is enough, with an escape from a British or Midwestern winter or enjoying a couple of months in summer. The important thing is not to risk overstaying or you could be deported. Fines range from €500 to €10,000 and expulsion from Italy can last from six months to five years.
Bear in mind that your 180-day countdown starts as soon as you enter the Schengen Area, not just when you enter Italy. So, if you went to France for a few days before heading to your holiday home in Italy, your 90 days start when you enter France.
Visa route
If you wish to retire to Italy permanently, have not been a resident in Italy before and are not joining a close family member in Italy, you will need to apply for a visa.
All visas in Italy require sufficient funds or savings to support yourself without working, having medical insurance and no serious criminal convictions. The most popular visa route for retirees looking to move to Italy permanently is the non-working visa, also known as the elective residence visa or visto per residenza elettiva (ERV).
For insight into other long-term visas, head to our visas and residency options in Italy page.
Elective residence visa
The ERV is suitable for those who are over 18 years old with financial means to support themselves (and their family members, if applicable) in Italy without working.
The application requires proof of sufficient financial resources to support yourself without working. For a single person, the minimum financial requirement is €31,000 (or equivalent in your home currency).
For a married couple, the minimum financial requirement is €38,000.
Other requirements include:
- Proof of accommodation
- Proof of health insurance (must be purchased before you apply for a visa. It must cover €30,000 per year for all medical expenses in every EU member state)
- Valid passport (valid for a minimum of three months after the visa expires and have two blank visa pages)
- Italy long-stay visa application form (filled out, but not signed, it must be signed in front of an Italian Consular Visa Officer)
- Four passport-sized pictures
- Civil status documents (non-Italian birth certificates or marriage certificates must be translated into Italian and validated before you submit them. Check with your local consulate for specific policies)
- Payment of the visa application fee (around €116 per person, payable in cash or by money order to the Consulate of Italy)
- Police clearances from your home country
The ERV is initially valid for six months, for short stays up to 90 days. Within eight days of arriving in Italy, you must register with your local Questura (police department) to obtain an Elective residence permit, this is the only legal document that legalises your stay in Italy.
The elective residence permit is valid for one year, after which you have the option to renew it should the requirements continue to be met.
Please note: You will not be able to renew or extend your elective residence permit if you have been out of the country for a continuous period of over six months.
After five years of continuous living in Italy, you will be eligible to apply for a permanent residence permit.
After 10 consecutive years of living in Italy with a permanent residence permit, you can apply for Italian citizenship.
Choosing the perfect location
Italy has something for everyone. Tuscany and the Italian Lakes are both excellent locations to retire to. They have English-speaking expat communities and a good infrastructure. Florence and Lucca are both popular towns, but if you want more space for your money, look to the outskirts of any large town in Italy.
Even if you dream of living in the countryside, you will need to visit a larger town sometimes, so it’s worth finding a town you like and then looking on the outskirts of that. Also, keep in mind how far it is from transport links and a hospital. You may be fit now but you should consider how you’ll feel about stairs and a large garden in 20 years’ time. That top-floor apartment with the pretty roof terrace might not be so appealing once you’ve lugged your shopping up those stairs a few times, and that remote farmhouse with all the land may become hard work to maintain.
The wealthier northern regions have a reputation for being more organised and stylish than the south, but the rural southern regions have more sunshine and relaxed, friendly people. If you stay close to the main provincial towns, you should have no trouble finding all the amenities you need.
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Getting your pension in Italy
When you retire to Italy you can still claim your home state pension. You will need to inform your local government office that deals with your benefits, pension and tax that you are moving or retiring abroad. For example, if you plan to retire to Italy from the UK, you will need to contact the following organisations prior to departure, to supply them with your new information:
- The International Pension Centre (if you are already receiving a State Pension)
- HM Revenue & Customs’ National Insurance Contributions Office
- Your local tax office
Drawing a pension in Italy is a relatively simple process, and there are two main options for doing so:
Direct payment into Italian bank account
Once you have checked whether it’s possible with your choice of Italian bank, you can opt to have your pension paid directly into your Italian account. If you plan on splitting your time between your home country and Italy, you will need to decide which account you want the payment to be paid into your Italian account or overseas account. Should you change your mind about retiring to Italy, you can request your state pension revert back to being paid into your account back home.
Paid into an account overseas and transferred to Italy
You can also opt to keep your pension payments coming into your home country account and then transfer them to Italy yourself. In this instance, you must remember that the amount of money you receive each month will depend on currency exchange rates.
To avoid receiving varying amounts each month, speak to Smart Currency Exchange about setting up a Forward Contract. This helps you to lock in an exchange rate for up to a year, so you always know what rate you’ll be trading at and how much will be coming into your account. Smart Currency Exchange can also help you to set up automated, regular payments.
Maximising your pension in Italy
If your plan is to move to Italy permanently, you could benefit significantly from moving your pension into a Self-invested Personal Pension (SIPP) or a Qualifying Recognised Overseas Pension Scheme (QROPS).
Conditions do apply to these schemes, but in the right circumstances these types of plans can reduce your tax bill and provide you greater control over your pension.
For more information on these schemes, speak to our trusted partners who specialise in Italian tax and finance
Navigating the healthcare system
Once you have your residence permit, you’ll be able to apply for a Tessera Sanitaria card (Italian Health Insurance Card) which will give you the same health care services as local Italians at the same prices. Italy has a great number of family doctors, and you can usually get in to see them very quickly. Their service is free, but if you are referred to a specialist or for tests you will pay a ticket price at the CUP desk of the hospital. These are low contributory rates set by each local authority, so they do vary.
Find out more about accessing medical attention overseas with our Healthcare Guide.
The Italian healthcare service is very good, particularly in the major cities. Milan hospitals have a particularly good reputation, making the Lombardy region an excellent retirement choice for those concerned about healthcare. You are also more likely to find an English-speaking doctor in the cities that are already home to expats. Although you may be fit and healthy now, illnesses and accidents can happen at any age, so when looking at countryside property you should consider distances to doctors and hospitals.