As a family member of an Italian citizen, you have a full right to enter and stay in Italy. Depending on your nationality and current residence, you may need an entry visa. The most important information is gathered here in 3 steps.
#1 Check
Are you eligible for residency in Italy? You have such right if you can prove one of the following family relations:
- spouse (or same-sex registered partner)
- children and grandchildren (up to 21 years) of the Italian citizen and those of the spouse
- parents and grandparents of the Italian citizen and those of the spouse
- siblings of the Italian citizen
#2 Prepare
If you are a national of a country listed for visa requirement to Italy/Europe, you need to apply at the closest Italian Consulate for a visa for family members (Visto d’ingresso per familiari di cittadini italiani). Such a visa clears your entry through the border checks upon arrival in Europe (more precisely, in the Schengen area). The terms and requirements for this kind of visa are often not published on the Italian Consulate’s websites. In general, the conditions are more favorable than any other visa, the process is free of charge and shorter. The documents to attach to the application may vary from Consulate to Consulate. Documents required for your visa application: In general, this is what the Italian Consulates require:
- Application form filled in with your data (download here) 1 photo in ICAO format (4.0 x 3.5 cm, color photo with white background, taken within the last 6 months)
- Proof of family relation, e.g. official marriage record. The record must be in full format (i.e. including the names of the parents of each spouse or parents, for birth certificates), legalized/apostilled and translated into Italian. Marriage records must be issued less than 6 months before. That is a requirement, in case the Italian citizen did not register the concerned vital record in Italy as yet (at the municipality in which he is a resident or, if not residing in Italy, at the municipality of Rome);
- Invitation letter signed by the Italian citizen (Dichiarazione di ospitalità, download here) your passport + 2 copies (the passport must be valid for at least 3 months after the planned departure date from the Schengen area and was issued less than 10 years before. The passport must have at least two blank and unmarked visa pages)
- Italian citizen’s passport (copy)
- Flight reservation: The reservation document must indicate the applicant’s name, departure city, and destination. In order to avoid any unnecessary expense, flight ticket confirmation can be done after visa issuance.
- Health care insurance: insurance must be valid for the whole Schengen area. It must cover medical fees, hospitalization and repatriation costs of up to 30,000 euros. The insurance must fully cover the initial period of stay within the Schengen area.
- Letter of authorization for visa application/passport return (in case the applicant does not submit the application in person). For those who choose to submit the application by a representative, it is mandatory to provide a letter of authorization, signed by the applicant, mentioning the name of the representative and his/her contacts. The representative ID must be shown and a copy of the ID must be submitted.
#3 Follow The Process
After submitting your application, you are entitled to obtain a visa within 90 days. This term might be extended one time to 30 more days. Please note that, if your application wasn’t complete from the start, the Consulate can stay the process for the time needed for you to give the missing document (max 90 days).
FAST TRACK: The process goes much faster when the Italian citizen has registered in Italy the document proving the relation. For example, if the Italian citizen has married or had a child outside of Italy, it is very important to register the marriage or birth record at the Italian Consulate (if the Italian citizen resided abroad) or in Italy (at the municipality of residence, office of Stato Civile).
What happens next?
In order to secure your residence in Italy, you are expected to apply for a residence permit or a residence card upon your arrival. The family members within the 1st and 2nd degree (spouse, children up to 21 years, parents, grandparents and grandchildren) can obtain a five-year residence card. The other family members are entitled to obtain a two-year residence permit. You may read here about the differences between the two. It is required to prove that you depend on the Italian citizen for your maintenance and to register your residence at the same address.
Would you like to know more?
Download my Free Guide “4-Step Strategy” to obtain a residence permit for family members, complete with the official forms: Invitation statement by the Italian citizen for the family member to show at the border (or to obtain an entry visa, where applicable): Dichiarazione di alloggio e garanzia
- “Dichiarazione di ospitalità” to be submitted to the immigration police within 48 hours
- “Dichiarazione di presenza” to be submitted to the immigration police within 8 days
+ the list of documents required by the police for the application.
Request your Free Guide here:
Hello,
My mother just recently obtained Italian citizen after living there for 10 years. Would she be able to bring me over despite me being 25 years old? I am currently in Russia.
As a child to an Italian citizen, you have a right to stay in Italy with your mother, as long as you live under the same roof. When you find a job or other income (e.g. a scholarship), you may obtain an independent residence permit and move out. More information in this article: Family members of Italian citizens: how to obtain a residence permit for siblings, adult children and other family members ?
Hi! I live and work in italy for 5 years, i don’t have a permission. My sister is citizen of italy. Am I eligible for living permission? And is it important when my sister got citizenship? I mean, it’s 10-11 month she became citizen of italy.
If I am eligible what have I to get the permission? Thank you in advance
Dear Diana, you are eligible and should apply as soon as possible to avoid the risk of being removed from the country. It does not matter when your sister obtained Italian citizenship. Good luck!
Dear Lara,
I am American citizen married to Italian citizen and we have two children who are Italian citizen as well. We all live in the US. The marriage and kids birth records are all registered in italy.
Do I need a family visa to stay with my family in italy for more than 90 days?
We travel a lot to italy every year because of family and I am looking for something to let me stay more than 3 months and maybe work if we need to.
Thank you for you help on this matter.
You don’t need a visa, but have to register at the immigration police within 8 days from the entrance in Italy and obtain a residence card or permit for family members. You can keep it as long as you stay in Italy/Schengen area for 51% of the period of validity of your card or permit.
My wife and I are both American citizens . Her mother and sister and brothers and their children are all Italian citizens living in Italy. Thus.
she has siblings who are Italian citizens and both of us
are aunts and uncles of Italian
citizens. Can we visit them in Italy and what proof do we need to prove these relationships. Thanks.
Mr. Piazza, you enter Italy visa-free, as soon as the authorities will allow for the health emergency. If you will request a residence permit, the Italian authority (Questura) requires birth records of each concerned person in the second degree of relationship: i.e. for the mother or the sister. The records from the USA are required in full form with apostille and official (apostilled) translation.
My wife and daughter are both Italian citizens, and they want me to join them as soon as possible, how do I go about it?
That largely depends on your citizenship and country of residence. If you are a national of a country listed for visa requirements to Italy/Europe, you should contact the local Italian Consulate to obtain practical information on how to obtain a visa as a family member of Italian citizens. They will reply with a list of documents that is similar to that above (see list in #2 Prepare). Once you have applied, they should reply in about 30 days.
Dear Lara, I am an Italian national, Can I call my sister from Pakistan to join me here in Italy. She is married and has 1 kid. Waiting for your kind reply. Thank you in advance.
Yes, your sister is a second-degree family member. She can prove that by showing her birth record and yours to the Questura in Italy after she arrives in Italy (even as a tourist or on a short-term visit). However, her right to stay in Italy with you as an Italian citizen does not include her spouse and child. This has been disputed in court and was granted only in a few cases. So she may consider this issue.