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HEALTH

From May 18th, you’ll no longer need a form to go outside in Italy

The Italian government is expected to relax the rules on local outings – but that doesn't mean you'll be able to travel freely just yet.

Published: 14 May 2020 17:56 CEST
From May 18th, you'll no longer need a form to go outside in Italy
Police checks on pedestrians could soon be phased out. Photo: Vincenzo Pinto/AFP

From May 18th, for the first time in more than two months you probably won't need to carry an 'autocertificazione' form justifying your reason for being outside anymore, so long as you stay local.

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From guidelines issued to regional authorities on Wednesday in preparation for the next steps to lift Italy's coronavirus lockdown, it looks like justification will only be required to travel between regions – which remains forbidden except in cases of absolute necessity or for urgent work or health reasons.

The government is expected to set out the new rules by Sunday, which is when the current emergency decree expires.

Until then everyone in Italy is officially supposed to fill out a form for every outing, though in practice police have been carrying out far fewer checks ever since the rules began to be loosened on May 4th.

READ ALSO: Here's the new form you need to go outside in Italy's lockdown phase two


Photo: Miguel Medina/AFP

Under pressure from businesses and regional governors, the government sped up its plans to reopen the country, giving the go-ahead this week for bars, restaurants, hairdressers and beauty parlours to reopen from May 18th instead of June 1st as originally indicated.

Businesses will have to take precautions to protect workers and clients, while regional governments will have to monitor infection rates closely and may be obliged to reimpose closures if cases spike.

CALENDAR: What will Italy reopen next under new lockdown rules?

As for relaxing restrictions on travel, the government is still assessing the situation and will make a decision by the end of May, according to regional affairs minister Francesco Boccia, which suggests we won't be able to travel freely between regions until June at the earliest.

“It will be easier to guarantee a link between low-risk regions” and “much more complicated to allow someone from a low-risk region to cross into a high-risk one”, said Boccia. 

His comments suggest that travel may remain restricted in certain parts of Italy for some time yet, notably the regions with the highest number of Covid-19 cases: Lombardy, Piedmont and Emilia Romagna.

There is also speculation that the government will sign off on meeting up with friends (though at a safe distance and not in large groups) and visiting second homes in its upcoming revisions to the lockdown rules, but nothing is officially confirmed yet.

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BREXIT

‘In the dark’: Why Brits in Italy are still unable to prove rights to free healthcare

Despite UK and Italian authorities confirming that British residents covered by post-Brexit rules are entitled to healthcare in Italy, many still face "significant problems" in accessing it, the British government has said.

Published: 22 May 2024 13:38 CEST
Updated: 23 May 2024 11:57 CEST
'In the dark': Why Brits in Italy are still unable to prove rights to free healthcare

Cancer patients are among those in need of treatment but unable to access the Italian national health service amid confusion over post-Brexit rules, campaigners say, after clarifications from the UK and Italian governments have so far failed to resolve bureaucratic deadlocks at local authority level.

Since the end of the Brexit transition period in 2021, many British nationals resident in Italy covered by the Withdrawal Agreement (WA) have reported difficulties in proving their right to free healthcare under the Italian public system.

The problem was exacerbated this year after the Italian government in January hiked the minimum annual fee for ‘voluntary’ healthcare registration from €387 to €2,000, which many said they were unable to pay.

The British government in February stepped in to clarify that UK nationals covered by the WA should not be subject to charges for healthcare, and on its Living in Italy website it advised those affected to show their local health authority office (Azienda Sanitaria Locale, or ASL) an official note published by the Italian health ministry on February 15th which sets out their rights (find it here, in Italian.)

WA beneficiaries “can compulsorily enrol (iscrizione obbligatoria) with the Italian National Health System,” states the final section, pointing out that the deal, “in Article 23, provides for equal treatment with domestic nationals.”

But for some local health officials, even this written confirmation does not appear to be enough to clear up the confusion.

READ ALSO: ‘Life or death situation’: Brits facing high Italian healthcare costs amid rule change uncertainty

The UK government on Friday, May 17th, updated its guidance to say it had become aware that “some beneficiaries of the Withdrawal Agreement are facing significant problems accessing health services and renewing their healthcare cards,” despite its advice to show local health authorities the official note.

British nationals continue to report that local health authorities around Italy remain unwilling to issue them with a health card, while campaigners say the situation is further complicated for some by the fact that Italian authorities have also refused to issue proof of their permanent residency status, which entitles them to free healthcare.

This was the case for Graham Beresford, a British citizen living in Abruzzo who has been diagnosed with a rare cancer and remains unable to access the free healthcare he is entitled to, as he says local authorities don’t understand the post-Brexit rules.

Graham told The Local in April that the government’s clarifications on the issue had made little difference – his ASL continues to demand he pay the 2,000-euro charge.

READ ALSO: Can I get a refund after wrongly paying Italy’s €2,000 healthcare fee?

“Every time I go to my ASL office, I always feel like I’m dismissed,” Graham said. “I told the ASL worker I need medication for my cancer and she replied lots of people come in here with sob stories.

“There genuinely seems to be no compassion whatsoever.”

Graham’s story was reported in The Guardian on May 12th ahead of UK foreign secretary David Cameron’s first major meeting with European commission vice-president Maroš Šefčovič to discuss post-Brexit relations.

Campaigners also wrote to Cameron in April to appeal for help with the “desperate” situation faced by those unable to access care in Italy.

In its update to the Living in Italy website on Friday, the British government stated: “Since [the health ministry’s note] was published, and particularly in recent days and weeks, it has become clear to us that not all Italian authorities are consistently following this guidance.”

“We are urgently speaking to all relevant parts of the Italian government to clarify the situation so that we can give clear advice to those affected as soon as possible. 

“We also know that this problem is linked to the many difficulties some are experiencing with obtaining an attestazione di soggiorno permanente and/or the Carta di Soggiorno permanente. We are working to help with these issues too.

“We will update this page as soon as we have further news.”

READ ALSO: ‘We are desperate’: Why the UK must help Britons with Italian healthcare charges

Clarissa Killwick from Beyond Brexit, a group for UK citizens in Italy, said the situation “should never have been allowed to happen” and that there had been “a series of communication failures and inconsistencies.”

“We’re not far short of five months after the introduction of the €2,000 new minimum for voluntary contributions and there is still no clarity,” she added.

“There are fraught exchanges in public offices because people on both sides of the counter are in the dark or with conflicting information.

“People need information they can rely on, unequivocally. What do you say to someone who is waiting for an operation but has no idea what is going on?”

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