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SECOND HOMES

Reader question: Will Italy consider scrapping the 90-day limit for Brits?

Following reports that Spanish authorities are under pressure to extend the time Brits can now stay in Spain, readers with second homes in Italy have asked whether the same thing could happen here.

People outside the Colosseum in Rome, Italy.
Photo by Alberto PIZZOLI / AFP

QUESTION: Recent articles in the UK media describe growing pressure in Spain to extend or scrap the 90 day rule for British nationals because it is hurting Spanish tourism. Is there any chance we will see this being considered in Italy?

When Britain left the EU, British citizens lost the right to freedom of movement within the bloc – and the new 90-day limit has been a particular problem for those with second homes in European countries.

The change has hit some parts of Europe hard, too: including the region of Valencia in Spain, which is now campaigning for UK nationals to not have their time on Spain’s Costa Blanca limited or determined by the 90-day Schengen rules that now apply to them.

This is because the impact of Brexit on freedom of movement is affecting one of the Valencian economy’s driving forces: UK nationals who spend extended periods of time in Spain.

READ ALSO: How Brits can properly plan their 90 out of 180 days in Italy and the Schengen zone

Regional authorities have called on Spain’s Tourism Ministry to help make it easier for British nationals to spend more than 90 out of 180 days in the Valencia region without having to apply for a visa.

For anyone who is not an EU citizen – including UK nationals since January 1st 2021 – the 90-day rule comes into play. You can find a full explanation of how it works here, but essentially it limits trips into the Schengen zone to 90 days out of every 180. These rules apply equally across the bloc.

Photo: Filippo MONTEFORTE / AFP

UK nationals who don’t hold an Italian or EU residency document following Brexit are now wondering if the Italian authorities might look at changing the rules.

But so far, there are no reports than any regional authorities in Italy have put pressure on the government to give British nationals an exemption to the post-Brexit rules.

READ ALSO: Where do all the Brits live in Italy and how ‘Italian’ are they?

Tourism figures appear to offer an explanation for the fact that Spain is the first place to see this push for a change.

UK tourism is worth far more to Spain than to Italy – and Spain is also more reliant on tourism overall.

Before the pandemic sent numbers tumbling across the board, figures for 2019 showed that Spain was the second most visited country in the world, coming just behind France. Italy ranked fifth.

Although tourism is important to Italy’s economy, the country counts almost 20 million fewer annual visitors than Spain – and the largest share of tourism to Italy (14.1 percent) comes from Germany, Italian government figures show, followed by the US. The UK accounts for about three percent of all tourism to Italy.

With UK visitor numbers being lower, they have less economic significance to the country.

There are also far fewer British nationals living in Italy than Spain. The most recent demographic data for UK nationals living in the EU revealed that more Brits live in Spain than any other member state.

Italy, on the other hand, ranked sixth with almost 260,000 fewer UK nationals living in Italy compared to Spain.

Number of British citizens living in the EU.
Source: Statista

Is there any way Brits can stay in Italy for longer?

Many British people who have a second home in Italy have contacted The Local to ask how they could spend four or five months in a row here as they used to.

But with the 90-day rule in place and no sign of this changing soon, the only way for non-residents to spend more time in Italy is now to get a long-stay visa.

At the moment, if you plan to stay longer, most people from outside the EU would need to apply for a visa and residency permit (permesso di soggiorno).

READ ALSO:

While some countries such as France have made special residency permit provisions for second home owners, and certain other EU member states have so-called ‘Golden Visa’ schemes available to those who can afford them, Italy has no such process.

There has been widespread confusion about this for British nationals, but the post-Brexit immigration rules remain the same whether you own a property in Italy or not.

You’ll need to consider whether getting residency, in order to spend longer periods in Italy, is right for you.

Aside from the visa process, this involves paying income tax in Italy and other considerations which mean many people are opting to continue to follow the 90-day rule.

For more details about the process of applying for an Italian visa and residency permit, see the Italian Interior Ministry’s website or the EU immigration portal.

See The Local’s Brexit section for more details and updates. 

Member comments

  1. While I thank you for the view concerning the attitude of the different European states on the 90 day rule. I am bewildered by the talk of Spain and France making independent decisions regarding an EU piece of legislation.
    Surely Europe states must all agree to change the rules not individual countries as chaos would rule over the policing of this differential
    Of course I love my chosen and owned home in Italy. but the issue of a visa is not as straight forward as may be suggested, as the Embassies use an agency to filter and guide the process of application and to my cost the agency in the UK has demonstrated little grasp of the process and zero guidance

  2. I don’t see why Italy would choose such an option, especially given the small numbers involved. And then there’s the fact we made the decision to acquire residency here (a somewhat fraught process!), and don’t see why those who haven’t should be ‘gifted’ an extension…

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STRIKES

Reader question: Will there be transport strikes in Italy over Easter?

Easter is high season for travel and tourism in Italy, but will travellers face any transport strikes over the busy holiday weekend?

Reader question: Will there be transport strikes in Italy over Easter?

Question: “I’m travelling to Italy for the Easter break and I wondered if there are going to be any strikes?”

As Easter approaches, many people in Italy are preparing for trips – school’s out from Thursday, and although Good Friday isn’t a public holiday many Italians will take the day off work anyway to create a four-day weekend.

With more than ten million Italians plus millions of international visitors planning to travel to the country’s major cities and coastal holiday destinations this weekend, heavy traffic is to be expected on the roads and long-distance trains have been booked up well in advance.

However, Italy is known for its regular transport strikes affecting, everything from airport baggage handling to staffing at motorway toll booths, and at such a busy time these walkouts could prove very disruptive.

READ ALSO: The most popular Italian getaway destinations this Easter

So could this prove problematic for travellers and tourists in Italy in the coming days?

There are no transport strikes planned between Thursday, March 28th and Thursday, April 5th according to the Italian transport ministry’s strike calendar.

And that’s very unlikely to change at this late date, as any planned strike affecting transport in Italy has to be communicated to the transport ministry at least 11 days before it takes place.

Bear in mind however that while travel over the Easter holidays shouldn’t be affected by strikes, public transport services will likely run on a reduced schedule on Easter Sunday and Easter Monday as both days are national holidays in Italy. 

READ ALSO: What’s open in Italy over Easter weekend?

Anyone travelling on those dates is advised to check their transport operator’s orari festivi (holiday schedules) before setting off.

Keep up with the latest travel news from Italy here.

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