Luca: Hallo Anna, willkommen zurück. Willkommen zurück zum Magic Towns Italy Podcast.
Anna: Hallo zusammen. Ich freue mich, wieder hier zu sein.
Luca: Anna, it’s a pleasure to have you here again after our little Thanksgiving break.
Was hast du letzte Woche zu Thanksgiving gemacht?
Anna: Ja, eigentlich nichts Besonderes. Und bei dir?
Luca: I ate some chicken, not turkey really, but that’s a Okay. Yeah. But let’s not talk about this. I wouldn’t want to upset the vegans who are listening to the show.
Heute sprechen wir über ein Thema, das für viele unserer Zuhörer sehr wichtig ist: das neue Arbeitsvisum für italienische Nachfahren.
Anna: Ja, endlich gibt es gute Nachrichten für Menschen mit italienischen Wurzeln. Darauf hat die italienische Diaspora schon ewig gewartet.
Luca: Italy has a enormous diaspora. Countries like Argentina and Brazil have tens of millions of people with [00:01:00] Italian heritage. In the US there’s about 20 million Italian Americans. These communities we know because most of our audience is Italian American, actually. Have a strong interest in reconnecting with Italy. And one of the main interests for many has been to obtain Italian citizenship through the ancestry, but in May things got much harder.
Anna: Ja, genau. Im Mai 2025 hat Italien sein Staatsbürgerschaftsgesetz geändert und diese strenge Begrenzung auf zwei Generationen für die Wiedererlangung der Staatsbürgerschaft durch Abstammung eingeführt. Jetzt können nur noch Personen mit italienischen Eltern oder Großeltern automatisch durch ihre Abstammung als italienische Staatsbürger anerkannt werden. Vorher gab es überhaupt keine Begrenzung. Man konnte bis zu den Urgroßeltern zurückgehen oder sogar noch weiter, wenn man nachweisen konnte, dass die Familienlinie nie unterbrochen wurde.
Luca: I helped a lady get her citizenship, as early as two years [00:02:00] ago through her great, uh, great, great grandfather who was born in the Grand Duchy of Tuscany. So that’s even before Italy even existed. And the reform from May caused a bit of a stir. Uh, we ourselves at Magic Towns ran a petition and over 600 people, um, who were cut out by the reform. Mostly Italian Americans committed to a minimum two year residency period.
Um die italienische Staatsbürgerschaft zu erhalten, aber die Regierung hörte nicht darauf. Viele italienische Nachkommen verloren ihren direkten Weg zur italienischen Staatsbürgerschaft.
Anna: Ja, das hat wirklich viele Menschen verärgert, und das aus gutem Grund. Buchstäblich über Nacht wurden Tausenden von Menschen, die gerade dabei waren, sich zu bewerben oder dies vorhatten, die Tür vor der Nase zugeschlagen. Für die Diaspora-Gemeinschaften war das ziemlich brutal.
Luca: Someone wrote to us, they had already put down a hundred [00:03:00] thousand euro on renovating a property thinking that we’ll get citizenship and then suddenly, woo, they were cut out and they didn’t have a legal way to move through it.
Anyway. That’s crazy. Talking about, yeah. Yeah. It is crazy. They’re talking about positive news. There is this new law we’re talking about. Mm-hmm. And the good news is there’s a new quota free work visa for descendants of Italian citizens from certain countries. Yeah. Can you tell us a little bit what happened, Anna?
Anna: Basically on November 24, the Italian government put out this decree that creates a special work permit for people who are descendants of Italian citizens. And these permits don’t count against their normal immigration quotas.
Usually Italy caps how many work visa they give you each year the decreto flussi, which is the early immigration quota. Those fill up super, super fast. And so, this new rule says that if you’ve got Italian ancestry and you’re from one of the [00:04:00] listed country, you can get a work visa
Luca: US-Hörer sind meist mit dem H1b-Visum vertraut. Sie hören davon in den Nachrichten. Und genau wie das H1b-Visum in den USA regelmäßig überzeichnet ist, sind auch die Einwanderungsportale in Italien um das Zwei- bis Dreifache überzeichnet.
Im Grunde genommen gab es für Sie bisher keine Möglichkeit, einzureisen. Es handelt sich also im Grunde genommen um einen Schnellweg für Arbeitsgenehmigungen für Menschen italienischer Herkunft. Ja, welche Länder sind an diesem Programm beteiligt, Anna?
Anna: The decree is seven countries right now, Argentina, Brazil, the United States, Australia, Canada, Venezuela, and Uruguay. So if you’re a citizen of one of those countries and you can prove you’re a descendant from an Italian citizen, you can apply for this work visa.
Luca: Das sind alles Länder, in denen es historisch gesehen bedeutende italienische Einwanderergemeinschaften gibt. Ja. Argentinien und Brasilien, wir haben die [00:05:00] USA, Kanada und Australien erwähnt.
Was ist mit den anderen Ländern, in denen es ebenfalls eine große Anzahl italienischer Nachfahren gibt, wie beispielsweise Südafrika oder Mexiko?
Anna: So actually when they were drafting these, there were proposals to include South Africa, Mexico, as you said, Peru, Chile, but those didn’t make this time, so the government hinted they might add more countries down the road, so it’s possible the list could grow, but for now it’s just those seven.
Grundsätzlich werden zuerst die Länder mit den größten italienischen Gemeinschaften priorisiert.
Luca: Und ich würde sagen, dass das 90% unserer Zuhörer umfasst, äh, äh, zwischen den USA, Australien und Kanada. Das Vereinigte Königreich bleibt außen vor, aber es ist kein Land, das bis vor ein paar Jahrzehnten eine große italienische Diaspora hatte.
Anna: Ja, ja.
Luca: To clarify, what does this visa actually, let you do? You mentioned that it’s a work [00:06:00] permit outside the quota system, but you can’t just pack up your bags and do it without a job. Can you?
Anna: No, no, the visa is for, the visa is for subordinate work, which means you need an Italian employer who’s willing to hire you for a job in Italy. So the employer has to go through the whole standard process of getting a work authorization, then will for you through the immigration office.
Luca: Okay. So it is not a job seeker visa. It is not a digital normal visa. No. And it’s not an entrepreneur visa. You just can’t arrive and then look for work. You have to have a contract.
Anna: Ganz genau.
So you need that contract lined up already before. Before coming. It’s not that easy.
Luca: Es ist also ein Anreiz, dass die Menschen diesen Prozess noch durchlaufen müssen und etwas für den italienischen Arbeitsmarkt zu bieten haben. Der italienische Arbeitsmarkt ist nicht so daran gewöhnt, Arbeitskräfte aus dem Ausland einzustellen wie andere Länder.
So unless you have specialized skills or [00:07:00] personal connections, a Italian company may prefer to hire someone who’s already here or is a EU citizen. But all that being said that the shortage of workers in several categories, uh, is massive. And with the right qualifications found, workers definitely achievable.
In fact, the news came out yesterday that Italy has hit its lowest unemployment rate ever. Whether that is good news or not is another catch of fish. We’ll discuss that in another episode of the podcast because the truth is that the worker population is shrinking very, very fast as people retire.
Das ist also ein Problem. Aber für Menschen, die in Italien nach Arbeit suchen, sieht die Realität so aus, dass es derzeit weit mehr Stellen als Arbeitssuchende gibt.
Anna: Yeah, so the opportunity is definitely there, but people need to be realistic about the job search and maybe play up any special skills they have. Like the world [00:08:00] situation with Italian businesses closing because, um, they can’t find work is honestly really concerning.
Luca: It’s pretty scary.
Anna: Yeah, this week I heard about this big excavation company, that’s stuck because they can’t find excavator operators and two restaurants in a pastry shop shutting down because they can’t find chefs. So the jobs are out there for people who want them.
Luca: It actually makes me very sad because the pastry shop you’re talking about was my first, uh, pastry shop when I was a child. So it hits me what it hurts.
Anna: Yeah. What you can’t do is to try to game the system with some part-time or fake job. We know from people who handle all these cases all the time, that the Polizeibehörde won’t give you a residency permit if you’re applying through some brand new company or got barely any hours.
Luca: So you can’t do this on a part-time basis. We wrote an article about this last week, so people that want to go to Magic Towns Italy and read about the fine details [00:09:00] of the, um, the new work permit rules, they, they can do that. Going back to the job requirements, um, yeah, we can probably tell our listeners that speaking Italian will go a long way towards finding a job in Italy, wouldn’t it?
Anna: Absolutely language skills and networking will take you really, really far. So you’ll need to prove your Italian ancestry as part of application. And the government is still figuring out exactly what documents they’ll need and how you’ll submit that proof. You’ll still have to go through the entire hiring and work, permit process just like any other non you worker would just without the quota restriction.
Luca: Let’s talk about the really enticing part of this, which is the short term citizenship granting timelines for people that qualify for this scheme. How does this work? Is this like a fast track to Italian citizenship? [00:10:00]
Anna: This is probably the biggest draw, honestly. Under Italian law, if you’ve got an Italian parent or a grandparent, you can apply for citizenship by naturalization after just two years of legal residence in Italy. And that’s way shorter than the standard. 10 year residency requirement for foreigners without Italian ancestry. So, um, here’s how it works.
Sie kommen also mit diesem speziellen Arbeitsvisum nach Italien. Sie leben und arbeiten hier, und wenn Sie nach zwei Jahren die Voraussetzungen erfüllen, können Sie die Staatsbürgerschaft beantragen.
Luca: That’s not bad. Two years is incredibly fast in citizenship terms. Normally, non EU citizens had to wait, for 10 years to even apply and then even longer to get it.
Das ist also ein großer Anreiz.
Anna: Yeah. But, I need to clarify something really important. That two year fast track only works if your Italian ancestor was a parent or grandparent. So a lot of people in communities like Italian [00:11:00] Americans might be third or fourth generation descendants. And for those folks, the low doesn’t give you that special reduction yet.
Luca: Wir hören Gerüchte, dass die Regierung diese Anforderung in Zukunft möglicherweise lockern wird, sodass auch Personen, deren Urgroßeltern oder Ururgroßeltern eine Verbindung zu Italien haben, Anspruch auf einen vereinfachten Weg zur Staatsbürgerschaft haben könnten.
Um, we still have to see that getting onto paper. So just to make a concrete example, if my grandfather was born in Italy, but I can’t claim citizenship by descent because he had renounced his Italian citizenship or some other technical reason, I can move to Italy on the new work visa and and after two years I can apply to become an Italian citizen.
Mm-hmm. But if my connection is through a great grandparent right now. I can still use the visa to live and work in Italy outside the quota system, but I might have to stay in Italy for as long as 10 years before I can [00:12:00] apply for citizenship. As for the standard law, I should add to this, that anyone living legally in Italy for five years, can apply for a permanent resident status. Imagine the equivalent of a green card status, which allows you to live Italy and effectively have the right to live there and in the EU indefinitely. It’s just one little step below being a citizen, but not white being a citizen. So five years become a permanent resident. 10 years, you become a citizen. If you fall within the remit of this reform you can also, become a citizen as early as two years after you land.
Anna: Yeah, this visa is basically saying if you really want to reconnect with Italy, enough that you will actually move here and contribute for a couple years. We’ll give you a shot.
And in the best case, you’re only waiting two [00:13:00] years to be eligible for citizenship.
Luca: Das ist eine sehr gute Entwicklung.
Wir werden sehen, wie es läuft. Und wie haben die Menschen in den italienischen Nachfahrengemeinschaften bisher reagiert? Wissen wir das?
Anna: People are obviously happy about that. Uh, but of course, immigration lawyers and relocation experts like us are telling people to approach it with a solid plan because like we talk about, you still need that job lined up and you’ve got to be ready to move pretty quickly once you get the work permit. But overall, I’d say the reaction has been really positive.
Luca: Apropos Zeitpläne: Wissen wir, wann dieses neue Visum eingeführt wird?
Anna: Das Dekret ist also veröffentlicht, der Rahmen ist offiziell in Kraft, aber die praktischen Details werden noch ausgearbeitet. Das ist in Italien ziemlich typisch.
Sie machen die Gesetze und kommen dann Monate später heraus, um [00:14:00] zu erklären, wie alles tatsächlich funktioniert.
Luca: Months later or years later, sometimes it happens. Yeah. So what’s the procedure gonna be like?
Anna: Also, äh, sie werden sagen, wann das Online-Portal Bewerbungen annimmt, äh, welche Unterlagen Sie benötigen. Aber ich schätze, dass man sich spätestens Anfang 2026 bewerben kann, wenn nicht sogar früher.
Now it’s the time to get your documents together, and both your family documents to show your Italian lineage, and obviously to start or keep going with your job hunt in Italy.
Luca: Lovely. So go get your Italian birth certificates, get your marriage certificates in order, and, perhaps you can start reaching out to potential employers or use your own networks in Italy to secure a job offer. Keep in mind that if you’re bringing in any foreign documents, in terms of, birth certificates or marriage certificates that come outside the EU, you’re going to have to, officially translate them and get them [00:15:00] apostilled.
So that’s an extra step. You might as well do it now. Um, anything else we should, talk about Anna?
Anna: One more thing about the citizenship timeline. So, applying after two years of residency doesn’t mean you recently become a citizen like at two years. It means you are eligible to apply. The application itself can take a couple years and you will need to meet requirements like, passing an Italian language test, showing integration income and stuff like that. But compared to waiting 10 years, this is way
Luca: faster. Absolutely. So don’t imagine showing up and becoming Italian in 2027.
Wenn der Papierkram erledigt ist, könnte es 2028 oder 2029 sein, aber das ist immer noch besser als 2035, wie es nach dem alten Zeitplan der Fall gewesen wäre.
Anna: Exactly. Maybe by then Italy might tweak this policies even more, or expand the eligible countries. I mean, it’s still evolving.
Luca: And I think it’s quite likely because, uh, and we’re gonna talk [00:16:00] about it in our next podcast, about our 2026 predictions. The demographic bomb is about to become very apparent and, potentially blow up in everyone’s face. So the government may actually wake up and make it much easier for people to move into Italy.
So to summarize for our listeners. Good news. If you have Italian ancestry, you come from US, Canada, Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, or Venezuela, you now have a special pathway to move to Italy and work. You need a job offer by the way. You can come as a tourist, find a job, and then go through the system. Nothing prevents you from, going to a few interviews, but you’re not going to be limited by the quota numbers. Once you’re in Italy, if you are Italian ancestor is a parent or a grandparent, you can apply full citizenship after just two years instead of 10.
So that’s a brilliant, brilliant development for you guys.
Anna: Exactly. A lot of people now have another chance. And beyond [00:17:00] citizenship, it’s the experience, you know, of actually living in Italy, working here, becoming part of a local community for at least a couple years.
Luca: Enjoy living in Italy, stay in Italy, and that’s what many of our listeners want to do.
Und, äh, irgendwann den Pass als endgültige Anerkennung Ihrer Bemühungen erhalten, könnte man sagen.
Anna: I’m really looking forward to seeing the first success stories come out of this in the next year or two.
Luca: Dies erweitert also das neue Arsenal an Optionen für Menschen, die nach Italien ziehen.
So we have the Elective Residency Visa for retirees. We have the digital normal visa, which is actually working, better than, than we expected. Quick approval times. It’s, um, it’s been a very positive surprise. We’re gonna talk more about, digital nomads in the very near future. And, and now we have this work visa, so things are looking up.
Anna: Ja, ja.
Luca: Für alle Zuhörer, die glauben, dass dies auf sie zutreffen könnte, oder [00:18:00] sich für legale Umzugsmöglichkeiten nach Italien interessieren, besuchen Sie Magic Towns Italy. Wir berichten über alle Neuigkeiten zu Visa und legalen Migrationswegen. Die neuesten Informationen finden Sie auf unserer Website. Vielen Dank, Anna, dass Sie sich die Zeit genommen haben, uns das zu erklären.
Anna: Danke, Luca. Es war mir ein Vergnügen. Ich hoffe wirklich, dass dies einigen von Ihnen weiterhilft.
Luca: there. I’m sure they will. If you enjoyed this episode, please share it with others. If you want more information about moving to Italy including 1500 towns that we cover in our Town Explorer with all. Some data points about healthcare, crime, income levels, quality of life, uh, you name it. We have more than 200 per town. Please visit Magic Towns Italy, and thank you for listening to us. Talk to you next week.
Anna: Ciao
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