Estimate your costs
| Registration tax | |
|---|---|
| Mortgage and cadastral taxes | |
| Preliminary contract registration | |
| Estate agency, with VAT | |
| Notary | |
| Interpreter and translations | |
| Advisers | |
| Total costs | |
| Price plus costs |
Who can buy
- EU and EEA citizens. You can buy on the same terms as Italians.
- Non-EU citizens living in Italy. If you hold a residence permit for work, self-employment, family, study or humanitarian reasons, or an EU long-term residence permit, you can buy without further checks.
- Non-EU citizens not living in Italy. You can buy if an international treaty allows it or if your country lets Italians buy property there. This is called the reciprocity condition. The notary checks it before the deed: a purchase made without it is void.
- Stateless persons and refugees. You are treated like Italian citizens after three years of residence in Italy.
Buying a property does not give you a visa or the right to live in Italy. Stays, visas and residence follow the immigration rules, whatever you own.
Documents to prepare
For every buyer:
- Passport, or a national identity card if you are an EU citizen. It must be valid on the day of the deed.
- Italian tax code (codice fiscale). You need it before you can sign anything. You get it from the Agenzia delle Entrate in Italy or from an Italian consulate abroad, with your passport.
- Civil status. If you are married, a marriage certificate or a statement of your matrimonial property regime: it decides who becomes the owner. Documents issued abroad must be legalised or carry an apostille, and be translated into Italian.
- Traceable payments. Every payment is listed in the deed, with the bank transfer or bank draft details. Cash is not allowed from €5,000 upwards.
- Source of funds. The notary must apply anti-money-laundering checks and will ask where the money comes from.
In addition, if you are a non-EU citizen:
- Residence permit (permesso di soggiorno) or EU long-term residence permit, if you live in Italy.
- If you do not live in Italy, tell the notary your citizenship early, so that reciprocity can be checked before you pay a deposit.
If you do not speak Italian, or cannot be there:
- Language. The deed is in Italian. If you do not understand it, the notary works with an interpreter and a translation, or drafts the deed in two languages if he or she knows yours.
- Power of attorney (procura speciale). Someone you trust can sign for you. If you sign the power of attorney abroad, it must be legalised or carry an apostille, and be translated.
From the seller, ask for the title deed, the cadastral record and floor plan, and the energy certificate (APE).
The purchase, step by step
- Get your tax code. Do it first: you need it for the offer, the bank and the notary.
- Make an offer (proposta d'acquisto), usually with a deposit. Once the seller accepts, it binds you both.
- Sign the preliminary contract (compromesso). It sets price, deadline and conditions, and must be registered within 30 days.
- Notary checks. Ownership, mortgages, planning and cadastral compliance and, for non-EU buyers who are not resident, reciprocity.
- Sign the final deed (rogito) before the notary. You pay the balance, the taxes and the fees, and you get the keys.
- After the deed. Utilities, the waste tax registration with the municipality, and the yearly property tax.
Purchase taxes at a glance
| Registration tax, second home | 9% of the cadastral value |
|---|---|
| Registration tax, main home | 2% of the cadastral value |
| Minimum registration tax | €1,000 |
| Mortgage and cadastral taxes | €50 each |
| VAT, second home | 10% of the price |
|---|---|
| VAT, main home | 4% of the price |
| Registration, mortgage and cadastral taxes | €200 each |
The cadastral value is the cadastral income multiplied by 126 for a second home, or by 115.5 for a main home. It is usually well below the market price. Taxes are the same whatever your citizenship.
Costs every year
A home that is not your main residence pays IMU, the municipal property tax, in two instalments in June and December. Whoever uses the home pays TARI, the waste tax. Both depend on the municipality. You can estimate them with our IMU and TARI calculator, which is in Italian.
What this page does not cover
- Luxury homes in cadastral categories A/1, A/8 and A/9, which follow different rules.
- Mortgages for non-residents: banks decide case by case, and often lend a smaller share of the price.
- Income tax on the property, in Italy and in your own country.
- Visas and residence permits.
This is general information to help you plan, not legal or tax advice. Before you sign or pay anything, have the figures and your documents checked by the notary or by a lawyer.
Sources
- Notaio Online, home purchase by foreign non-residents (in Italian)
- Notaio Vianello, property purchase by foreigners (in Italian)
- We Wealth, foreigners and the reciprocity condition (in Italian)
- Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which publishes country notes on reciprocity
Open the full calculatorIn Italian, with mortgage and payment schedule.