FAQS
The most frequently asked questions about housing suitability.
Note: we do not deal with immigration! Our technicians only verify the necessary requirements in order to issue the housing suitability certificate.
Questions and issues related to immigration should be addressed to the competent offices (Townhall, Prefecture).
Family Reunificaion
Family reunification is an essential tool to enable family life as it helps to create a socio-cultural
stability and facilitates integration on Italian soil, thus allowing the promotion of economic and
social cohesion.
Family unity is a right protected by the Italian legal system and also fully recognized for foreigners
who want to reunite with their family members. who wish to reunite with their families.
The subjects for whom family reunification can be requested are the following:
• spouse (or civil partner) – not legally separated – aged at least 18;
• Minor children;
• Dependent legal aged children with total disability;
• dependent parents who have no other children in their country of origin or provenance, or in
case of parents over the age of 65, if the children are unable to support them for serious and
documented health reasons;
• natural parent, if the applicant is a minor and legally residing in Italy with the other parent.
• Photocopy of residence permit – identity card – tax code
• Photocopy of your passport and of the family member
• Family certificate or self-certification
• Certificate of widowhood (only if the family member is a widower) – in case of over 65 it is
required to take out the insurance policy
• Certificate of housing suitability issued by the Townhall where the accommodation is
located.
(Click here and consult the section required documents for issuing the certificate of housing
suitability);
• Documentation certifying income CUD, 730, Unique Model
• Model S2 if you are a guest or renter and need to reunite a family member
• Copy of the registered rental contract or deed of sale of the accommodation
• Model S1 if you are a guest and only have to reunite your child under 14 years old
• SPID
• Revenue stamp €16.00.
The request for the residence permit for family reunification must be sent online to the Sportello
Unico for Immigration, through the procedure available on the website of the Ministry of the
Interior. Access to telematic portals requires SPID.
The authorization for family reunification is the responsibility of the Prefecture – Immigration Desk
competent for area.
The accommodation will have to meet several requirements in order to apply for family
reunification.
(Click here for a more completed description, you can consult the housing requirements section)
The floor area required for family reunification are the following:
• No. 1 person: 14.00 m²
• No. 2 people: 28 m²
• No. 3 people: 42 m²
• No. 4 people: 56 m²
• For each person after the fourth, + 10 m²
For single room accommodation (studios):
• No. 1 person: 28 m²
• No. 2 people: 38 m²
Family Cohesion
Family cohesion can be defined as “a family reunification carried out directly in Italy ” as it does
not presuppose the prior request of the authorization by the foreign citizen to the Immigration Desk
of the competent Prefecture and the subsequent request by the family member for a visa family
entry.
In order to issue the residence permit, the application for family cohesion can be carried out by:
- Italian citizen or EU citizen
- Resident citizen with a residence permit with a duration of at least one year for subordinate
or self-employed work or for family reasons, asylum and subsidiary protection, study
purposes, humanitarian or religious reasons, even in the renewal phase.
The subjects for whom family cohesion can be requested are the following:
• spouse (or civil partner) – not legally separated – aged at least 18 years
• minor children
• dependent adult children with total disability
• dependent parents who have no other children in their country of origin or provenance, or in
the case of parents over the age of 65, if the other children are unable to support them for
serious and documented health reasons
• natural parent, if the applicant is a minor and legally residing in Italy with the other parent.
- photocopy of the residence permit
• photocopy of your passport and of the family member
• family certificate or self-certification
• for the cohesion of parents over 65, the commitment to the stipulation of the insurance
policy is needed
• Certificate of housing suitability issued by the Townhall where the accommodation is
located.
(Click here and consult the section documents required for issuing the certificate of housing
suitability);
• documentation certifying income CUD, 730, Unique Model
• copy of the registered rental contract or deed of sale of the accommodation
• Revenue stamp €16.00.
You can apply the residence permit for family cohesion by completing and sending the dedicated
postal kit (model 209).
By law, the renewal of residence permits must be requested within the maximum term of 60 days
from the expiry, if the permit is requested after the time limit, the application must be presented
directly to the Immigration Office of the competent Police Headquarters
Resident Permit
To apply for a long-term residence permit, you need to go to a post office where you can find the
needed forms for free (kit with yellow stripe).
To complete the application, follow the instructions that you can find in the kit and in the “issuerenewal of residence permit” form.
Together with the form (completed and signed) the following must be presented to the prefecture
with:
1) photocopy of the whole passport (or of an equivalent document);
2) photocopy of the tax return (Unico CUD, etc. related to the previous year). For the domestic
collaborators (housekeepers/caregivers) it is required to show the INPS slips or the
analytical contribution extract issued by the INPS
3) certificate judicial record and certificate of registration relating to criminal proceedings
(both to be requested from the Court Records Office)
4) copy of pay slips of the current year
5) documentation relating to residence and family status
6) postal payment slip of the electronic residence permit
7) revenue stamp of €16.00
8) Housing suitability.
(Click here to consult the section documents required for the issuance of certification of
accommodation suitability)
The residence permit is issued by police stations to non-EU citizens who move to Italy for a certain
period of time.
The are several valid reasons, they can be for study, work, family, research purposes, etc.
Within 30/60 days from the expiry date it is mandatory to proceed with the renewal by sending the
kit containing the required documentation to the competent Police Headquarters by post.
The long-term residence permit, introduced in 2007, has replaced the so-called residence card.
The long-term residence permit is issued to those who have lived in Italy for at least 5 years, has a
valid residence permit, resides in a suitable accommodation, has a certain family income and has no
criminal records.
In Italy there are many different types of residence permits. The most common are:
1) Residence permit for study and training purposes;
2) Residence permit for subordinate employment reasons;
3) Residence permit for seasonal employment reasons;
4) Residence permit for self-employment reasons;
Housing Suitability
The certificate of housing suitability is a document which certifies compliance with the hygienicsanitary requirements of the house according to the technical parameters required by the Decree of the Ministry of Health of 5 July 1975 and certifies how many people can live in an accommodation.
The certificate of housing suitability is one of the documents required to get the residence permit for
the following reasons:
• EC residence permit for long-term residents;
• family cohesion;
• entry of accompanying family members;
• employment contract;
• entry for self-employment;
• family reunification;
• Amnesty applications/Emersion 2020;
The certificate of housing suitability is issued by the competent municipality once the
documentation has been presented, after verification of the health and hygiene requirements.
(Click here and consult the section documents required for the issuance of the accommodation
suitability certificate)
The certification of the hygienic-sanitary suitability of the accommodation is carried out by a
qualified technician who will perform an inspection of the house.
Note: Municipalities do not have a unified procedure therefore, for the municipalities bordering
Milan, it will be necessary to proceed with a verification by contacting the Municipal offices.
(Do you need a surveyor for an assessment of health and hygiene requirements? Click here and
book an appointment with one of our technicians)
The certificate of housing suitability can be requested by a person who is entitled to a right of the
accommodation in question, for example the landlord or the owner of a regularly registered rental
contract
You can apply for housing suitability by filling out the application form made by the competent
municipality. In addition to the application form, the Municipalities require other documents to
verify the necessary conditions in order to issue the certificate.
(Click here and consult the section documents required for the issuance of the certificate of housing suitability).
The application form must be completed by filling in all the required fields, except for the details
relating to the residence permit if the applicant is a person with an Italian citizenship.
(If you want us to be in charge of submitting your request to the competent municipality, click here
and book an appointment with one of our technicians)
The certificate of housing suitability is issued by the competent municipality within maximum 30
days. Be aware that this timing can be reduced or extended on the basis of the workload of the
Municipality itself.
The certificate of suitable housing has a variable duration between 1 year and 6 months depending
on the Municipality of reference. For further information, it is suggested to directly contact the
competent Municipality.