This page is for people who have moved to Italy or changed their address and want to register with the municipality.
What is residenza anagrafica and who can register?
Residenza anagrafica is a record in the municipality’s population register (anagrafe) showing that you live there permanently. Foreigners who are staying in Italy legally register and change their record on the same terms as Italian citizens. If you have lived in a reception center for more than three months and this is documented, that place also counts as your permanent residence.
According to a 2022 clarification from the Ministry of Labor, a foreigner shows a residence permit or the receipt for an application for one in order to register. Holders of temporary protection do register in practice: the Questura (the provincial police headquarters) in Rome accepts, among other documents, a certificate of residence registration when renewing their permits.
Why register?
You need registration for citizenship, tax residence, an ID card, the child allowance and the job center (Centro per l’impiego, CPI):
| What | How it is linked to registration |
|---|---|
| Citizenship | You are legally resident in Italy if you have a residence permit and are registered in the population register; this is the period counted for citizenship |
| Taxes | Anyone registered for most of the tax year is considered an Italian tax resident unless they prove otherwise |
| ID card | The municipality issues it to people who are registered there or actually live there |
| Single child allowance (AUU) | One of the conditions: residence and domicile in Italy (or work with contributions paid) |
| Job center | According to the 2022 clarification, you need residence in Italy to register with a job center |
How and when do you apply?
You apply for residence registration within 20 days of moving, and it is free. The application is made on forms of the Ministry of the Interior and the National Institute of Statistics (ISTAT). You can submit it in person at the municipality, remotely by the methods the law allows for dealing with public offices, or online through the national population register (ANPR). Check on your municipality’s website how it accepts applications.
Documents:
- a passport or another equivalent identity document;
- if the whole family is moving, official documents on its composition issued by the competent authorities of the country you came from.
Ukrainian family documents are submitted with an apostille and a translation into Italian; how to prepare them is explained on the page Documents for living in Italy.
What should you do after your residence permit is renewed?
Within 60 days of renewing your permit, confirm with the population register that you still live in this municipality, and attach the renewed permit. While renewal is in progress, you are not removed from the register.
What if you are not registered?
If you are not registered in the population register, you must report every change of the place where you permanently live to the Questura within 15 days.
What mistakes should you avoid?
- Missing the 20 days for applying after you move.
- Forgetting to confirm your residence with the population register within 60 days of renewing your permit.
- Treating residence registration as a residence permit: it is for people who are already staying legally.
- Paying for the application itself: it is free.
What has not yet been officially confirmed?
We have not found a separate clarification from the Ministry of the Interior on the registration of temporary protection holders; the rules are given according to the text of the law and Questura practice. We will update this page as soon as clarifications appear.