Buying a House in Sicily is Easier Than Buying a Car

It sounds like the punchline to a joke, but there really is truth to this surprising claim. In Italy, you need to be registered as resident in order to own a car. To buy a house? Not necessarily.

“People are always surprised when I tell them this,” says Valerio Gruessner, director of AIPP-accredited Sicilian estate agency Property in Sicily. “They assume property ownership has to be the more complicated part of moving here, but in many cases the paperwork for a house purchase is simpler than what you have to do to register a vehicle.”

If you hold an EU passport, the requirements are minimal: a tax code (codice fiscale) and the use of an Italian bank account, both of which you can arrange without even being in the country. If you don’t have the latter, you will be able to make payments through your notary, or the escrow account of your estate agency.

For non-EU citizens, in addition to the above, Italy applies the principle of reciprocity. So if an Italian can buy property in your country, you can buy here on broadly similar terms. That covers UK citizens comfortably, even post-Brexit. The same is true for Americans, though it does get a bit more nuanced for buyers from countries like Canada and Australia.

The best advice, if you have any doubts, is to check with a notary (notaio) before making an offer.

This is the rub. Unless you have EU citizenship or a visa, your time in the new property will be capped at the union-wide limit of 90 days in any 180-day period. That’s plenty for a holiday home, though not enough to start a life here. “But honestly, most of our clients don’t even notice these rules” says Valerio. “If you never planned to use the place for more than a few months a year, and there’s nothing to stop you renting it out to tourists when you’re away, the whole residency issue just never comes up.”

EU citizens simply register their address at the local council (comune) within 90 days of arrival. Non-EU citizens will face a longer road. To get the all-important residence permit (permesso di soggiorno) you will need to succesfully apply for a long-stay visa before you travel. If you can meet a criterion for this then you can take a trip to the post office for an application pack and another to the police headquarters (questura) for the permit.

It’s not complicated in principle, but it certainly helps a great deal to have someone who knows the system guiding you through it – especially if you’re not a fluent Italian speaker. “Even as Italians, any time we have to do something official for the first time there’ll always be something we miss”, Valerio, who has helped many clients through the process, observes. “You’ll bring an original

document and they’ll need a photocopy – bring a photocopy and they’ll decide they need three! And the one in the office is never available, for mysterious reasons…”

Becoming an Italian resident means becoming an Italian taxpayer, filing annual returns in Italian to the authorities here, and being taxed in the country regardless of where your income originates. The benefits of making the switch can actually be substantial, with Italy offering hefty income tax incentives to new residents, especially if you move to a small municipality in the country’s south. There may, however, be implications for your existing arrangements. A last word from Valerio: “My number one tip is always that you deserve to get yourself proper professional advice before you commit.”

And yes – it’s really true that buying the house can be the easy part. The residency and bureaucracy will take more patience. After all that, make sure you treat yourself to a nice car!

Find out more by visiting Property in Sicily