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Contact UsThe Annual Quota System of Work Permit in Italy
NON-EU citizens must obtain a work clearance/permit (Nulla Osta) to be able to work in Italy. Such a clearance/permit is issued based on the available quota which is fixed annually by means of a Decree – the so-called “decreto-flussi“. The decree sets the numerical limits (quota) of work clearance/permits that can be issued for each category of foreign workers and the application submission time frame. Work permits are normally granted on a first-come, first-served basis.
There're several categories of workers are excluded from the cap and are not subject to a fixed limit, such as ICT assignments, highly qualified workers, executives or managerial employees assigned to the Italian branch of a foreign legal entity, university lecturers, and professors, translators and interpreters, professional nurses, researchers, etc.
Italian Immigration law provides two different kinds of intra-company transfer work permits for workers from non- EU countries assigned to work temporarily in Italy. Under these options, workers do not become local employees but maintain an employment relationship with the home country employer.
Intra-company work permit is for highly specialized staff/managers/directors/ on assignment (Art. 27 c. 1 lett. (a) of Italian Immigration law); this procedure allows the foreign employee in an executive, senior managerial, or specialized knowledge role to be temporarily assigned (up to 5 years) to a subsidiary, branch, or an affiliate in Italy (sending and host companies should be part of the same business group or a joint-venture group).
Specifically, this procedure applies to highly specialized staff or managers employed at companies having their headquarters or subsidiaries in Italy; or employed at representative offices of foreign companies mainly operating in the territory of a WTO country; or, applies to managers of corporate headquarters located in Italy of Italian or EU companies. The residence permit issued under this process is called permesso di soggiorno casi particolari.
Intra-company transfer work permit for managers, specialists, trainees temporary seconded from a company established outside the EU where the worker is employed since at least 3 months prior to the transfer to a host entity established in Italy either directly owned by the NON-EU sending company or by another company of the same group (Art. 27 quinquies and Art. 27 sexies of Italian Immigration law).
The maximum duration is 3 years for managers and specialists, 1 year for trainees. It also applies to holders of an ICT Permit issued by another EU State, being transferred temporarily to a company of the same group established in Italy. These are not required to apply for a visa to enter Italy. They must apply for an ICT work permit in Italy only if the assignment exceeds 90 days within 180 days. The residence permits issued under these processes are called permesso di soggiorno ICT and permesso di soggiorno mobile ICT.
Even though there may be slight variations from one category to the other, the basic procedure for obtaining a work permit is the following:
We can assist clients with every step of the process, from the work permit (Nulla Osta) application with the Immigration Office (Sportello Unico per l’Immigrazione) until the collection of the residence permit. Through our network of 100+ local consultants, we accompany our clients in person in all major cities in Italy and guarantee a complete and well-presented application to achieve a higher chance of success.
If you are looking for an immigration service provider in Italy, contact us for an initial consultation and price quote by completing the online form. Our immigration consultants will reach out to you shortly via email. Please note that in case of complex issues we may require a consultation fee for the initial assessment and schedule a 30 minutes call with one of our immigration experts.
