The Cartabia reform (“riforma Cartabia”) is the hottest debated topic of the moment in courts and law firms throughout Italy. The new rules cover both the criminal and civil courts and are due to come into effect from 1st March 2023. Marta Cartabia was the former Minister of Justice in the Mario Draghi government, and was responsible for...
Read MoreSelling property “non in regola”
In preparing to sell the ownership rights of Italian real estate property the seller must carry out a thorough initial examination of the layout and planning and building permits. This is strongly recommended at the earliest possible stage, even before a mandate is given to an Estate Agent to market the property, or before negotiations begin with a...
Read MorePost-Brexit residence questions
The promise made by the UK government to British citizens resident in the EU, that their residence rights would be protected post-Brexit is still a work in progress. A recent review by the British Embassy revealed that only one-third of British citizens resident in Italy has applied for the electronic “carta di soggiorno” from the Questura. This...
Read MoreOur new office
On 1st December we moved into new offices near the Rome civil courts in the Prati area, near St Peter’s Basilica, and the Vatican. The office is easily accessible from the Metro A station Ottaviano. OUR NEW ADDRESS: Studio Legale, Via delle Milizie 96, Interno 11, 00192 Rome. Tel: 06 69 40 4910. The legal team at our new office: Avvocato...
Read MoreWho is the new Italian Justice Minister?
With ever-increasing backlogs in the Italian courts, and the length of court proceedings, in particular in civil litigation, rendering it virtually impossible for creditors to recoup lost investments in Italy, we take a brief look at the head of the new government’s Ministry of Justice. These are early days and we have yet to see whether a real...
Read MoreNEW VISA FOR REMOTE WORKING AND DIGITAL NOMADS
Living and working in Italy is a dream for many, but has always been challenging for non-EU nationals to obtain a work permit or a self-employment visa. The “elective residence” visa offers an alternative means to live in Italy, but is only available to those who can show the availabilty of accommodation in Italy and who have substantial sources...
Read MoreRight to vote for British citizens abroad
The right to vote, for all British citizens resident outside the UK, has finally been restored this year by the Elections Act 2022. The vote for overseas electors had been restricted in 2002 to include only British citizens resident outside the UK for less than 15 years. After that cut off point, British citizens living abroad were no longer eligible to...
Read MoreLocal courts take over Italian citizenship applications
Applications for Italian citizenship, made by non-Italian residents, on the grounds of descent (ius sanguinis) pre-1948 from a female relative, will no longer be decided by the Civil Court of Rome. As of 22nd June 2022, applications need to be lodged in the civil court of the Comune where the last Italian ancestor was born, as of 22nd June 2022. (See Law...
Read MoreItalian inheritance tax
Italian residents may face a higher tax burden on their lifetime income, but their family is taxed very lightly on death compared to most other European countries. Different rates of Italian inheritance tax are applied depending on the family relationship the heir to each asset had to the deceased. Any legacy or gift passing to “direct-line”...
Read MoreSelling gifted or inherited property
When the ownership of an Italian property has passed by way of an inheritance (eredità), or has been transferred between generations by a gift (donazione), this may create an obstacle to the future sale, in particular if less than 20 years has passed from the inheritance or gift. A seller may find there is increased scrutiny of the property history by the...
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