Who is eligible to apply for a Permanent (also called “Long Term”) residence permit (also called ‘permanent’)?
The Long-Term residence permit has a duration of 10 years and can be obtained by non-EU nationals who have been legally residing in Italy for 5 continuous years.
It is noteworthy that family members of the main applicant can also apply for the long-term residence permit if they have continuously resided in Italy for 5 years.
Main requirements to apply for the Permanent residence permit
• the applicant has legally and continuously resided in Italy for at least 5 years. Note that the requested period of time is not considered continuous if the applicant has been away from the Italian territory for more than 10 months within the 5 years or for 6 months continuously;
• the applicant has registered their residency address at the competent Municipality, at least at the time of the application for the long-term residence permit;
• the applicant must be in possession of a valid residence permit at the time of application. However, the permit must not fall into one of the following categories: study or vocational training; temporary protection, medical treatment, special protection, labour exploitation; short-term permits with less than 1-year duration or diplomatic permits.
• the applicant has a yearly income declared in Italy not lower than the annual social allowance (approximately EUR 7,000). The minimum income is increased by half for each additional dependent family member, and proof of suitable accommodation for hosting the family member is required. More specifically, the applicant is required to submit a certificate of house suitability to the Municipality to demonstrate that the lodging is fully compliant with safety rules and can host a sufficient number of people.
• the applicant should have a valid certificate of knowledge of Italian language, level A2 at least.
Main Procedural Steps
1. Submission of the application for the residence permit addressed to the competent Police headquarters through a post office application;
2. Registration of the applicant’s fingerprints at the competent Police Headquarters;
3. Issuance of the Long-Term residence permit.
Validity of the long-term residence permit
The Long-Term residence permit (permesso di soggiorno per soggiornanti di lungo periodo) is subjected to a simple renewal application every 10 years.
For minors (under 18), the long-term permit has a shorter duration of 5 years.
With this residence permit, the non-EU national can work in Italy, access health and all other social services, and travel within the Schengen area.
Reasons for the revocation of the Long-Term permit
The possible reasons for the revocation of the long-term permit legitimately acquired are the following:
• The non-EU national becomes a real and present threat to public order or national security. This is usually connected to convictions for certain crimes, but the danger posed by the non-EU citizen should be assessed taking into consideration all relevant circumstances.
• The non-EU national is away from the EU territory for 12 consecutive months or longer.
• In case the non-EU national acquires a long-term residence permit in another EU country.
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