Months ago, I asked around online to see what sorts of topics Americans living in Italy needed the most help with so I could address them on this blog. One person I spoke with asked if I could explain the differences between the various offices you have to go to to get documents and to basically get set up as a resident here, and the answer is… yes!
There is a partial version of this list in the free reference guide you get when you sign up to the An American in Italy newsletter (see sidebar or bottom of page), but if you don’t want to sign up or just want a bit more info, here it is.
Since there are so many different offices that may be useful to Americans in Italy, this is surely not a complete list. But I will be adding more whenever I encounter or hear about them, so check back often (and leave me a note in the comments section if there is one I missed)!
Side note: These offices are most likely not going to be open at the hours you would expect them to be, so be sure to check out this other post to learn more about when most places in Italy close during the day.
The Main Italian Bureaucratic Offices
(and What You May Need Them For)
- Comune – residency, ID cards, marriage license, request copies of marriage license/other official documents, anything town- or house-related
- Agenzia Entrate or Azienda Sanitaria Locale (ASL) – tessera sanitaria (the Agenzia Entrate also handles tax-related issues and revenue services)
- Questura – police, permesso di soggiorno, carta di soggiorno
- U.S. Embassy in Italy – nulla osta, atto notorio, notary, passport renewal, other assistance specifically for Americans
- Prefettura – validate nulla osta/other documents signed at embassy
- Anagrafe – ID cards, residency registration, family status, register births, register deaths, name changes (which you probably can’t make), address changes, anything to do with identity and address
As I said before, I’m sure this list is just the tip of the iceberg. So if you can think of more places one might have to go to get set up here in Italy, let me know in the comments! (And thank you to Nicolle Wasserman for requesting this post!)
If you want to keep this list (and other useful tips) handy at all times, sign up for An American in Italy Newsletter in the sidebar or at the bottom of this page to receive a free PDF guidebook.