With its publication on the Official Gazzette on October 3rd, 2023, the flow decree (Italian Decreto Flussi) – which provides for the admission of 452,000 foreign workers to Italy for the three-year period 2023-2025 – came into effect.
UPDATE 2024: The deadlines for submitting applications for Decreto Flussi 2024 have been postponed to March. Learn more here about the new updates on the application.
Applications are evaluated in order of arrival and must be accompanied by all the required documentation.
Entry into force of the flows decree (Italy Decreto Flussi)
Last July 12th, the Conference of Regions and Autonomous Provinces expressed a positive opinion – with some recommendation –, on the draft of decree on the planning of entry flows of foreign workers into Italy for the three-year period 2023-2025, previously approved in preliminary examination by the government on July 6th, 2023.
Following the publication in the Official Gazzette n. 231 on October 3rd, 2023, the decree has now come into force.
Criteria for determining entry flows in Italy
Pursuant to Article 1, Paragraph 3 of Decree-Law No. 20 of 2023, the determination of entry flows of foreigners to be admitted to the Italian territory in the three-year period 2023-2025, for subordinate, seasonal and self-employment work, both within and outside the quotas, is made on the basis of certain common criteria, including:
- Progressive narrowing of the gap between the size of entry flows and the labor market needs detected by the Ministry of Labor and Social Policy, based on a schedule consistent with the capacity of local communities to receive foreign workers;
- Extension of the economic sectors considered in the planning of entry flows;
- Enhancement of training tools of the countries of origin of foreign workers;
- Encouragement of the ways of cooperation with the countries of origin and transit of migration flows to Italy;
- Incentivizing the entry of workers with high professional qualifications.
There are then some specific criteria, including:
- The provision of preferential quotas reserved for workers from countries that, also in collaboration with the Italian state, promote media campaigns for their citizens concerning the risks arising from irregular migration trafficking;
- Allocation of the requested agricultural workers with priority over new applicants, within the limits of the quotas allocated to the agricultural sector by the further decrees on flows, to employers who have not been allocated the requested quotas;
- Reactivation of a specific quota for workers in the family and social-health care sectors (such as, for example, domestic helpers and caregivers).
As a reminder, Italian regulations also provide access to extra-quotas work permits for certain categories of workers. For more details, have a look here at the different types of Italian Work Visas.
Overall quotas
The decree published on the Official Gazzette authorizes 452,000 entries over three years for seasonal and nonseasonal employment and self-employment of foreign nationals residing abroad.
These overall quotas are distributed over the three-year period as follows:
- 136,000 units for the year 2023;
- 151,000 units for the year 2024;
- 165,000 units for the year 2025.
Quotas for seasonal work
Within the overall quotas, citizens of from countries applying cooperation agreements with Italy shall be admitted to Italy for seasonal employment in the agricultural and hotel tourism sectors, within the following quotas:
- 82,550 units for the year 2023;
- 89,050 units for the year 2024;
- 93,550 units for the year 2025.
Quotas for subordinate non-seasonal work, self-employment and conversions
Within the overall quotas, foreign nationals residing abroad are admitted for non-seasonal employment in the sectors of road haulage for hire and reward, construction, tourism and hospitality, mechanics, telecommunications, food, shipbuilding, bus passenger transport, fishing, hairdressers, electricians and plumbers, and self-employment according to the following maximum limits:
- 53,450 units for the year 2023, including 52,770 for employment and 680 for self-employment;
- 61,950 units for the year 2024, of which 61,250 for employment and 700 for self-employment;
- 71,450 units for the year 2025, of which 70,720 are for employment and 730 for self-employment.
Within the above quotas, some units are preferentially allocated to certain categories of citizens.
For year 2023, these categories include:
- 2.000 units for citizens of countries that promote media campaigns against irregular migration trafficking;
- 25.000 units for citizens from countries that apply cooperation agreements with Italy – Albania, Algeria, Bangladesh, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Korea (Repubblic of Korea), Cote d’Ivoire, Egypt, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Philippines, Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Japan, Jordan, Guatemala, India, Kyrgyzstan, Kosovo, Mali, Morocco, Mauritius, Moldova, Montenegro, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Republic of North Macedonia, Senegal, Serbia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Tunisia, Ukraine;
- 12.000 units for citizens of countries that will apply cooperation agreements with Italy during the three years 2023-2025;
- 100 units for citizens of Italian origin residing in Venezuela – of which 90 units for employment and 10 units for self-employment;
- 200 units to stateless persons or refugees, of which 180 for employment and 20 for self-employment;
- 9.500 units for non-seasonal workers in family and socio-healthcare sector (i.e. caregivers).
Within the above quotas, the decree defines the possibility of conversion into residence permits for employment and self-employment. These include, for year 2023:
- 4.000 units for the conversion of residence permits for seasonal work into employment;
- 100 units for conversion of EU long-term residence permits issued to third-country nationals by another EU country, into employment;
- 50 units for the conversion of EU long-term residence permits issued to third-country nationals by another EU country, into self-employment.
Finally, with regard to entry for self-employment, for each of the years 2023, 2024 and 2025, the entry into Italy within the above quotas is allowed to No. 500 foreign citizens residing abroad, belonging to the following categories:
- entrepreneurs who intend to implement an investment plan of interest to the Italian economy, involving the use of own resources of no less than €500,000, as well as the creation of at least three new jobs;
- freelancers who intend to practice regulated or supervised professions, or unregulated but nationally represented professions;
- holders of corporate offices of administration and control expressly provided for in Interministerial Decree No. 850 of May 11, 2011;
- artists of clear reputation or high and well-known professional qualification, hired by public or private entities, having the requirements expressly provided for in Interministerial Decree No. 850 of May 11, 2011;
- foreign nationals who intend to establish “innovative start-up” enterprises under Law No. 221 of December 17, 2012, in presence of the requirements provided by the same law and who hold an employment relationship of a self-employed nature with the enterprise.
Deadlines for application submission of Italy Decreto Flussi 2023
UPDATE 2024: The deadlines for submitting applications for Decreto Flussi 2024 have been postponed to March. Learn more here about the new updates on the application.
The deadlines for submitting work permit applications for year 2023 are:
- For entries for non-seasonal work of citizens from countries that apply cooperation agreements with Italy – Albania, Algeria, Bangladesh, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Korea (Repubblic of Korea), Cote d’Ivoire, Egypt, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Philippines, Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Japan, Jordan, Guatemala, India, Kyrgyzstan, Kosovo, Mali, Morocco, Mauritius, Moldova, Montenegro, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Republic of North Macedonia, Senegal, Serbia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Tunisia, Ukraine: from 9:00 a.m. of December 2nd, 2023 (60th day following the date of publication of this decree in the Official Gazzette) until the respective quotas are met or, in any case, by December 31st, 2023;
- For entries of other citizens for non-seasonal work: from 9:00 a.m. of December 4th, 2023 (62nd day following the date of publication of this decree in the Official Gazzette), until the respective quotas are met or, in any case, by December 31st, 2023;
- For entries for seasonal work: from 9:00 a.m. of December 12th, 2023 (70th day following the date of publication of this decree in the Official Gazzette), until the respective quotas are met or, in any case, by December 31st, 2023.
As for the following years, the deadlines for submitting applications for work authorization for entry within the quotas will start, for each of the years 2024 and 2025, from 9 a.m. on February 5, 7 and 12, according to the breakdown by areas and until the respective quotas are met or, in any case, by December 31 of each year.
If, following 90 days from the deadlines for applications submission, the authorities will notice that a significant number of quotas have not been used, the Ministry of Labour and social politics can evaluate to determine a different quotas split according to the actual need.
Finally, the decree informs that further implementing provisions regarding the application of the same will be defined, with a view to simplification, through a special joint circular of the Ministry of the Interior, the Ministry of Labor and Social Policies, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Forestry, and the Ministry of Tourism, having consulted the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, which will be communicated on the websites of the above-mentioned ministries.
This circular should also provide guidance on the documentation required for the employer to demonstrate that it has completed the verification at the relevant Job Center.