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Register of Italians Residing Abroad (AIRE)

What is AIRE

The Register of Italians Residing Abroad (AIRE – Anagrafe degli Italiani Residenti all’Estero), established by Law No. 470 of 27 October 1988, contains the personal records of Italian citizens who reside abroad for more than twelve months.

AIRE is managed by Italian municipalities and the Ministry of the Interior on the basis of information provided by Consular Offices.

Who is required to register with AIRE

Italian citizens who are legally required to register with AIRE include:

  • citizens who transfer their residence abroad for a period exceeding 12 months; in this case, the declaration must be submitted within 90 days of permanently moving abroad;
  • citizens who already reside abroad, either because they were born abroad or because they subsequently acquired Italian citizenship.

Please note: Italian law also allows citizens to declare their transfer abroad before leaving Italy (known as pre-registration). In this case, the registration process must still be completed with the competent Consular Office within 90 days of moving abroad.

Who is not required to register with AIRE

The following persons are not required to register with AIRE:

  • persons who move abroad for a period of less than 12 months;
  • seasonal workers;
  • permanent employees of the Italian State serving abroad who have been officially notified under the Vienna Conventions on Diplomatic and Consular Relations;
  • school heads, teachers and administrative staff placed on special assignment and posted abroad as part of educational activities outside Italy;
  • employees of Italian Regions and Autonomous Provinces assigned to their liaison offices established pursuant to Article 58 of Law No. 52 of 6 February 1996;
  • civilian and military personnel receiving the long-term overseas service allowance provided for under Article 1808 of the Italian Military Code (Legislative Decree No. 66 of 15 March 2010);
  • civilian and military personnel serving at offices and facilities of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO);
  • persons living with and accompanying the above-mentioned citizens abroad.

Registration remains optional for Italian citizens working abroad for the European Union, for international organisations of which Italy is a member, or for entities referred to in Article 26 of Law No. 125 of 11 August 2014, provided that they retain or establish their tax domicile in Italy.

How to register with AIRE

General information

Applications for AIRE registration are forwarded to the competent Italian municipality (Comune), which is the sole authority responsible for civil registration matters and for updating residence records and electoral registers.

Registration is free of charge. For tax-related matters, reference should be made to Presidential Decree No. 917 of 22 December 1986 (Consolidated Income Tax Act) and to the relevant circulars issued by the Italian Revenue Agency.

Once the procedure has been completed, the municipality notifies the citizen that registration has taken place. However, failure to receive such notification does not necessarily mean that registration has not been completed. Citizens wishing to check the status of their application should therefore contact the competent municipality directly, rather than the Consular Office.

Registration with AIRE entails removal from the Register of the Resident Population (APR – Anagrafe della Popolazione Residente) and, consequently, termination of the person’s registered residence in Italy.

Pursuant to Article 16(3) of Decree-Law No. 22/2019, AIRE registrations processed by municipalities following applications submitted to Consular Offices take effect from the date on which the application was submitted, provided that it was complete and included all required documentation.

The available methods for applying for AIRE registration are set out below.

  1. First method: Registration through the FAST IT portal

Applications for AIRE registration may be submitted online through the FAST IT portal, after registering for an account or logging in using a SPID, CIE or CNS digital identity.

After registering and activating the account, users must open an AIRE application by selecting “Anagrafe Consolare e AIRE” (pen icon) from the available services. They can then apply for AIRE registration by completing the relevant online form.

The following documents must be attached:

  • identity document. If the applicant’s Italian identity document has expired, it should not be entered in the portal, as the system does not allow this, but a copy must nevertheless be attached to the application;
  • proof of residence for all members of the household. For Sri Lanka, proof of residence may consist of:
    • a copy of the Grama Niladhari Certificate; or
    • a copy of the Resident Visa, if the applicant holds only Italian citizenship; or
    • a copy of an employment contract and/or rental agreement and/or household utility or bank documents showing proof of residence.

Tips for using the FAST IT portal

Applicants are advised to:

  • use PDF files with a resolution not exceeding 200 DPI. Other formats or higher resolutions may prevent the documents from being successfully received;
  • avoid photographs of documents and colour scans;
  • sign forms exclusively with a handwritten signature (i.e. signed in pen) or a digital signature;
  • if they already have an account on the Prenot@mi portal or a FAST IT account registered with another Consular Office, use the “Change Consular Office” (Cambio Sede) function before applying, transferring the account to “Sri Lanka > Colombo”;
  • use the “Change Consular Office” function, and not the change-of-address function, when moving between different consular jurisdictions. The change-of-address function should only be used when moving within the same consular jurisdiction.

Please note: The Consular Office cannot provide technical assistance for problems relating to the FAST IT portal. In such cases, users should contact the FAST IT portal helpdesk directly.

Messages sent through the FAST IT portal are used exclusively for notifications, for example to inform users that an application has been rejected or that additional documentation is required. Messages or conversations initiated by users through the portal cannot be processed or answered by the Consular Office.

  1. Second method: Submitting the application at the Embassy

Applicants who do not have the necessary equipment to use the FAST IT portal (PC, printer or scanner), or who experience technical difficulties, may submit their application in person at the Embassy after booking an appointment through the Prenot@mi portal.

Please note that, since 1 March 2019, applications for AIRE registration submitted by email are no longer accepted.

On the day of the appointment, applicants must provide:

  • the AIRE Registration Application, signed by the applicant. For households, a separate signed form must be submitted for each adult Italian citizen;
  • copies of the Italian identity documents (passport or identity card) of all household members residing abroad and living at the same address;
    • Italian citizens who do not yet hold an Italian identity document may submit a foreign identity document together with a copy of their birth certificate issued by the relevant Italian municipality;
    • citizens whose identity document has been lost or stolen may submit a copy of the report filed with the Sri Lankan Police Authorities and, if available, a photocopy of the lost or stolen Italian document;
  • for a foreign spouse, a copy of their national passport;
  • documents proving residence within the consular jurisdiction, such as a copy of a Resident Visa or residence permit, a residence certificate issued by the Grama Niladhari, an employment contract, rental agreement and/or household utility bills.

IMPORTANT: Requests for other consular services may not be submitted at the same time as an application for AIRE registration (e.g. passport, identity card, certificates, etc.). Such services may be requested and provided only after the applicant has received formal notification that the AIRE registration/change procedure has been initiated with the competent municipality. This notification will be sent to the applicant’s personal email address.

AIRE registration of minors living with only one parent

An application for the AIRE registration of an Italian minor living with only one parent, including a foreign parent, cannot be submitted through the FAST IT portal. The application must be sent by email to consolare.ambcolombo@esteri.it.

The following documents must be submitted:

  • the AIRE registration application for a minor living with only one parent, signed by both persons exercising parental responsibility. If the applicant states that it is impossible to obtain the other parent’s signature, documentary evidence of this impossibility must be provided, unless already on file. In any event, the other parent’s contact details and any other information useful for contacting them must be provided;
  • the minor’s birth certificate issued by the Italian municipality where the birth was registered;
  • the minor’s identity document;
  • identity documents of both parents;
  • proof of the minor’s residence, such as a residence certificate issued by the Grama Niladhari, school enrolment certificates or a Resident Visa.

Please note that the sole purpose of registering a minor with AIRE is to certify the Italian citizen’s actual residence (i.e. habitual place of residence) abroad. It is therefore independent of any disputes relating to decisions or orders issued by Italian or local judicial authorities.

Updating your AIRE registration

After registering with AIRE, citizens are required to keep their personal records up to date by promptly informing the competent Consular Office of any change in their residence abroad.

In particular, they must report:

  • a change of residential address within the same consular jurisdiction;
  • a move to another consular jurisdiction or another country.

Such changes must be reported through the FAST IT portal.

Although the law allows up to 180 days to report these changes, citizens are encouraged to apply for registration with their new Consular Office as soon as possible.

Removal from AIRE

A citizen is removed from the AIRE register in the event of:

  • returning permanently to Italy, by applying directly to the municipality for registration with the Register of the Resident Population (APR);
  • death, including where death has been legally declared by a court;
  • inability to establish the citizen’s whereabouts, particularly when their address abroad is no longer valid;
  • loss of Italian citizenship.

Transfer of AIRE registration

Citizens already registered with the AIRE of one Italian municipality may apply to transfer their registration to another municipality in the following cases:

  • transfer to the AIRE of a municipality where members of their household are registered with the Register of the Resident Population (APR);
  • transfer to the AIRE of a municipality where members of their household are already registered with AIRE.

In cases other than those listed above, the transfer is subject to assessment by the municipalities concerned.

If the application to transfer the AIRE registration is approved, the citizen’s registration on the electoral roll is also transferred to the new municipality.

To transfer the registration of minor children, a declaration of consent signed by both parents must be attached. Adult children must submit their own individual application.

Failure to register with AIRE

Registration with AIRE is a legal requirement.

Anyone who is subject to registration requirements and fails to comply with the provisions of Law No. 1228 of 24 December 1954, Law No. 470 of 27 October 1988 and their implementing regulations may be subject to administrative fines, as provided for by Law No. 213 of 30 December 2023.

The authority responsible for establishing the violation and imposing the penalty is the municipality in whose population register the person concerned is registered.

The procedure for establishing violations and imposing penalties by municipalities is governed by Law No. 689 of 24 November 1981. Article 1 of that law establishes the principle that no person may be subject to an administrative penalty unless the relevant law had already entered into force before the violation was committed.

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