Notarial Services for Foreign Nationals in Italy
Notary for Foreigners
Notarial Services for Foreign Nationals in Italy
Italian notaries are public officials vested with authority to authenticate and formalize legal acts and transactions. Their areas of competence include, but are not limited to, the following:
the execution of contracts for the purchase and sale of real estate (residential, commercial, or otherwise);
the formalization of mortgage agreements with banking institutions;
the preparation and notarization of powers of attorney, whether general or special, conferring legal authority on third parties;
modifications to the matrimonial property regime between spouses (e.g., transition from community of property to separation of property);
applications to the competent court for the issuance of authorizations concerning minors (e.g., sale of property owned by a minor);
the execution of deeds of donation involving movable or immovable assets;
the incorporation, amendment, and dissolution of companies, including the execution of all related corporate instruments;
the acceptance and legal recognition of foreign public documents, subject to compliance with applicable international conventions or domestic regulations.
Participation of Foreign Nationals in Notarial Acts
Citizens of the European Union
Nationals of EU Member States are entitled to enter into notarial acts in Italy without any restrictions, under the same conditions as Italian citizens.
Non-EU Citizens Holding a Valid Residence Permit
Third-country nationals who hold a valid residence permit are likewise permitted to execute notarial deeds in Italy without limitation.
Non-EU Citizens Without a Residence Permit
In the absence of a valid residence permit, the notary is required to ascertain the existence of either an international agreement in force or a condition of reciprocity. Reciprocity implies that Italian citizens must be granted the same legal capacity to perform equivalent acts in the foreign national’s country of origin.
Tax Benefits for the Purchase of a "First Home" in Italy
Italian legislation provides substantial tax incentives for individuals acquiring a property qualifying as a “first home” (prima casa). In particular:
where the property is purchased from a private individual, the applicable registration tax is reduced to 2%;
Where the property is acquired from a construction or development company, the transaction is generally subject to Value Added Tax (VAT) at the reduced rate of 4%;
In both cases, fixed registration and mortgage taxes are due, currently amounting to a combined total of €100,00.
Foreign nationals are also entitled to benefit from the “first home” tax regime, provided that they satisfy the same legal conditions applicable to Italian citizens.
In particular, non-resident foreign purchasers may qualify for the preferential tax treatment on the condition that they transfer their official residence to Italy within 18 months from the date of execution of the purchase deed.
Further fiscal advantages include:
the deductibility of mortgage interest (within statutory limits) associated with financing the purchase of a first home;
and the exemption from personal income tax (IRPEF) on the deemed rental value (rendita catastale) of the primary residence.
Companies, Associations, and Other Legal or Economic Activities
A foreign national may lawfully establish a company in Italy, constitute an association, or engage in other legal or economic activities, subject to compliance with applicable Italian laws and any conditions provided under international treaties or reciprocity agreements.
Power of Attorney
An individual may not always be in a position to personally express their intent or execute legal acts—such as when residing abroad or being physically distant from the place where a deed or contract must be executed.
In such circumstances, it is legally permissible to confer a Power of Attorney—a formal instrument by which one person (the principal) authorizes another (the attorney-in-fact or agent) to perform legal or factual acts on their behalf.
For example, if a husband is abroad and urgently required to sign a real estate purchase agreement, he may execute a Power of Attorney in favor of his wife, thereby authorizing her to sign the contract in his name and on his behalf.
Powers of Attorney executed abroad must conform to all applicable rules governing the recognition of foreign legal documents in Italy, including—but not limited to—legalization or apostille requirements, certified translations, and verification of the foreign notary’s authority in accordance with international or bilateral treaties.
Last Will and Testament
A foreign national is entitled to execute a Last Will and Testament, i.e., a formal legal instrument through which they designate the persons or entities to whom their assets shall be transferred upon death.
Donations
A foreign national may also make donations, understood as the gratuitous transfer of assets or rights during their lifetime, in accordance with the provisions of Italian law.
Foreign Legal Documents
Pursuant to Article 106(1) of the Notarial Law (Legge Notarile) and Article 68 of the Notarial Regulations (Regolamento Notarile), for a foreign public deed (atto pubblico) or an authenticated private agreement (scrittura privata autenticata) to produce legal effects in Italy—such as being registered or transcribed in public registers—it must meet the following formal requirements:
a) The document must be filed either with the District Notarial Archive (Archivio Notarile Distrettuale) or with a practicing Italian notary;
b) The document must be translated into Italian. If the notary is proficient in the language in which the document is drafted, they may certify the translation themselves; otherwise, a sworn translation by a qualified expert (traduttore abilitato) is required;
c) The document must be duly legalized or bear the apostille, in accordance with applicable international conventions (e.g., the Hague Convention of 5 October 1961).
Legalization
Legalization is the formal process by which the authenticity of a signature and the official capacity of the public official who executed or certified a foreign document are verified. Importantly, legalization does not attest to the accuracy, truthfulness, or legal validity of the content of the document itself in the country of origin.
If the document is issued abroad, legalization must be performed by the competent Italian diplomatic or consular authority in the country where the document originated.
If the document is issued in Italy by a foreign authority, legalization must be carried out by the Prefecture in the jurisdiction where the foreign authority is located (or by the President of the Region in the case of Valle d’Aosta, or the Government Commissioner in the Autonomous Provinces of Trento and Bolzano).
Apostille
The apostille is a simplified form of legalization established by the Hague Convention of 5 October 1961. It is applicable only among signatory states of the Convention and serves to certify:
the authenticity of the signature;
the official capacity of the person who signed the document.
In Italy, the following authorities are competent to issue apostilles:
For notarial acts, judicial documents, and civil status certificates: the Public Prosecutor’s Office (Procura della Repubblica) at the court in whose jurisdiction the document was issued;
For administrative documents (e.g., documents signed by a mayor): the Prefecture of the province in which the issuing authority is located (with the same exceptions as above for Valle d’Aosta, Trento, and Bolzano).
Note: The apostille is not required where a bilateral or multilateral treaty exempts the document from legalization requirements.
Property Regimes Between Spouses
The property regime between spouses determines how assets are managed during marriage and how they are divided in the event of dissolution (whether by divorce or death).
In Italy, the default regime is the community of property, unless the spouses explicitly opt for a different regime.
Types of property regimes:
Community of Property (comunione legale): Assets acquired by either spouse during the marriage are jointly owned, even if registered in the name of one spouse. Disposition of such assets (e.g., sale, donation, mortgage) requires the consent of both spouses.
Separation of Property (separazione dei beni): Each spouse retains individual ownership of assets acquired in their own name.
Conventional Community (comunione convenzionale): A customized property regime agreed upon by the spouses, which modifies the default rules of the legal community in accordance with a specific contractual arrangement.
Applicable Law:
For marriages contracted prior to 28 January 2019, the applicable law is determined in accordance with Article 30 of Law No. 218 of 31 May 1995, which governs private international law.
For marriages contracted on or after 29 January 2019, the applicable law is determined under the provisions of EU Regulation (EU) 2016/1103 of 24 June 2016, which introduced harmonized rules for determining the law applicable to matrimonial property regimes among participating EU Member States.