A clear, evidence-first route to Italian residence through investment — with one feature most investors like: you secure pre-approval before a single euro is committed.
Last updated: June 2026 — reviewed against the official MISE Investor Visa portal program settings for 2026.
Free Italy Investor Visa Assessment — four investment routes (innovative startup, limited company, government bonds, philanthropic donation), the nulla osta pre-approval model, and a 2-year renewable permit with no minimum stay.
Get Assessment| Italy Investor Visa (Residence by Investment) | |
|---|---|
| Governing authority | Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy (MISE), Italy |
| Investment routes | From ~EUR 250,000 (innovative startup) · ~EUR 500,000 (limited company) · ~EUR 2,000,000 (government bonds) · ~EUR 1,000,000 (philanthropic donation) |
| Pre-approval | Nulla osta typically issued in ~25–35 days; committee review within ~30 days |
| Residence permit | 2 years, renewable for a further 3 years; no minimum-stay requirement |
| Path to PR / citizenship | Permanent residence after 5 years of legal residence; citizenship eligible after 10 years |
| Cosmos role | Eligibility, documentation and case management; applications submitted through government-authorised agents and regulated legal practitioners |
| As of | June 2026 |
We assist applicants based in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Riyadh, Doha, Kuwait City, Muscat, Manama, as well as across India and Sri Lanka. Our role is to convert a complex residence-by-investment process into a clear, executable plan — then to have your application prepared and submitted through government-authorised agents and regulated legal practitioners in our network.
The objective is not speed alone — it is correctness, consistency, and a file that holds up at every stage of MISE review.
The Italy Investor Visa offers four routes, and the thresholds are unchanged in 2026: from about EUR 250,000 in an Italian innovative startup, about EUR 500,000 in an Italian limited company, about EUR 2,000,000 in Italian government bonds, or about EUR 1,000,000 as a philanthropic donation. The startup route is the lowest entry point.
These are program investment thresholds set by the Italian government — not a Cosmos fee. Which route fits depends on your goals, your liquidity, and how you want your capital to work once it is in Italy. The startup and company routes keep your money invested in a business; the bond route is the most conservative; the donation is non-recoverable. A free assessment maps your profile to the right route before you commit to anything. Find out where you stand — free assessment.
The nulla osta is a certificate of no impediment that you obtain before committing any funds. A committee reviews your application — typically within about 30 days — and the nulla osta is usually issued in roughly 25 to 35 days. Only after the visa is issued do you actually make the investment.
This pre-approval model is the program's defining feature. You are cleared to invest before your money moves, which removes the "pay first, hope later" risk that worries many investors. Funds must then be invested within about three months of arriving in Italy — and investments made before you submit the visa application do not qualify. Sequencing matters, which is exactly where careful case management earns its place. Message us on WhatsApp to walk through the steps.
The honest note. One eligibility rule decides whether you can even start. The program is suspended for Russian and Belarusian citizens, and — per the MAECI note of 20 March 2024 — for non-EU citizens holding dual passports where one passport is Russian or Belarusian (official MISE notices, 14 July 2023 and 20 March 2024). It is otherwise open to all eligible non-EU nationals. We screen for this in your first session, because there is no point planning a route you cannot lawfully use. Program thresholds and rules are set by the Italian government and can change — every figure on this page carries its as-of date for that reason.
Plan for roughly three to six months from application to residence permit; some sources cite three to four months. The nulla osta arrives first, usually in about 25 to 35 days, then the visa and the permit follow. Importantly, there is no minimum-stay requirement to hold the visa.
That "no minimum stay" point is what makes this route practical for UAE- and India-based investors: you can keep your home base, your job and your tax residence where they are, while holding an EU residence permit. The permit is valid for two years and renewable for a further three if the investment is maintained. The stages you control — document quality, source-of-funds evidence, and clean sequencing — set most of the realistic timeline.
Yes, over time. You become eligible for permanent residence after five years of legal residence (roughly 183 days a year), and citizenship is only possible after ten years of continuous legal residence. No dual-citizenship renunciation is triggered at the residence stage — that question only arises a decade in.
For most applicants the appeal is the residence right itself, not a near-term passport. Family members can join under family-cohesion rules: a spouse, minor children, adult children with disabilities, and financially dependent parents. If your endgame is an EU passport, the ten-year clock and the actual-residence test are the realities to plan around — not a shortcut. We will tell you honestly whether this route fits your timeline. Take the first step: a free assessment, not a sales pitch.
Italy is not a jurisdiction where Cosmos holds an immigration licence. So our role here is coordination, not representation: we handle eligibility review, documentation preparation and case management, and your application is prepared and submitted through government-authorised agents and regulated legal practitioners in our network. The Canadian, Australian and New Zealand regulators that govern our licensed work do not cover Italy, and we never imply otherwise.
The Italy Investor Visa is a residence route, not a citizenship-by-investment program. Because Italian citizenship is only possible after ten years, there is no renunciation or OCI trigger at the residence stage — India's bar on dual citizenship simply does not bite here. The material constraint for an Indian-resident investor is the RBI Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS): remitting the EUR 250,000-plus investment abroad must be done within LRS limits.
This is general information, not financial, tax, or legal advice. Remittances are governed by RBI regulations under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme and your bank's compliance requirements — consult a qualified chartered accountant or your authorised dealer bank before moving funds.
← View all residence-by-investment pathways on the residence-by-investment hub page.
The lowest route is from about EUR 250,000 into an Italian innovative startup. Other routes are from about EUR 500,000 into a limited company, about EUR 2,000,000 in government bonds, or about EUR 1,000,000 as a philanthropic donation. These thresholds are set by the Italian government and were unchanged in 2026.
No — that is the point of the nulla osta. You obtain this certificate of no impediment first, and you invest only after the visa is issued, within about three months of arriving in Italy. Investments made before you submit the visa application do not qualify for the program.
No. There is no minimum-stay requirement to hold the visa, which is why it suits UAE- and India-based investors who keep their home base. The permit is valid two years and renewable for a further three years if the investment is maintained.
Yes. Under family-cohesion rules, a spouse, minor children, adult children with disabilities, and financially dependent parents may join. Permanent residence becomes possible after five years of legal residence, and citizenship only after ten years — no renunciation question arises at the residence stage.
The program is suspended for Russian and Belarusian citizens, and for non-EU citizens holding dual passports where one passport is Russian or Belarusian (official MISE notices, 14 July 2023 and 20 March 2024). It is otherwise open to all eligible non-EU nationals. We screen for this in your first session.
Cosmos Immigration is a regulated immigration consultancy founded in Dubai in 2014, with offices in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Hyderabad and Oakville. Italy is not a jurisdiction where we hold an immigration licence: for the Italy Investor Visa, your application is prepared and submitted through government-authorised agents and regulated legal practitioners in our network, while Cosmos coordinates eligibility, documentation and case management. Before you trust any firm, verify its credentials yourself on the relevant public registers — it takes a couple of minutes, and we encourage it. Verify Our Credentials
Cosmos Immigration is a private consultancy, not a government body. Program criteria and figures are set by the relevant governments and are subject to change; verified against official sources as of the date shown.
Start with a free assessment, not a sales pitch — or message us on WhatsApp. We'll tell you honestly whether the Italy Investor Visa fits your profile — even if the answer is no.
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