Residence permit (permesso di soggiorno)

Your study visa lets you enter Italy. To stay, you need a residence permit for study (permesso di soggiorno per studio). The steps below are the general rules; your university’s international office can help you with the local details.

1. Apply within 8 working days

You must apply within 8 working days of arriving in Italy, to the Questura (police headquarters) of the city where you live. You start the application at the post office.

2. The post office kit

1. Get the yellow kit (kit giallo) at a post office with a “Sportello Amico” desk. The form inside (modulo 1) is in Italian only.
2. Fill it in with black ink and block capitals. Patronati and CAF offices often help for free, and many universities have a help desk.
3. Prepare copies of your passport data pages, your visa and your entry stamp, a €16 revenue stamp (marca da bollo, sold at tobacconists), a copy of your health insurance and, if your Questura asks for them, proof of accommodation and of money.
4. Take the kit to the post office with your passport and send it from there.

What it costs. For example, the University of Pisa lists for a one-year permit: the €16 revenue stamp, €30 paid at the post office when you send the kit, and a payment slip of €70.46. Check the current amounts at the post office.

Keep your receipt. It shows the date of your Questura appointment and your login for the Polizia di Stato website, where you can follow your application. Together with your passport, it proves that you are in Italy legally while you wait.

3. Your appointment at the Questura

At the appointment the police take your fingerprints and check your documents. Bring your passport, the post office receipt, the originals of your documents and passport photos (Pisa asks for 2). Some Questure accept only an official enrolment certificate, not a self-declaration.

4. Collecting your permit

You will get a message, or see on the website, when the permit is ready. Bring your passport and the original post office receipt. Waiting times depend on the city: Sapienza mentions about 90 days, and Pisa about 3 to 4 months.

5. Renewal

• Apply at least 90 days before your permit expires (the legal deadline since 22 May 2026; some older documents still say 60 days), again through the post office.
• You need proof of enrolment and of exams passed: at least one exam in your first year and at least two in later years. One exam may be enough for serious, documented health reasons or force majeure.
• You can renew for at most three years beyond the normal length of your programme.
• If your new permit is not ready when the old one expires, your renewal receipt lets you stay legally.

6. Working and travelling

• With a study permit you may work up to 20 hours per week, up to 1,040 hours per year.
• To travel to other Schengen countries you need a valid permit, not just a receipt.
• With only a receipt, you can usually travel to your home country and back on direct flights only (no stop in another Schengen country), and only if you also have your valid multi-entry visa (first permit) or your expired permit (renewal). Ask your university’s international office or the border police before you travel.

7. After graduation

If you graduate in Italy (bachelor’s, master’s, PhD and some other diplomas), you can ask for a permit to look for work or start a business when your study permit expires. It lasts 9 to 12 months. You need enough income and health insurance, and you must declare that you are available for work at the employment services (Centro per l’Impiego). If you find a job, you can ask to convert it into a work permit, if you meet the conditions.

See also the study visa guide.

This site gives general information only. Rules change often, so always check the official sources.