Permesso di soggiorno: the process and the Italian to use

The permesso di soggiorno is the residence permit for non-EU citizens, and the one procedure where a little Italian saves a lot of time: the forms are in Italian, the post office clerk speaks Italian, the questura officer speaks Italian. Here is the path, and the words for each step. Get the codice fiscale first: it appears on every page.

The three steps

1. The kit. Pick up the free kit giallo at a post office (Poste Italiane) or, for some permits, apply through a patronato (a free assistance office run by unions) or the employer.
2. The post office. Hand in the filled kit with copies of your documents, pay the fees, receive the ricevuta with your appointment date at the questura.
3. The questura. Fingerprints, photos, originals checked. Weeks or months later, a text tells you the card is ready.

At the post office

Ask for the kit, then, once it is filled, for the counter that handles it (sportello amico).

Buongiorno, vorrei il kit per il permesso di soggiorno. Devo consegnare il kit. È il primo rilascio. (first issue) È un rinnovo. (renewal)

You will pay a bollettino for the electronic card, the postal fee and the marca da bollo (a 16-euro tax stamp bought at a tabaccheria beforehand). Words to know: raccomandata (registered mail), ricevuta (receipt), fotocopia (photocopy), appuntamento.

The documents, in Italian

Document	Italian	Note
Passport	Passaporto	Bring copies of every stamped page
Visa	Visto	The entry visa, if any
Photos	Fototessere	Four, passport size
Employment contract	Contratto di lavoro	For work permits
Enrolment	Iscrizione	For study permits
Health insurance	Assicurazione sanitaria	For study and some others
Proof of housing	Contratto di affitto / dichiarazione di ospitalità	Lease or host declaration
Tax stamp	Marca da bollo	From a tabaccheria

At the questura

The Ufficio Immigrazione of the police headquarters. Arrive early, bring the receipt, the originals and the photos.

Buongiorno, ho l'appuntamento per le impronte. Ecco la ricevuta. Questo è il passaporto originale. Quando sarà pronto il permesso?

They may say Le arriverà un SMS (you will get a text) or Controlli sul sito della Polizia di Stato (check the police website with the number on the receipt). If something is missing: Manca un documento, deve tornare con…: write down exactly what.

Useful sentences for problems

• Non ho ricevuto nessun SMS. Posso controllare lo stato della pratica? (I received no text. Can I check the status?)
• Il mio permesso scade il 30 giugno. Quando posso fare il rinnovo? (My permit expires on 30 June. When can I renew?) Answer: from 60 days before expiry.
• Ho cambiato indirizzo, devo comunicarlo? (I changed address, must I inform you?) Yes, at the questura and at the comune.
• Posso viaggiare con la ricevuta? (Can I travel with the receipt?) To your home country and back, yes; around Schengen, no.

After the permit

With the card in hand you can register at the comune for residence, get your tessera sanitaria and choose a doctor. Each of those has its own short script, and they get easier every time.

If bureaucracy is your reason for learning Italian, say so: at Adesso Italian your first lesson can be a rehearsal of the questura visit, with the real questions. See how lessons work.