92 UGLOBAL IMMIGRATION MAGAZINE
“ Another important change that has been introduced is the fact that the holder of the Investor Visa is no more required to spend a minimum amount of time in the Italian territory to be able to keep the visa and renew the resident permit .
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consideration the fact that other types of Italian visas and resident permits , to be kept and renewed , require the holder to not be away from Italy for more than a certain amount of time , usually more than the half of the duration of the resident permit .
Not forcing investors to be present in Italy for a specific number of days / months is certainly the best way to attract foreign capital and individuals who are willing to spend it to have a visa and resident permit , which may allow them to freely travel to the EU anytime they want and stay as long as they please .
Finally , the holder of an Investor visa and resident permit will be exempt from the “ Integration Agreement ” obligation , which basically requires the foreigner to learn Italian civics and language and satisfy the minimum knowledge requirements set forth by the law to keep the resident permit and be able to renew it upon its expiration . That requirement instead falls on all holders of long-term Italian resident permits . This obligation will apply to an Investor visa and resident permit holder only after 5 years of legal residence in the country should the foreigner be willing to convert the resident permit into a new one of a different type / category .
A BOOST FOR ITALIAN ECONOMY AND MORE BENEFITS FOR THE HOLDERS
The Italian Investor visa and resident permit program was created to attract talent and draw high net worth individuals and their capital to Italy , pairing it up with the beneficial flat tax regime to make it more appealing to potential applicants . To make the Italian market even more attractive for foreign investments , especially during this times of general hardness
“ The holder of an Investor visa and resident permit will be exempt from the “ Integration Agreement ” obligation .
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and uncertainties caused by the Covid-19 pandemic , important and material changes to the program have been introduced by the Italian government in the last months with the scope , and also the hope , that this will result in a more substantial access to the program by foreign investors who now will have even more reasons to choose Italy and the Italian Investor visa and residence program as a good and trustable option in the international and EU panorama of visa and residence programs .
ALESSIA AJELLI
Alessia Ajelli is an Italian immigration attorney at LCA Studio Legale , which is based in Milan , Italy . Ajelli specializes in immigration law and global migration , assisting clients in all aspects of corporate immigration issues and citizenship matters , focusing on transfers of managers and highly qualified workers and investment visas . In addition to immigration law , Ajelli has experience in M & A and investment transactions . Ajelli has also served as a mentor for H-Farm , which helps young people create business models , and Start-Up Chile , which seeks to bring foreign investment capital to the country of Chile . Ajelli speaks Italian , English and Spanish .