Direct answer: You can get Italy's investor permit by putting at least €500,000 into the capital of a company set up and operating in Italy, or since 18 December 2024 into an Italian venture capital fund, and keeping it for at least two years. You must also show €1,000,000 of your own funds, available and transferable to Italy.
The headline amount matches Portugal's fund route. The difference is what you are buying into: here it is a named Italian company or an Italian venture capital fund, chosen before you apply, and in law the holding period is two years rather than five.
Which companies qualify
A capital company (società di capitali) set up and resident in Italy for tax purposes, which the 2021 guide counts as operating if it is active and has filed at least one set of annual accounts on the date you apply.
- It can be listed or unlisted.
- You invest in its shares or quotas.
- Its name and tax code are part of the application, together with a statement of how and why you are investing.
- Its legal representative, or a delegate, signs a declaration consenting to your investment. A company listed on a regulated market does not need to.
A registered innovative startup qualifies at the lower amount of €250,000; see the startup route.
The venture capital fund option
Law 193/2024 (Article 35) added "a venture capital fund set up and operating in Italy" to the €500,000 option, from 18 December 2024. The amount and the two year holding period did not change.
The 2021 guide predates this change, so it does not say how a fund investment is documented or which funds qualify. Unlike Portugal's route, the Italian law we read does not set a share of the fund that must be invested in Italian companies.
Investing through a company you represent
Article 26-bis lets you invest in your own name or on behalf of a legal entity you legally represent. The 2021 guide says the applicant is then the foreign company, acting through its adult legal representative, who has to prove they can bind the company. Before clearance, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs checks that the company's country offers reciprocity to Italians (paragraph 3-bis). Once you hold the permit, you are exempt from that reciprocity check (paragraph 5-bis).
After you arrive: making the investment
You have three months from entry. The guide asks for a bank statement covering at least the last three months showing the transfer, a validation letter from the bank, a deposit certificate for shares held with a bank or financial intermediary domiciled in Italy, and, for an unlisted company, the company's confirmation of receipt plus the transfer deed if it is an s.r.l. For a listed company, a copy of your securities account statement.
Keeping it
The law allows revocation if you sell within two years; the 2021 guide says you keep the original investment for the whole life of the permit and cannot switch companies without a new visa. At renewal the guide asks for the company's confirmation that you still hold the investment (unlisted) or a recent copy of the shareholder register or securities account (listed), plus the deposit certificate.
Holding it from abroad
For five years from the first permit, investor permit holders are exempt from Italy's residence continuity obligations (Article 26-bis, paragraph 5-bis). The permit lasts two years and renews for three years at a time. Renewal starts with a new clearance from the Committee, which checks the investment is still in place, and the 2021 guide says the renewal application at the Questura is due at least 60 days before the permit expires. More in renewals and minimum stay.
About the sources: the procedure here comes from the Ministry's applicant guide dated 19 July 2021, hosted on an Italian embassy site. It names the application platform as investorvisa.mise.gov.it. The Ministry has since been renamed (Enterprises and Made in Italy), and the platform did not load when we checked, so details may have changed.
Other Italy routes
See the €250,000 startup route, the €2 million bond route and the €1 million donation route, compare all three countries on Portugal vs Greece vs Italy, or go back to the Italy golden visa guide.
Questions we hear most
- Can the company be listed on the stock exchange?
- Yes. The 2021 guide says the target company can be listed or unlisted. For a company listed on a regulated market, the consent declaration from its legal representative is not needed.
- Does the company have to be profitable?
- The guide's test is that the company is active and has filed at least one set of annual accounts by the date you apply. It does not mention profit.
- Can my own foreign company make the investment?
- Yes. Article 26-bis allows the investment in your own name or on behalf of a legal entity you legally represent. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs then checks reciprocity with the company's country first.
- Which venture capital funds qualify?
- The law says a venture capital fund set up and operating in Italy. We have not seen an official list.
Sources
- Decreto Legislativo 286/1998, Article 26-bis (entry and residence for investors), text in force, Normattiva, Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato. Official source. Last checked 28 October 2026.
- Legge 193/2024, Article 35 (venture capital funds added to the investor visa), Normattiva. Official source. Last checked 28 October 2026.
- Investor Visa for Italy, applicant guide (2021 edition, Ministry of Economic Development), hosted by the Embassy of Italy in Abuja, Ministero degli Affari Esteri e della Cooperazione Internazionale. Official source. Last checked 28 October 2026.
This page is general information, not legal, tax, immigration or investment advice. Rules and fees change, so check the sources above and the date we last checked them. No approval, permit or timeline is guaranteed. We are paid for introductions; here is how.