A car in Puglia means the freedom to wander the Salento countryside at your own pace. It may also be a more practical matter of daycare dropoffs and trips to IKEA. Either way, the first question is whether you need to be resident to buy one. (New drivers should also know about the horse power limits.) Here is how Italian car ownership works.
In most cases, yes
To register a car in your name in Italy you generally need to be resident. There are exceptions for Italians registered abroad, for EU citizens with ties to Italy and for short stays, covered below. For a used, Italian-registered car, the usual checklist is:
- Proof of residence. Non-EU citizens also need a valid permesso di soggiorno (residence permit), or the receipt for a first application or renewal.
- A valid identity document.
- Your Codice Fiscale, the Italian tax code, which is essential.
- Insurance. Third-party cover is compulsory before the car goes on the road.
Once you have bought the car, the Passaggio di Proprietà, or transfer of ownership, must be registered within 60 days of the seller’s signature being authenticated. It is done at a Sportello Telematico dell’Automobilista, which you will find at ACI offices and at agenzie di pratiche automobilistiche, and dealers usually handle it for you.
Italian citizens living abroad
Italian citizens resident abroad and registered with AIRE (Anagrafe degli Italiani Residenti all’Estero, the registry of Italians living abroad) can register a car in Italy, but only if they declare a legal domicile in Italy at the time of registration: with a person resident in Italy, or with a licensed motoring agency. That address appears on the registration document.
EU citizens living outside Italy
EU citizens resident elsewhere can also register a car in Italy under Article 134 of the Highway Code, provided they have a stable connection with Italy, such as a property, business or other genuine interest, and declare a legal domicile in the same way. That domicile appears on the car’s documents.
Foreign-registered cars and EE plates
Two sets of rules matter for foreign cars and foreign owners: the time limits for driving a foreign-registered car in Italy, tightened by the 2018 security decree (known as the Salvini decree) and revised since, and the special EE plates.
Foreign-registered cars: the time limits
Under Article 132 of the Codice della Strada (C.d.S), a car registered abroad may be driven in Italy by a non-resident for a maximum of one year, on its foreign registration.
Residents face stricter rules. Under Article 93-bis, if you take up residence in Italy and own a foreign-registered car, it must be re-registered in Italy within three months of your residence starting. If you drive a foreign car that belongs to someone else, you must carry a signed and dated document from the owner showing your right to use it and for how long, and if the arrangement exceeds 30 days in a calendar year, it must be recorded in a special list held by the PRA.
The penalties are serious: fines, removal of the registration document, and seizure of the car, which can end in confiscation if it is neither registered in Italy nor taken out of the country.
EE plates
The EE (Escursionisti Esteri) plate is a special registration under Article 134 for new cars bought in Italy for export, or cars temporarily imported, belonging to foreigners passing through or to Italians resident abroad. The registration lasts up to one year, and may be extended. When it expires, the car must be exported or registered normally; driving on an expired EE registration brings fines and can lead to confiscation. Ask a motoring agency whether your situation qualifies before you buy.
Transferring ownership in Italy
For a second-hand car, you will need:
- The atto di vendita (deed of sale), with the seller’s signature authenticated.
- The vehicle’s documents: today the Documento Unico, which combines the old certificato di proprietà and carta di circolazione, or those two documents for older cars.
- The buyer’s identity document and codice fiscale.
- For non-EU buyers resident in Italy, a valid permesso di soggiorno.
Until the transfer is registered, the previous owner remains liable for taxes, accidents and traffic offences. You can check that it has gone through with the Pubblico Registro Automobilistico (PRA), the public vehicle register run by the Automobile Club D’Italia (ACI), using the number plate.
The costs of registering a new owner
The fixed charges set by law are the ACI fee (€27), the Motorizzazione fee (€10.20) and stamp duty (€32 for the application, €16 for the new Documento Unico and €16 for authenticating the deed), plus collection charges. On top comes the Imposta Provinciale di Trascrizione, a provincial tax that varies with the car’s power and your province of residence, and makes up most of the bill for larger cars.
Car tax
The bollo auto, Italy’s annual car tax, is due whether or not you use the car. The amount depends on the car’s power and emissions class. You can pay online, at ACI offices, and at many tabaccherie, banks and post offices; the number plate is normally all you need.
Compulsory inspections
Cars must pass their first revisione, the Italian equivalent of the British MOT, four years after first registration, and every two years after that. The test is carried out at an authorised centro revisioni, and the result is recorded on the registration document. Driving with an expired revisione brings a fine.
Car insurance
Third-party liability insurance (responsabilità civile, or RC auto) is compulsory. In Italy cover generally follows the car rather than the driver. There is a no-claims system, the bonus-malus, which places each policy in a class of merit (classe di merito) that rises or falls with your claims record. The paper insurance disc on the windscreen was abolished in October 2015; police now check cover against a national database, but you should still carry your insurance certificate, on paper or in digital form.
For breakdowns, ACI roadside assistance is on 803.116 from Italian phones, and on 800.116.800 from foreign mobile numbers.
The main types of cover:
- Kasco: the closest to fully comprehensive cover.
- Responsabilità Civile: compulsory third-party cover.
- Incendio-Furto: fire and theft.
- Infortuni del Conducente: injury to the driver, including in accidents that are the driver’s fault.
- Servizio Assistenza: roadside assistance.
What to carry in the car
Carry your driving licence and identity document, the car’s registration document (with proof of a valid revisione where needed) and your insurance certificate. The car must also carry a warning triangle and a high-visibility jacket, which you must wear if you get out on an extra-urban road at night or in poor visibility. On some roads, winter tyres or snow chains are compulsory in the colder months; signs tell you where.
A quick note on driving licences
In Italy you can ride a moped from 14 and drive a car from 18. A car licence is valid for 10 years up to the age of 50, then five years until 70, then three years, and two years after 80.
Licences issued in the EU or EEA are treated as Italian licences and do not need to be converted. Once you are resident, you renew them in Italy when they expire.
Non-EU licences can be used for one year after you take up residence in Italy, accompanied by a sworn translation. After that you must convert your licence, which is possible only for countries with an agreement with Italy, or take the Italian driving test. There is no general conversion agreement with the United States, Canada or Australia (only diplomatic staff qualify), so residents from those countries have to take the theory and practical tests. The ACI list shows which countries qualify.
Driving without a valid licence brings heavy fines and could leave you without insurance cover after an accident.
Once you have a car, you may also need a resident parking permit in Lecce.
Over to you
The residency rules may look like a hurdle, but there are legitimate routes for residents, Italians abroad and EU citizens alike, and a good agenzia di pratiche auto can guide you through them. Get the paperwork right and you will soon be driving to Puglia’s Blue Flag beaches and its best tables in your own Italian car.
