- What is AIRE and who needs to register?
- When do I need to submit my AIRE registration?
- Effective date of my AIRE registration
- Status of AIRE request, and how long does it take to complete registration?
- Certificates
- Children born abroad – how to register them in AIRE
- Moving to Italy
- Healthcare coverage in Italy for those registered in AIRE
What is AIRE and who needs to register?
AIRE is the acronym for Anagrafe degli Italiani Residenti all’Estero, meaning the Registry of Italians Residing Abroad. Registration is mandatory for all Italian citizens who transfer their residency abroad for a period of at least 12 months. Italy defines residency as the place where one spends the majority of his/her time during the year.)
The following citizens do NOT need to register in AIRE:
- citizens residing outside of Italy for less than 12 months;
- seasonal workers residing abroad;
- employees of the Italian government stationed abroad
- members of the Italian Armed Services stationed at NATO posts abroad.
The registration request must be completed by the Italian citizen for him/herself and for his/her immediate family members with Italian citizenship (spouse and/or children). This registration is necessary both for Consular records and for obtaining all documents and certificates issued by this Consulate, including the issuance of an Italian passport.
Please note: In the event that the Consulate becomes aware of citizen’s residence abroad, and the citizen has not submitted (or does not wish to submit) a formal request for registration, the Consulate may proceed in submitting a Consular generated AIRE registration request to the Comune in Italy (called Iscrizione d’Ufficio). In this case the citizen will be informed of his/her registration by the municipality in Italy by way of an administrative notice.
When do I need to submit my AIRE registration?
Requests for AIRE registration must be submitted to the Consulate within 90 days of arrival in the Consular jurisdiction.
What is the effective date of my AIRE registration?
The effective date of AIRE registration corresponds to the date in which the Comune in Italy receives the registration request from the Italian Consulate. Please note that the AIRE registration date cannot be retroactive.
If citizens, prior to their expatriation, notified their Comune in Italy of their transfer of residency abroad, the effective date of AIRE registration will correspond to the date in which they notified their Comune of their expatriation. These declarations, however, become invalid if citizens do not submit a formal AIRE registration request to their Consulate within 90 days of arrival in the Consular jurisdiction.
Please note: While notifying the Comune of expatriation is optional, the submission of the AIRE registration request to the Italian Consulate abroad is mandatory
How to verify the status of the AIRE registration request and Processing Time?
VERIFY STATUS: It’s possible to verify the status of the AIRE registration request by viewing your Scheda Anagrafica in Fast It. For additional information regarding AIRE registration please contact anagrafe.sanfrancisco@esteri.it.
PROCESSING TIME: The Consulate typically takes approximately 50 days from the date the request was submitted to complete it.
IMPORTANT: The status in the Fast It portal only regards the status of the application at the CONSULATE. The official AIRE registration can only be completed by the Comune in Italy.
In light of the fact that each Comune has its own registry (which in fact cannot be accessed directly by the Consulate) we suggest that citizens whose AIRE appplication status has been processd but whose AIRE registration does not yet show “ISCRITTO” contact their Italian Comune directly. Citizens may find the contact information for their Comune in Italy by visiting www.comuni-italiani.it, or www.comuni.it.
Certificates
For information on certificates, please vist the “Certificates” page – click here
Children born abroad. How to register them in AIRE?
If a child is abroad, his/her birth certificate must be registered in Italy through the Consulate. Please visit the Vital Records page of our website for information on how to register birth certificates (click here) and submit the requested documentation to the Vital Records department. If submitting a birth registration request for a minor, it is NOT necessary to submit the online AIRE registration request for that minor. Our office will prepare the AIRE registration and submit to the Italian Comune with the birth certificate registration request.
Moving to Italy
Italian citizens registered in AIRE at this Consulate who decide to establish or re-establish residency in Italy must notify their Comune of residence in Italy as soon as possible once they move. After the Comune in Italy has completed the change in address, the Comune will notify our Consulate General in San Francisco.
CLICK HERE to download the instructions and self-declaration regarding exeption of customs duties for the import of personal goods (in Italian only).
Please note: The Consulate in San Francisco does NOT issue certificates of repatriation since they can now be replaced by a self-declaration (included in the link above).
Healthcare coverage in Italy for those registered in AIRE
All Italian citizens who are registered in AIRE lose access to Italian National Healthcare both in Italy and abroad. It is recommended that citizens registered in AIRE open a health care policy abroad through a private insurer to cover them during their residency abroad, as well as during trips to Italy and other countries.
Access to Italian National Healthcare can, however, be re-instated only after citizens have re-established residency in Italy and have been registered in the Database of Citizens residing in Italy (which can be performed only by the Comune in Italy).
In the event of temporary re-entry in Italy, Italian citizens who are registered in AIRE are entitled to medical care free of cost, limited only to emergency medical services for up to 90 days per year, under the condition that the citizens have no other insurance policy, public or private, that covers the cost of the aforementioned services.
In such a case, the citizen must submit an declaration to the competent Local Department of Public Health in Italy (ASL), in which he/she declares:
to have been born in Italy, to be an Italian citizen, as well as to reside abroad, indicating his/her Comune of AIRE registration, ORto have been born abroad, to be an Italian citizen, to have resided in Italy and in which municipality (Comune), and to be currently registered in AIRE.
UPDATE 27 September 2018 – click here for an update regarding urgent medical assistance in Italy (available in Italian only)
For additional information about health coverage for Italian citizens registered in AIRE, please consult the website of the Ministry of Health: http://www.salute.gov.it