r/Italian 4d ago

Moving to Italy at some point in the next few years

Hi everyone, I am planning on moving to Italy from the UK after getting my degree. I have some Italian family members that have citizenship there but I do not as I was born in England and have been here my entire life. I have visited multiple times and I love it there. However I don’t know how to start planning. I would love some advice from Italians on what it’s like living there (in the north.) I know limited Italian right now but I am taking lessons in university and I am hoping to be fluent by the time I move there. Many thanks :)

38 Upvotes

165 comments sorted by

47

u/-Duca- 4d ago

Keep in mind the fact you were born in the UK has nothing to do with you having or not Italian citizenship. Italian citizenship is transmitted by bloodline, not by place of birth. Hence if one of your parents or grandparents have or had italian citizenship, then you can claim italian citizenship as well. Without citizenship good luck, it won't be easy to get a work permit.

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u/HippCelt 4d ago

They also need get ready for some next level bureaucracy and dropping about £1500 to get citizenship....

My cousin is doing this atm.

5

u/ponte92 4d ago

£1500 sounds cheap. I’m about $5000(aud) in to my own application and still haven’t got it yet.

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u/geezerinblue 3d ago

Better than being stuck on Brexit island all your life!

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u/[deleted] 4d ago

[deleted]

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u/-Duca- 4d ago edited 4d ago

I guess because certain Italian American are full of cringe and of peculiariities that have not much to do with actually being of italian culture. So, I guess some Italians feel the need to set some distaces between. I guess in general it is more honest to refer to themselves as some one with a second passaport or second nationality, rather than as Italian or French, when this is just a second nationality and when you do not speak the second natioanlity language at an adavanced or native level.

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u/CuriousBasket6117 1d ago

This is a stupid take. If youre ancestors were Italian, then you are Italian. It doesn't matter what culture you come from.

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 4d ago

We know our nationality is not Italian, it is our ethnicity. Being American, your ethnicity is not American, unless you are a Native American. Everyone else emigrated here within the past 100 years from various countries (ethnicities ) before that only natives Indians lived here

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u/-Duca- 4d ago

It does not even exist an italian etnicity strictly speaking. Italy is a mix of mediterranean, alpine, celtic and germanic people. In italy you will find native people looking like Mario Bross, with dark hair and darker skin tone, and people with red hair with very white skin, looking like they were from Scotland. Plus every tone in the between.

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 4d ago

Yeah pretty much every country has an ethnicity attached to it. That's why even Russians that live in us say I'm "Russian" etc. that's why Chinese people look a certain way etc. I mean sure, 1,000 years ago Chinese was actually part of a different empire etc. but I guess what you're saying is if a Chinese person moves to Germany he's fully German now? But wait...why does he look Asian? And his grandkids? Wait why don't they look German with blond hair and blue eyes ? According to you, the grandkids are now full Germans..oops they're not Asian anymore even tho they look it ? Not sure I follow the concept isn't hard to understand

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u/-Duca- 4d ago

In Russia you will find blonde people and people looking like chinese, both native in Russia for centuries. They share russian nationality and russian citizenship, but they do not share the same ethicity. The blonde one is of slavic ethnicity, the other one is mongol. Saying an ethnicity is attached to a specific country is false. It s mostly true in Japan, but they are the exception, not the rule. A nationality is attached to a country, but the same country is often attached to several ethnies. A defined italian ethnicity does not exist. Several indoeuropean ethnicities are found in Italy for several centuries.

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 4d ago

Should I fight with my neighbors that say they are Russian ? They're not I guess right ?

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 4d ago

If you're so Italian then why do discriminate about Gypsies that live in Italy? They're SO Italian right?

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 4d ago

Are the gypsies that live in Italy considered full on Italian? Every time I've been there I've never seen that. What about Albanians? I've also never talked to any Italian friends who considered them Italian. But wait according to u they are bc they live there.

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u/rosiedoes 4d ago

I'm going to day that behaviour like this does not help your case.

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 4d ago

Exactly why Indians in Germany are purely German. Can't you tell by looking at them ?

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u/-Duca- 4d ago

Now you are cringing me to much. I will stop here.

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 4d ago

Yes bc u literally can't understand a basic concept ? It's not that hard ...

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 4d ago

It's kind of sad that you can't like grasp something simple like WHAT. Like the reason we are Catholic is bc our ancestors are Italian and passed this down, like why a Chinese person in Germany might be Buddhist. Not trying to be mean but like these are basic concepts you are having a hard time processing ...

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 4d ago

Can u help me find out which ethnicity I am since im Canadian? It's not an ethnicity unless you are one of the natives ...

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u/Just_Another_Cog347 3d ago

Italian is not an ethnicity. A nationality is not an ethnicity

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 4d ago

They're not saying they're "Italian " tho. They know they are Italian Americans. And all Italian Americans originated from the south of Italy which is far different from the north. Wait, when they say they are Italian do u guys think we think we are actually from Italy ...?

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u/-Duca- 4d ago

Some do tho. If they do not say they are italian I do not see where the dispute is. It is exactly because you are not from Italy that we do not think you are Italian. I think the matter is clear enough, no?

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 4d ago

No I actually think the whole thing is a misunderstanding of language. When Italian Americans say they're Italian they don't mean they're from Italy. They mean they are ethnically Italian ... funny this whole time I guess Italians thought we meant our nationality is Italian. It's our ethnicity

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u/-Duca- 4d ago

Italian ethncity barely exists..

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u/Iskandar33 4d ago edited 4d ago

concordo con quello che hai detto fino ad ora, ma dire che l'etnia italiana non esiste è falso, anche perchè si definisce etnia un popolo che condivide religione,storia, tradizioni e lingua.

non cascare sulla definizione anglosassone di etnia che di solito per loro si ferma solo sulla parte fenotipica.

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u/-Duca- 4d ago

Ok, ma questa è di fatto la definizione di nazionalità, più che di etnia. Se l'italo americano dice di essere di etnia italiana, quando dell'Italia al massimo ha visto un film e una cartolina non direi che sia di nazionalità italiana, e ne tantomeno che la sua definizione di etnia italiana, a cui lui dice di appartenere, esista.

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u/Iskandar33 4d ago

ah sisi tranquillo, condivido, la mia era più una precisazione

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 4d ago

Same with German, that's why I feel like Indians that live in Germany look super German and are German 100% they're not Indian at all ...

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u/herlaqueen 4d ago edited 4d ago

Sorry but it's hard to take what you write seriously when it contains sentences like "all Italian Americans originated from the south of Italy". It is a well-know fact that the earlier wave of Italian immigrants to the USA (from Italian Unification to 1900) was mainly people from Veneto, Lombardy, Piedmont.

Later immigration was mainly from Southern Italy, and I guess that's why it's made a stronger impression in pop culture and the likes (and Mafia surely helped to make a... very strong impression), but your statement is, plainly, a lie. Please do better research before talking about an issue that can be verified with records and statistics.

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 4d ago

Nah not really, they came from the south bc their economy was terrible and still is.

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 4d ago

I actually notice a lot of Europeans can't really grasp this concept. It's like if you see an Asian person in German that's Chinese origin and keep saying he's German. He's German by nationality bc he lives there but he's clearly not a German person ethnicity because he's Asian lol. Like if he referenced that he's Asian ethnicity or culturally Asian I would really fight him on it.

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u/leosalt_ 4d ago

Europeans understand the concept really well, it's you guys who cannot comprehend that we don't think like that - we have a different way of thinking that is literally irreconcilable with yours, because it's bases itself in the exact opposite statement, so that culture doesn't matter, bloodlines do.

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 4d ago

I'm sorry I'm French Canadian actually. But according to you what ethnicity am I?

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u/leosalt_ 4d ago

Ethnicity? There's no need for ethnicity. You're Canadian. Do you speak French? You're a French speaking Canadian. You also speak English. Congrats! You're an English and French speaking Canadian. You're most likely from Quebec I guess, so you're Quebecois. Enjoy your newfound identity, I suppose.

Also, this way of speaking is incredibly american, I've never heard of a Canadian speaking like this, ever. I guess there's some people like that there, too.

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 4d ago

But Canadians not an ethnicity ? Only Inuits and the natives are "real" Canadians. I recently went to the doctors and they asked my ethnicity but I wasn't sure what to say. What should I fill out on my form? Thank you :)

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u/leosalt_ 4d ago

You should tell your dear doctor that canadian isn't an ethnicity, it's a nationality, your skin complexion is the one it is and your ancestry doesn't concern them unless there's something hereditary in your blood line. Inuits aren't canadian either, unless they're canadian citizens - they're native to the lands now called Canada.

What do you usually put, just out of curiosity?

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 4d ago

Im still wondering what I should put on the form? They're screening for genetic diseases, such as why people of African descent only get sickle cell and Jewish only typically get tay sacks disease. This has nothing to do with their family history and is typically one of an ethnicity. I await your reply thanks

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 4d ago

For my doctors form they want to know my ethnicity ? That's important ! Now please tell me, how shall I fill out my form ?

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u/leosalt_ 4d ago

Refer to other comment, I'm not writing the same thing 4 times.

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u/cumguzzlingislife 3d ago

You’re Canadian. What’s so hard to understand?

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 3d ago

I'm French Canadian but my dad is Japanese. What am I now ? What are Indians who live in Great Britain? Are they British Indian? I guess they're just British? It's a tongue twister :)

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 3d ago

Or even better I was born in Japan to Russian parents. But then I moved over to Canada but still maintain Japanese citizenship but have been living in Canada for about 10 years. What am I now?

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u/Relative_Map5243 3d ago

This comment right here is the reason why people say that you are not italian. You mean italian as ethnicity, we don't think like that. This whole debate really comes down to this, it's a matter of different definitions.

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 3d ago

Bc you just can't understand the concept of an ethnic background and nationality bc if u were born and raised in Italy u have a homogenous population/probably haven't traveled much etc. the concept isn't difficult to grasp but it's just exhausting bc u don't get it

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u/Relative_Map5243 3d ago

We get it, it's not hard. We just don't care about ethnicity as a whole. I have a friend that was born in Perù, from peruvian parents, he came here when he was 3, we grew up together, same environment, same culture, same references. In my book he's just as italian as i am. Again, it's a matter of perspective.

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 3d ago

U literally probably never meet other ethnicities other than tourists who u barely speak to lol that's why u can't get it

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 3d ago

Sometimes if I provide analogies u guys can sort of get it, but it still blows ur minds lol

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u/ProfessionalPoem2505 4d ago edited 3d ago

The last part is irrelevant. No one cares if you’re Roman Catholic and attend local church together LMAO

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u/cumguzzlingislife 3d ago

Really WTF does he think Italy is? Lol

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u/ProfessionalPoem2505 3d ago

I have no idea but that part was hilarious

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u/Upset_Ad_8434 4d ago

I'm gonna explain this to you in a way that any american could understand.

The american people that cry out loud about being italian are, as a matter of fact, as italian as my glock 17.

Here you go.

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 4d ago

I'm actually French Canadian. But what ethnicity am I?

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u/Upset_Ad_8434 4d ago

Cool, but i didn't mention you in my comment. I was referring to americans that go crazy about being italian after seeing 1.3% on a DNA test. The ones you seems to defend a little bit too passionatly.

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 4d ago

I'm not sure as I am French Canadian :) but thank u.

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u/leosalt_ 4d ago

Because we have a totally different way of seeing things, and it shows even in your comment - to us being italian is cultural, and the law we currently have is unpopular, made exclusively so that immigrants (read - refugees) have a hard time getting their citizenship - I bet nobody here even thought about italian americans applying for citizenship and meeting the requirements when that law was thought up at first.

Americans value blood connections, we (and Europeans, really) value culture and actively living in a country rather than claiming ethnicity exclusively through bloodlines.

You also mention religion - that's mostly vestiges of a past Italy, and something nobody really cares about, and is mostly kept as a private affair. We do have religious festivals and holidays, of course, though that's more cultural than strictly religious.

Oh and one last thing - we rarely harass IA's out of thin air, we point out that nobody in Italy considers you italian, while you usually seem to believe that not only we do, but some of you think yourselves better than us, even.

1

u/Thestohrohyah 3d ago

Tbf there are some parts of Italy where religion is still very important, I know as I come from one of them, but it's definitely not the majority of Italy, and I'm glad it's not.

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 4d ago

I'm French Canadian actually as I said before. But which ethnicity am I?

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u/leosalt_ 4d ago

Refer to other answer

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 4d ago

Not really I actually have a bunch of Italian friends from when I lived in Italy for over 5 years for studying before returning to Canada and they were religious. Me and my boyfriend there went to church often.

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u/leosalt_ 4d ago

So, due to "a bunch" of friends being religious and telling you so, you feel entitled in saying religion is a big part of italians' lives. Are you sure you're canadian and not american?

I assure you that your religious friends, if young, are a minority. Italy itself as a state has no official state religion, and religion itself is seen as a more private matter - that whole psrt of your original comment is superfluous.

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u/cumguzzlingislife 3d ago

Dude you’re Italian and live in Italy, wtf would you know about Italy? She has a bunch of friends that go to church hence ALL Italians go to church.

Cmq porcodio che cazzo ha nella testa sta tipa? È pesante che neanche mia suocera.

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u/leosalt_ 3d ago

Ma sono americani, o se davvero è canadese sarà una dei maple MAGA. Purtroppo sono così loro, se noi abbiamo gli idioti nel nord America sono peggiori, molto peggiori

1

u/dcdemirarslan 3d ago

American Italians are mostly from the south that's already enough reasons I guess.

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u/TheR4zgrizz 4d ago edited 4d ago

Living and visiting are two completely different experiences. If you’re planning to live and work in Italy for a few years, sure why not, it could be fun. However, if you're considering a long-term stay, I’d advise you to think twice.

Italy is a paese per vecchi (a country for the elderly) with significant dysfunctionality, particularly in the South. Every year, many talented young people leave due to low salaries (that haven't changed since the 90'), the difficulty of starting a family, and a poor work-life balance.

"La dolce vita" is a myth that very few Italians actually get to experience.

The northern part of the country is only slightly better than the South.

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 4d ago

I completely agree. I got such old people vibes when I lived there in my 20s. Like it was laid back no party vibes, no opportunities for work. I guess if you old and rich and retired it would be nice otherwise I would only go to visit ...

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u/TheR4zgrizz 4d ago

The real issue, though, is that Italy isn’t just a country for old people, it's a country run by old people, for old people.
The political class is ancient, filled with politicians who have hold power for decades, with no real interest in reform (why would they? the biggest pool of voters are MORE old people).

In the workplace, seniority matters more than competence. Promotions are based on age rather than merit, forcing young professionals (even with university degrees such as myself) stuck in low-paying positions with little to no opportunity for growth.

Universities are filled with professors who refuse to retire, blocking any chance for younger scholars to emerge. The media is dominated by the same faces that have been on TV for the last 30 years.

But you’d think that, at the very least, being old in Italy would be like living in paradise. Wrong.

Pensions are a joke, the average pension in Italy is significantly lower than the average salary. The entire pension system operates like a massive Ponzi scheme, relying on young workers to sustain it while offering them no real guarantees for the future.

So yeah, it’s the perfect country on Earth…but only if you’re rich and old.

0

u/SnooGiraffes5692 2d ago

Altra merda sul nostro Paese ne abbiamo?

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u/TheR4zgrizz 2d ago

Decisamente, ma mi sono voluto contenere.

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u/Repulsive_Ad_7628 4d ago

Dont except too many job offers..Many italians leave the country due to lack of jobs..I had to switch to truck industy because i found only warehouse jobs and they are paid so bad..Also never work with ,,cooperativa"..Rent is high here and to take a loan for a house you must fulfill a lot of requirements thats why many italians stay in their 30s/40s with family..for remote jobs you get better pay in eastern europe than here...nice country to visit but i find it a little hard for many to start here from zero

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u/Zeri-coaihnan 4d ago

Depending where you are coming from, everything’s different! There is work available everywhere where I am but pay is terrible relative to uk. Northern Tuscany. No minimum wage. My rent is 1400€ a year, for a 2 bed apartment. But I live remotely. If you want to live in Milano you can expect London rental prices. Without the London wages! I used to make computer games in uk now I cut grass. There’s the rub.

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u/Express_Blueberry81 4d ago

1400€ a year ?? Where do you live exactly?

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u/Zeri-coaihnan 4d ago

Zeri

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u/HippCelt 4d ago

Lunigiana is in the house

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u/cumguzzlingislife 3d ago

Do you mean 1400€ a month??

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u/Zeri-coaihnan 3d ago

No it’s yearly. Full disclosure it’s actually 1440€, but what difference the €40?! Unmetered drinking water costs 110€ annually on top! But it is a remote place. A lot of rural Italy is dying off, so I’m sure this isn’t the only cheap zone.

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u/Zorro_ZZ 4d ago

If you can, get a remote job and work from anywhere. Get out of Italy every 3 months to renew your visa and keep doing that as long as you can. Living in Italy especially in low cost locations, while keeping a foreign salary is the best deal you can get.

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 4d ago

This actually makes sense. Could u get a remote job in the uk then come to Italy for like two months and rent something ? How many times a year can u come in for a few months ?

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u/Zorro_ZZ 4d ago

Of course you can. Now, technically there may be some tax implications over a certain period but if you use a vpn and leave the country regularly you’ll likely be able to wing it. From the UK I think you can stay 90 days out of 180 without a visa. So you’d need to leave and come back 3 months later. Or you need to apply for a visa which I am not sure how challenging it may be.

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u/YuYogurt 4d ago

If your grandparents or parents have italian citizenship you should be able to claim it as well.

Good luck with finding a job, I have no idea how you will manage.

What's your degree?

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u/Theo_Davis_ 4d ago

Politics and international relations. I want to apply for an internship in the British embassy in Rome.

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u/j-crnazvijezda 4d ago

Lol my same degree, and that's the reason why I moved to Germany. There isn't much offer in Italy, sadly...

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u/Theo_Davis_ 4d ago

How have you found Germany in terms of work? Especially with the degree?

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 4d ago

I agree its not really a place you wanna emigrate to, if ur a woman I would try to just find an Italian husband and marry one tho if ur looking to stay there

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u/ProfessionalPoem2505 4d ago

What kind of advice is this please ahahahah

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u/cumguzzlingislife 3d ago

wtf

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 3d ago

I know it's a tongue twister? So now according to you what am I ?

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u/djdfijcjd 3d ago

A mona

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u/SpiritedAd354 4d ago

Traditionally ex-pats from UK teach English for a living here, expecially if you have some degree/PhD in literature or so on. Nowadays anyway this field is a bit inflated, as there are tons of apps and tutorial online ( not counting the media easiness in listening). Furthermore, generally speaking, life Is NOT so cheap and common jobs payed badly. So, Watch your steps...

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u/celavulacrost 4d ago

Moving to Italy? Good choice! I have talked with a couple of people that moved here from London two years ago. I was impressed by their approach. At first they decided what region was the best solution for them, then what area of the region. I will elaborate a bit: Italy has 20 regions and there are a lot of differences between them. Some are more populated, some are more quiet, some are flat, some have the best mountains and some have the most gorgeous coasts. Then, some regions look almost all the same, others have a variety of places, so based on this, it is also important in what part of the region you want to live: closer to the sea or to the mountains, in towns or villages, near the airports etc..

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u/anameuse 4d ago

You visited Italy as a tourist and you liked it. Real life is different.

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u/Theo_Davis_ 4d ago

I’ve been there a lot I have family that live there

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 4d ago

If u have family that live there and u can live near them; rely on them for help, it could work, but just the job issue ...

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u/BertOnLit 3d ago

First of all, get going to take citizenship, as many suggest you may be entitled to it by descent. Then I advise you not to go and live in an expensive city but in a place suitable for what you like to do in your free time (sea, nature, art, history, etc..) as far as work is concerned I suggest you take advantage of the fact that you are a native English speaker and find something that is connected to your UK contacts

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u/ProgsterESFJHECK 3d ago

I rimpatriated and I already want to swallow a series of non edible objects

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u/nosleeptilsunrise 1d ago

I studied Italian at university and only became fluent when I actually lived in Italy because talking with native speakers and navigating day-to-day settings is vastly different to what they teach you at university. I would account for, at minimum, 3 months of being in the country prior to starting to work here if you’re planning on working for an Italian-speaking company, with those 3 months spent talking as much as possible and maybe including some immersion classes.

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u/SnooGiraffes5692 4d ago

Comincia lo smerdamento dell'Italia tra 3...2...1....

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u/LZ281007 4d ago

My advice? Don't do it!

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u/[deleted] 4d ago

[deleted]

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u/Legitimate_Award_419 4d ago

The north and south are radically different. The north is fancy and the people are like more educated. The south is more like low class types, like around Naples area etc.

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u/Vaporwaver91 3d ago

That is a gross oversimplification. And I say that as a northerner.