Italy has unveiled one of its most ambitious labour-migration plans to date, confirming that 500,000 new work visas will be issued over the 2026-2028 triennium. The Prime-Ministerial Decree—better known as the tridennale "Decreto Flussi"—was published in the Official Gazette on 31 December 2025 and formally presented by the Interior and Labour ministers on 8 January 2026. It replaces the 2023-2025 scheme that authorised 452,000 permits, widening legal channels just as several key industries warn of structural labour shortages.
Under the decree, 267,000 visas are reserved for seasonal workers in agriculture and tourism, sectors that suffered acute staffing gaps in 2025 when pandemic-era savings were exhausted and domestic unemployment fell below 7 percent. Another 230,550 permits target non-seasonal employees and the self-employed in construction, logistics, advanced manufacturing and services. Crucially, the decree maintains country-specific quotas that reward nations that cooperate on readmission of irregular migrants, reflecting Italy’s broader strategy of pairing enforcement with legal pathways.
Employers will use the well-known online “click-day” system, but the government has tightened anti-fraud safeguards after last year’s bot-driven application surge crashed the portal in minutes. Companies can pre-load data weeks in advance, while a three-application cap now applies to private households hiring carers—aimed at curbing fictitious sponsorships. Processing times for the security clearance (nulla osta) start only once an application is matched to an available quota, a change meant to avoid the backlog that left thousands of authorisations unused in 2024.
![Italy Approves 500,000 Work Visa Quota for 2026–2028]()
Navigating these updated procedures can feel daunting for both first-time sponsors and seasoned HR managers. VisaHQ’s Italy page (https://www.visahq.com/italy/) provides end-to-end support—offering document reviews, live status tracking, and liaison with provincial Labour Offices to keep applications moving smoothly. By outsourcing the paperwork to their specialists, employers and self-employed applicants can concentrate on recruitment and onboarding rather than wrestling with portal glitches and shifting compliance rules.
For multinationals the decree offers rare forward visibility: head-count planning can now stretch three years instead of scrambling for annual allotments. Mobility managers should, however, note that provincial Labour Offices retain discretion to suspend dossiers if collective-bargaining wages are not respected. Intra-company transferees remain exempt from the quota but must still meet salary and seniority thresholds.
Practically, the new framework encourages employers to stagger hiring across the three years to avoid early exhaustion of sectoral ceilings. Immigration advisers recommend submitting non-seasonal applications as soon as the February 16 window opens; historically, construction and logistics quotas have closed within hours, while family-care and hospitality slots last longer. Companies that miss the cap can still pivot to the EU Blue Card or Digital Nomad schemes, but those routes carry higher salary criteria and longer lead times.
Under the decree, 267,000 visas are reserved for seasonal workers in agriculture and tourism, sectors that suffered acute staffing gaps in 2025 when pandemic-era savings were exhausted and domestic unemployment fell below 7 percent. Another 230,550 permits target non-seasonal employees and the self-employed in construction, logistics, advanced manufacturing and services. Crucially, the decree maintains country-specific quotas that reward nations that cooperate on readmission of irregular migrants, reflecting Italy’s broader strategy of pairing enforcement with legal pathways.
Employers will use the well-known online “click-day” system, but the government has tightened anti-fraud safeguards after last year’s bot-driven application surge crashed the portal in minutes. Companies can pre-load data weeks in advance, while a three-application cap now applies to private households hiring carers—aimed at curbing fictitious sponsorships. Processing times for the security clearance (nulla osta) start only once an application is matched to an available quota, a change meant to avoid the backlog that left thousands of authorisations unused in 2024.
Navigating these updated procedures can feel daunting for both first-time sponsors and seasoned HR managers. VisaHQ’s Italy page (https://www.visahq.com/italy/) provides end-to-end support—offering document reviews, live status tracking, and liaison with provincial Labour Offices to keep applications moving smoothly. By outsourcing the paperwork to their specialists, employers and self-employed applicants can concentrate on recruitment and onboarding rather than wrestling with portal glitches and shifting compliance rules.
For multinationals the decree offers rare forward visibility: head-count planning can now stretch three years instead of scrambling for annual allotments. Mobility managers should, however, note that provincial Labour Offices retain discretion to suspend dossiers if collective-bargaining wages are not respected. Intra-company transferees remain exempt from the quota but must still meet salary and seniority thresholds.
Practically, the new framework encourages employers to stagger hiring across the three years to avoid early exhaustion of sectoral ceilings. Immigration advisers recommend submitting non-seasonal applications as soon as the February 16 window opens; historically, construction and logistics quotas have closed within hours, while family-care and hospitality slots last longer. Companies that miss the cap can still pivot to the EU Blue Card or Digital Nomad schemes, but those routes carry higher salary criteria and longer lead times.
