The Italian Ministry of Labour has transformed the new three-year immigration programme (Decreto Flussi 2026-28) from policy into day-to-day reality. A circular signed late on 16 January distributes 40 075 seasonal-work visa places for 2026 among all 20 regions and the main employer associations (Coldiretti, Confagricoltura, Federalberghi and others). The breakdown gives individual prefectures and companies precise numeric ceilings just days before the first ‘click-day’ on 12 January, when agricultural employers race to file online applications through the Interior-Ministry’s ALI portal. (visahq.com)
Background: Parliament converted the Decreto Flussi into law in December 2025, authorising a record 497 550 foreign-worker entries between 2026 and 2028. Seasonal labour dominates the scheme (267 000 slots over three years) because farms, vineyards and coastal resorts have struggled to hire enough staff since the pandemic. The 2026 tranche assigns 40 075 visas to seasonal agriculture, 13 000 to tourism and hospitality and smaller numbers to road haulage and fisheries, while highly-skilled categories have separate quotas. (visahq.com)
VisaHQ’s dedicated Italy team can help employers and individual applicants navigate the frantic click-day environment by pre-screening documents, securing SPID credentials and submitting packets the moment the ALI portal opens. Its online platform (https://www.visahq.com/italy/) keeps track of regional quotas in real time and offers compliance updates, dramatically improving the chances of securing one of the highly coveted seasonal-work slots.
![Italy Allocates 40,075 Seasonal-Work Visas for 2026 as New “Decreto Flussi” Moves From Paper to Practice]()
Practical implications for employers: HR teams must complete pre-population of application forms and line up SPID/CIE digital IDs well before the 9 a.m. opening bell. In 2025 the entire agricultural quota was exhausted in under 20 minutes; Immigration lawyers therefore advise companies to prepare draft contracts, proof of accommodation and INPS clearance in advance, and to log in from a fibre-optic connection to avoid time-outs. Rejected filings will be placed on a waiting list that is unlikely to move unless other firms withdraw requests.
Implications for global mobility managers: Multinationals with agri-food operations in Italy should factor possible start-date delays into production planning and consider staggering arrivals to reduce the housing and orientation bottleneck. Because seasonal-work permits can be converted into multi-year permits after two renewals, the 2026 intake could become a pipeline for longer-term staffing, but companies will need to invest in language training and integration programmes.
Looking ahead: The second click-day on 9 February (tourism) is expected to be equally competitive given record bookings for the 2026 Winter Olympics. The government has hinted that unused quotas could be re-assigned mid-year, so employers that miss out this week should keep draft files alive in the system.
Background: Parliament converted the Decreto Flussi into law in December 2025, authorising a record 497 550 foreign-worker entries between 2026 and 2028. Seasonal labour dominates the scheme (267 000 slots over three years) because farms, vineyards and coastal resorts have struggled to hire enough staff since the pandemic. The 2026 tranche assigns 40 075 visas to seasonal agriculture, 13 000 to tourism and hospitality and smaller numbers to road haulage and fisheries, while highly-skilled categories have separate quotas. (visahq.com)
VisaHQ’s dedicated Italy team can help employers and individual applicants navigate the frantic click-day environment by pre-screening documents, securing SPID credentials and submitting packets the moment the ALI portal opens. Its online platform (https://www.visahq.com/italy/) keeps track of regional quotas in real time and offers compliance updates, dramatically improving the chances of securing one of the highly coveted seasonal-work slots.
Practical implications for employers: HR teams must complete pre-population of application forms and line up SPID/CIE digital IDs well before the 9 a.m. opening bell. In 2025 the entire agricultural quota was exhausted in under 20 minutes; Immigration lawyers therefore advise companies to prepare draft contracts, proof of accommodation and INPS clearance in advance, and to log in from a fibre-optic connection to avoid time-outs. Rejected filings will be placed on a waiting list that is unlikely to move unless other firms withdraw requests.
Implications for global mobility managers: Multinationals with agri-food operations in Italy should factor possible start-date delays into production planning and consider staggering arrivals to reduce the housing and orientation bottleneck. Because seasonal-work permits can be converted into multi-year permits after two renewals, the 2026 intake could become a pipeline for longer-term staffing, but companies will need to invest in language training and integration programmes.
Looking ahead: The second click-day on 9 February (tourism) is expected to be equally competitive given record bookings for the 2026 Winter Olympics. The government has hinted that unused quotas could be re-assigned mid-year, so employers that miss out this week should keep draft files alive in the system.
