Codice Fiscale and Bank Account in Italy: First Steps for Property Buyers (2026)

Without an Italian tax number you cannot make an offer, and without a bank account you cannot transfer the deposit. Both can be arranged before you travel, and both should be in place before you start viewing seriously, because sellers will not hold a property while paperwork catches up.

The preparation takes two to four weeks if started early. The tax number itself is free and takes minutes in Italy; the bank account takes one to three weeks. Running these in parallel with the property search removes the one practical delay that costs buyers deals.

What the Codice Fiscale is and what it covers

The Codice Fiscale is a 16-character code calculated from your name, birth date, birthplace, and gender, issued by the tax authority (Agenzia delle Entrate). It costs nothing, does not expire, and does not change.

Almost nothing legal or financial moves in Italy without it: no purchase offer, no preliminary contract, no notary appointment, no bank account, no utility contract. It is the first thing to arrange, ahead of everything else, because every subsequent step requires it.

How to get the Codice Fiscale

In Italy, walk into any Agenzia delle Entrate office with a valid passport, fill out the form on site, and you leave with a printed code, no appointment and no fee. In Florence, Siena, or Lucca, English-speaking staff are usually available. The plastic card is sent by post to an Italian address; the printed code is enough to transact.

The consular route suits buyers who want the number before they travel. Italian consulates in London, Edinburgh, New York, Zurich, Vienna, and other cities handle applications with a passport and the form; some offices accept post or online submission, others require a personal visit. Processing takes one to three weeks. Either way, the number should be in hand before any serious viewing trip.

The bank account

An Italian bank account is needed because purchase payments must flow through one. The deposit, the completion payment at the notary, the purchase taxes, and the running costs all require an Italian account. Payments above 5,000 EUR in cash are not allowed; property sums move by transfer or certified bank cheque.

Which banks work with international buyers

Intesa Sanpaolo and Crédit Agricole Italia handle non-resident clients most often; BNL BNP Paribas and UniCredit are alternatives. To open an account, you bring:

• A valid passport
• Your Codice Fiscale
• Proof of address from your home country (a registration certificate or equivalent, not older than three months)
• A brief self-declaration on your occupation and source of income

Opening takes one to three weeks. Some branches want you there in person; others will work with a power of attorney. The account costs 100 to 250 EUR a year, plus 34.20 EUR annual stamp duty (Imposta di Bollo) and fees for international transfers. The bank communicates in Italian, so without the language you want a branch with an international desk or a local adviser alongside you.

Source of funds: assemble this before the bank asks

Under anti-money-laundering rules, Italian banks request proof of source for larger sums, typically from around 50,000 EUR upward. Prepare the following before the account opening, not after: bank statements from the past six to twelve months, salary records or tax returns, sale proceeds or inheritance papers where relevant. On a purchase of 500,000 EUR or more, assembling this in advance saves the weeks that a late request would otherwise cost.

The residency question

Most international buyers keep a second home in Italy and change nothing about their tax residency. They remain resident in their home country, use the property for part of the year, and register nothing with the municipality. The running tax is the municipal property levy (IMU); any rental income is taxed separately, either progressively or under the flat-rate option (Cedolare secca, 21 per cent on a standard let).

Residency enters the picture in two situations, both of which should be settled before signing anything. The first is the first-home relief (Prima Casa), which cuts the transfer tax sharply but requires moving your main residence to the property’s municipality within 18 months. The second is time: spend more than 183 days a year in Italy, or shift the centre of your life there, and you become tax-resident, pulling your worldwide income into Italian tax. Since 2024, keeping your name on the overseas-residents register (AIRE) alone no longer settles the question.

For buyers from outside the EU, the right to buy and the right to stay are separate matters. Americans, Britons, and Swiss nationals buy freely under the reciprocity principle, with no permit or quota required. Staying beyond 90 days is governed by a visa, usually the Elective Residence Visa, which requires passive income from around 31,000 EUR per year plus a home and health insurance in Italy. The detail is in its own guide: the Elective Residence Visa.

Is Prima Casa worth it for a holiday home?

The first-home relief cuts the transfer tax from 9 per cent to 2 per cent of the cadastral value. That is a real saving, but the relief is designed for people genuinely relocating, not for holiday-home buyers.

Claiming it commits you to moving your main residence to the property’s municipality within 18 months and to keeping the house for at least five years; sell within that window and the tax difference is clawed back with a penalty, unless you purchase another qualifying home within the allowed period. Luxury-category properties are excluded from the relief entirely.

The arithmetic looks appealing. A casale in Chianti at 1,200,000 EUR with a cadastral value of 350,000 EUR would attract transfer tax of 31,500 EUR as a second home and 7,000 EUR under Prima Casa, a saving of 24,500 EUR. But qualifying means becoming Italian tax-resident, which brings worldwide income into Italian tax and can erase the saving several times over. For a second home, the relief usually does not apply and should not drive the decision.

How married buyers hold the property

Married buyers fall into Italian community of property by default (Comunione legale dei beni): the house belongs to both spouses equally, regardless of the regime that governs their marriage at home. If separation of property is wanted instead (Separazione dei beni), it must be declared in the purchase deed at the notary, one line in the document, agreed before the appointment, not on the day.

Unmarried couples face no default: the owner is whoever is named in the contract. Where both partners want to hold the property, both must appear in the deed; the split can be set freely, for example 60/40 or 70/30.

Any buyer who already holds, or plans to hold, Italian property should take early advice on inheritance. Italian law sets mandatory shares (Legittima) for children, and EU citizens can elect by will to have their home-country succession law apply instead; without such an election, Italian law governs.

No purchase restrictions for international buyers

Italy places no general restriction on international buyers. EU citizens buy on the same footing as Italians, and British, US, and Swiss nationals buy under the reciprocity principle, which is settled bilaterally with each country. No permit, no quota, no special approval is required. The right to buy is separate from the visa question that governs the right to live in Italy.

The right sequence

From first step to ownership typically runs four to eight months (the full purchase process). Getting the tax number and account done early does not shorten that overall span, but it removes the delay that costs deals: the scramble when the right property appears. In practice the hold-up is almost always the bank account, not the tax number, so run the account opening alongside the property search and you recover three to four weeks where it matters most. For a broader look at where purchases go wrong, see 7 mistakes international buyers make in Italy.

FAQ

How long does the Codice Fiscale application take?

At the tax authority in Italy it is issued on the spot in a few minutes. Through an Italian consulate at home it takes one to three weeks, depending on the office. A valid passport is all you need; some consulates also ask for a birth certificate. It costs nothing either way. If you are travelling to Italy regardless, applying in person on day one is straightforward and you leave with the printed code.

Can I open an Italian bank account as a non-resident?

Yes. Italian banks are legally required to open accounts for non-residents, though some handle international clients far more often than others. Intesa Sanpaolo and Crédit Agricole Italia are the most experienced with buyers from abroad; BNL BNP Paribas and UniCredit are alternatives. You need your Codice Fiscale, a valid passport, and a recent proof of address from your home country. Allow one to three weeks, and be ready for the bank to ask where larger funds come from before the account is fully active. Annual costs run to 100-250 EUR in account fees plus 34.20 EUR stamp duty.

What documents do I need for the source-of-funds check?

Statements from the past six to twelve months, salary records or tax returns, a sale contract if the money comes from a property sale, or probate papers if it comes from an inheritance. The larger the purchase, the more the bank expects, with proof typically requested from around 50,000 EUR upward. Assemble everything before the account opens rather than after, because a follow-up request is the usual cause of a one or two week delay.

Do I need to move my residence to Italy to buy?

No. Buying as a second home requires no change of residence and no registration with the municipality. Residency only matters if you want the Prima Casa relief, which commits you to moving your main home to the property’s municipality within 18 months, or if you intend to spend more than 183 days a year in Italy. For a holiday home kept alongside your main base elsewhere, neither condition applies.

Is Prima Casa worth it for a holiday home?

Usually not. The relief cuts the transfer tax from 9 per cent to 2 per cent, but it requires you to move your main residence to the municipality and hold the house for at least five years. As a second home, with your main base outside Italy, you do not qualify. Where qualifying would make you Italian tax-resident, the additional tax on worldwide income can outweigh the saving. It is a relief for people actually relocating, not for second-home buyers.

Andrej Avi is an estate agent in Tuscany who guides international buyers from the first call to the notary appointment. Buying guidance · Properties · About Andrej

Further guides: The full purchase process in Italy · The Elective Residence Visa · Taxes when buying property

As of July 2026. General information, not legal or tax advice.