Italian Interior Ministry has recently announced the updated schedule for the famous Decreto Flussi 2024 work visa application submissions. This was due first of all in February but later was shifted to March. The portal for the non-seasonal application has already started on 18 March 2024 to accept applications from non-seasonal employed workers whose countries have cooperation agreements with the Italian government.
Starting from 29 February it is possible to hire non-EU workers from abroad and convert the residence permit using the application for pre-compiling applications on the Services Portal of the Ministry of the Interior within the 151,000 quotas provided for by the Prime Minister’s Decree of the Ministers of 27 September 2023 “Planning of legal entry flows into Italy of foreign workers for the three years 2023-2025” (each year has different quota).
Pre-filling SPID System Access
To access the Services Portal you need a digital identity (SPID or Cie ID). The system for pre-compilation of forms will be available according to the following schedule:
- from February 29th to March 16th from 8.00 to 20.00;
- on March 17th from 8.00 to 18.00;
- on March 19th from 8.00 to 20.00;
Final applications submission
As per the Prime Ministerial Decree of 19 January 2024, namely final application submission dates are as follows (applications can be submitted until December 31, 2024.):
- from 9:00 on 18 March applications can be submitted for non-seasonal employed workers who are citizens of countries that have cooperation agreements with Italy;
- from 9:00 on 21 March, applications for other non-seasonal subordinate workers (including in the family and social-health care sectors) can be sent;
- from 9:00 on March 25th applications for seasonal workers can be sent.
Quota Details for 2024
The Italian Government has specified a quota for the 2024 intake under Decreto Flussi. For seasonal work visas, 89,050 applicants will be able to apply. On the other hand, 700 allocations have been reserved for self-employment visas. For non-seasonal purposes, an overall quota of 61,250 has been reserved.
Separate quota for Indian Nationals
From 1 April the Partnership Agreement on mobility and migration with India will come into force, in which it is expected to reserve a quota of 6,000 entries for work reasons for citizens coming from that country by 2024. non-seasonal and 4,000 for seasonal work.
Eligible countries
Below are the countries whose nationals can apply for seasonal and non-seasonal work visas as these countries have cooperation agreements with the Italian government:
Albania, Algeria, Bangladesh, Bosnia and Herzegovina, South Korea, Ivory Coast, Egypt, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Philippines, Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Japan, Jordan, Guatemala, India, Kyrgyzstan, Kosovo, Mali, Morocco, Mauritius, Moldova, Montenegro, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Republic of North Macedonia, Senegal, Serbia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Tunisia, Ukraine.
Important Notice
In particular, the Circular clarifies that in the case of an application for work authorization already submitted as part of the 2023 flows and not accepted by the One-Stop Shop due to lack of available quotas, the employer will be able to postpone the application by attaching the same documentation already in precedence presented. In practice they remain valid and will not need to be renewed:
- the certification on the verification of unavailability of workers already present on the national territory at the Employment Center (provided that the job and job profile required have not changed);
- the sworn document, issued under art. 24-bis T.U.I. provided that the number of applications submitted by the same employer is the same.
Furthermore, the possibility is reiterated, if the requested documents are not available at the time of compilation, to upload as many declarations of commitment to produce the missing documentation; in this case, the acquisition of the documentation will be requested during the preliminary investigation phase by the One-Stop Shop for Immigration, which will automatically transmit communications via the IT application to the applicant/employer at the address entered in the section of the application dedicated to delivery.
The circular also clarifies the entry of workers who drive goods on behalf of third parties and bus passengers. In particular, it is specified that with the request for authorization for non-seasonal work (Form B2020), it is not necessary to document the possession of the Driver Qualification Card (CQC), but only the possession of a driving license equivalent to the requested category and convertible into Italy. Only for effective employment in the driver activity within the national territory will the transport companies for both sectors indicated above have to demonstrate that they have completed the training requirements required for the issue of the Driver Qualification Card ( CQC).