{"id":9334,"date":"2026-11-05T09:34:47","date_gmt":"2026-11-05T08:34:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shimmigrations.com\/?p=9334"},"modified":"2026-11-05T09:34:50","modified_gmt":"2026-11-05T08:34:50","slug":"integration-agreement-points-system-italy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shimmigrations.com\/en\/integration-agreement-points-system-italy\/","title":{"rendered":"Integration agreement in Italy: points-based permit, credits and checks"},"content":{"rendered":"

In short.<\/strong> The integration agreement, or \u201cpoints-based permit\u201d, is a credit-based pact with the Italian State (Article 4-bis of Legislative Decree 286\/1998). It is signed by people over 16 who enter Italy for the first time and apply for a permit of at least one year. You start with 16 credits and need 30 after two years, plus spoken Italian at A2. At zero credits the law provides for revocation and expulsion, with exceptions.<\/p>\n

Here you will find who signs, how credits and tests work, what happens at the check, and the links with the EU long-term permit and citizenship.<\/p>\n

Reviewed 5 November 2026.<\/strong> These are general rules, not personalised advice: your case may differ, depending on your permit and your date of entry. The official sources at the end were consulted on 5 November 2026.<\/p>\n

What is the integration agreement and which rules govern it?<\/h2>\n

It is a credit-based pact that a foreign national signs with the State when applying for a residence permit. \u201cPoints-based permit\u201d is a popular label: the law speaks only of an agreement and credits. The agreement comes from Article 4-bis of Legislative Decree 286\/1998<\/a> (the Consolidated Immigration Act, TUI) and is put into practice by Presidential Decree (D.P.R.) 179 of 14 September 2011<\/a>, in force since 10 March 2012 and, on Normattiva, unamended as at 4 November 2026.<\/p>\n

Recent changes touched Article 4-bis, not the regulation. Decree-Law 145\/2024<\/a> (converted by Law 187\/2024) added a reference to how the residence contract is signed. Legislative Decree 83\/2026<\/a>, applicable from 22 May 2026, widened the information on work and the single permit. Credits and language levels are unchanged.<\/p>\n

Who has to sign the agreement, and who does not?<\/h2>\n

Under Article 1 of D.P.R. 179\/2011, the agreement applies to a foreign national who is over 16, enters Italy for the first time after 10 March 2012 and applies for a permit under Article 5 of the TUI lasting at least one year. For a minor aged 16 to 18, the parents, or other people with parental authority, sign too if they are lawfully resident (Article 2, paragraph 2).<\/p>\n

The agreement is not signed, or is replaced, in three cases (Article 2, paragraphs 8 and 9):<\/p>\n