The situation

Authorities in Italy are applying different processes for the in-country steps of the recently implemented EU Intracompany Transferee (ICT) Directive.

Varying processes

The published in-country steps for EU ICT applications involve submitting a residence permit application within eight days of entry, fingerprinting and approval of the residence permit application.

Currently, authorities are applying the below varying steps, depending on the region where the application is filed:

• Certain immigration offices are requesting that the Permit of Stay be filed at the post office instead of the immigration office;
• Other offices are sending the electronic Permit of Stay application to the Italian police, without requiring that the application be sent to the post office; and
• Other immigration offices are requesting the foreign national to sign a Contract of Stay, which should not apply as this step is only required for the national ICT visa process (not the EU ICT process).

Impact for employers and foreign nationals

Due to the discrepancies in processes, Fragomen professionals are analyzing each EU ICT case in Italy individually to ensure compliance with each region’s process.

This alert is for informational purposes only. If you have any questions, please contact the global immigration professional with whom you work at Fragomen or send an email to emea@fragomen.com.