The new residence permit under Article 27(i-bis) for workers within the same multinational group: how does it really work?

In recent years, the Italian system for work-related immigration has gradually expanded with new instruments aimed at attracting foreign workers. Following the reform of the EU Blue Card for highly qualified professionals and the introduction of the digital nomad visa, a new option has also been introduced for companies that are part of international corporate groups.

This opportunity concerns non-EU workers connected to companies belonging to the same corporate group and has a particularly interesting feature: it is not subject to the annual quotas of the so-called Decreto Flussi (the annual immigration quota decree), yet it does not necessarily require a high level of professional qualification. The measure was introduced with Decree-Law No. 75 of 2023 and became operational in May 2024, when a circular from the Ministry of the Interior provided practical instructions to the relevant offices.

The legal basis is Article 27 of the Consolidated Immigration Act (Testo Unico sull’Immigrazione), which regulates several categories of work entry outside the quota system. Within this provision, paragraph (i-bis) was added to govern the entry of workers who have previously had a professional relationship with a foreign company belonging to the same group as the Italian company requesting their entry.

To use this procedure, certain conditions must be met. First, the Italian company must be connected to a corporate entity located outside the European Union. This may be its main headquarters or a branch, a subsidiary or the group’s holding company, or a company in which it holds a participation of at least 20 percent. Second, the foreign worker must have worked for that foreign company for at least 12 months during the 48 months preceding the application for the nulla osta (work authorization) for entry into Italy.

This prior professional link is the real distinguishing element of the rule. In other categories of residence permits issued outside the quota system, access is normally tied to the presence of high professional qualifications; in this case, however, the determining requirement is the worker’s membership in the corporate group, which allows entry even without particular levels of specialization.

Once the permit has been obtained, the form of the employment relationship in Italy may vary depending on the worker’s situation at the time of the application. If the employee is still employed by the foreign company, they may be temporarily seconded to Italy while maintaining their original employment contract. In this case, the foreign company remains the employer and continues to pay the salary, while the Italian branch simply becomes the place where the employee performs their work for a limited period, generally not exceeding three years. If, instead, the worker is no longer employed by the foreign company, entry into Italy involves an actual hiring in Italy, with the Italian company formally assuming the role of employer and the related salary obligations.

From a procedural point of view, the process follows the typical stages provided for entry for subordinate employment. The Italian company first submits a named request for a nulla osta to the Immigration One-Stop Shop (Sportello Unico per l’Immigrazione) at the competent Prefecture, which is issued within ninety days and transmitted to the relevant Italian consulate.

The worker must then appear at the consulate in their country of residence to apply for a national work visa. Within eight days of arriving in Italy with that visa, they must apply for the residence permit.

In conclusion, the new permit provided for under Article 27, paragraph 1, letter (i-bis) represents an interesting instrument for Italian companies that are part of international groups. By allowing the entry of workers already connected to the corporate organization—without the numerical limits of the Decreto Flussi—the rule aims to facilitate internal mobility within multinational groups and to ease the arrival of foreign workers when a consolidated relationship with the corporate group already exists.

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The content of this article is intended to provide general information on the topic. For doubts or specific cases, it is advisable to seek specialized legal advice tailored to your particular situation.

Article written by Alessia Ajelli, Managing Associate of LCA Studio Legale, Italian lawyer specialized on Italian immigration and citizenship law.