The dichiarazione di ospitalità is the written notice you must give the local public security authority within 48 hours of hosting a non-EU citizen or stateless person in Italy. It is required under Article 7 of the Testo Unico sull’Immigrazione (Legislative Decree 286/1998), costs nothing to file, and carries administrative fines of €500 to €3,500 if you miss the deadline or skip it entirely.1Normattiva. Decreto Legislativo 25 luglio 1998, n. 286 – Art. 7
Who Has To File
The obligation falls on the host or property owner, not the guest. It applies the moment you provide housing to a non-EU foreign national or a stateless person, whether the guest is a relative, a friend, or a paying tenant. Even a single overnight stay triggers the requirement.2Polizia di Stato. Cessione Fabbricato e Comunicazione di Ospitalità
The same form covers two situations: hosting someone in your home or lending them a property, and transferring rights over a dwelling to a non-EU national through sale, lease, or free use.1Normattiva. Decreto Legislativo 25 luglio 1998, n. 286 – Art. 7
Not Required for EU Citizens
The Testo Unico sull’Immigrazione governs only non-EU nationals. EU citizens fall under Legislative Decree 30/2007, which does not impose this hospitality notification on their hosts.3Polizia di Stato. Dichiarazione di Ospitalità – Adempimenti per i Privati A separate obligation, the comunicazione di cessione di fabbricato, applies when you sell, lease, or grant exclusive use of property to anyone (Italian, EU, or otherwise) for longer than a month, also within 48 hours.4Polizia di Stato. Comunicazione di Cessione di Fabbricato When the recipient is a non-EU national, the ospitalità form replaces it.5Polizia di Stato. Comunicazione di Cessione di Fabbricato – Modulo Aggiornato
Short-Term Rentals Use a Different System
If you run a B&B, vacation rental, or any short-term let (including occasional Airbnb hosting), the paper form does not apply to you. You must register all guests, Italian and foreign, through Alloggiati Web, the State Police’s online portal, under Article 109 of the TULPS, generally within 24 hours of check-in.3Polizia di Stato. Dichiarazione di Ospitalità – Adempimenti per i Privati The ospitalità form is reserved for private, non-commercial hosting.6Polizia di Stato. Hospitality for Non-EU Nationals – Requirements for Private Citizens
What the Form Asks For
The official form is the comunicazione di ospitalità in favore di cittadino extracomunitario, downloadable from the State Police website or available at police offices.7Polizia di Stato. Modello Dichiarazione di Ospitalità It splits into a host section and a guest section.
For yourself, you enter your full name, date and place of birth, and current residential address. For your guest, you record their full name, date of birth, nationality, and identification document details (number, issue date, issuing authority). If the guest holds a visa or residence permit, add those details too. The form also asks for the exact address of the property where the guest will stay and the reason for the hospitality.7Polizia di Stato. Modello Dichiarazione di Ospitalità
Attach legible photocopies of your own ID (identity card or passport) and the guest’s passport, including the personal data pages and any entry stamps. Gather everything before you start the form; the 48-hour clock does not pause while you look for documents.
The 48-Hour Deadline and How To Submit
The clock starts when the guest physically takes up residence at the property, not when you first agreed to host them.1Normattiva. Decreto Legislativo 25 luglio 1998, n. 286 – Art. 7 Three submission channels are accepted:
- In person at the Questura, the local Commissariato, or the Comune if the property is outside the main city.6Polizia di Stato. Hospitality for Non-EU Nationals – Requirements for Private Citizens
- Registered mail with return receipt (raccomandata A/R); the postal receipt proves you met the deadline.
- Certified electronic mail (PEC) sent to the local Questura’s certified address. The PEC delivery receipt has the same legal weight as a physical stamp. Ordinary email does not qualify.3Polizia di Stato. Dichiarazione di Ospitalità – Adempimenti per i Privati
Keep the protocol number, stamped receipt, or PEC confirmation. It is your only proof of timely filing, and it is the first thing any inspector will ask to see.
Your Guest May Have Their Own Filing To Do
Filing your ospitalità declaration does not cover your guest’s separate obligation. Foreign nationals arriving from a Schengen country and staying in private accommodation must submit a dichiarazione di presenza at the local Questura within eight days of entering Italy.8Welcome Office FVG. Declaration of Presence – Dichiarazione di Presenza Guests arriving directly from outside the Schengen area usually satisfy this through their border passport stamp. Mention it to your guest; many are unaware.
Penalties
Missing the 48-hour window, or not filing at all, results in an administrative fine of €500 to €3,500 under Article 7, comma 2-bis.1Normattiva. Decreto Legislativo 25 luglio 1998, n. 286 – Art. 7 Each unreported guest is a separate violation, so two guests can mean two fines.
A more serious risk arises if the person you host is an irregular migrant and you are renting to them for profit. Article 12, paragraph 5-bis of the same statute makes it a criminal offense to rent housing for profit to a foreign national unlawfully present in Italy, punishable by six months to three years in prison and possible confiscation of the property.9Ministero dell’Interno. Articolo 12 del Decreto Legislativo 25 luglio 1998, n. 286 Filing the ospitalità declaration does not shield you from that charge, but it does show you were not hiding the arrangement.
Store your stamped receipts or PEC confirmations by date. If an inspection lands months or years after the fact, that file is what stands between you and a fine you cannot contest.