What Is a Tax Code in Italy (Codice Fiscale)?

The codice fiscale is Italy’s tax identification number, a 16-character alphanumeric code issued free of charge by the Agenzia delle Entrate (Italy’s Revenue Agency) that identifies you in dealings with government offices, banks, employers, landlords, and utility companies. It plays the same role a Social Security number plays in the United States or a National Insurance number in the United Kingdom. Anyone who lives, works, studies, buys property, opens a bank account, or inherits assets in Italy needs one, and for most applicants the process finishes in a single visit to a tax office at no cost.¹

What You Need It For

Italian law requires the code for employment contracts, enrollment in the National Health Service, opening a bank account, buying or leasing real estate, and setting up utilities for electricity, water, or gas. Any payment from a government agency, any tax refund, and any social benefit also require it.²

It also turns up in situations people don’t always expect. Buying or registering a car or motorbike requires it, as does taking out an Italian insurance policy.³ Non-resident heirs who inherit Italian property need their own code to file the succession declaration with the Revenue Agency, and the certificate carries the barcode needed to activate SPID, Italy’s public digital identity system.⁴ Without a valid code, contracts cannot be legally executed and administrative processes stall.

Who Can Get One

The code is not limited to Italian citizens or permanent residents. Anyone who needs to interact with Italian institutions can request one.

Italian citizens are typically assigned a code at birth when the municipality registers the newborn.
EU citizens can apply at any Agenzia delle Entrate office in Italy with a valid national identity card or passport.⁵
Non-EU citizens can apply in person with a passport and visa (if their nationality requires one), a valid residence permit, or an identity card issued by an Italian municipality. They must also prove a legal right to stay in Italy, even temporarily.⁵
Foreign citizens coming to Italy for study and staying under 90 days can request the code at any Revenue Agency office.¹

How to Apply in Italy

The most common route is walking into any local office of the Agenzia delle Entrate with the completed application form and your identity documents. There is no fee. The office processes the request and issues a paper certificate carrying your assigned code on the spot, usually during the same visit.⁴

Non-EU citizens entering Italy for work or family reunification often receive their code automatically through the Sportello Unico per l’Immigrazione (the Immigration One-Stop Window at the local Prefecture) as part of the residence permit process, without a separate trip to the tax office.⁴

How to Apply From Outside Italy

If you’re not in Italy, the route depends on your citizenship. Italian citizens registered with AIRE (the Registry of Italians Abroad) can request a code for themselves and their minor children through the Fast-it online portal and download the certificate once the application is processed, with no consular visit needed.⁴

Foreign citizens not resident in Italy can request the code through the Italian consulate in their district, but they must provide a reason for the request along with their identity documents.¹ Alternatively, a foreign citizen can delegate someone in Italy to submit the form in person at any Agenzia delle Entrate office on their behalf.⁴

The Application Form and Documents

The form is the AA4/8, officially titled “Application for a Tax Code, Notification of Change of Details and Requests for a Tax Code Card/Duplicate of the National Health System Card.”⁶ It asks for your full legal name, place of birth, date of birth, and gender, and asks you to indicate whether you want a new code or an update to existing information.

Supporting documents depend on nationality. EU citizens present a valid national identity card or passport. Non-EU citizens present a valid passport with entry visa (if required by their nationality), a valid residence permit (permesso di soggiorno), or an identity certificate with photo issued by Italian diplomatic authorities.⁵

Every detail on the form must match your identity document exactly. A small inconsistency between the form and your passport can lead to a rejected application or a mismatched fiscal profile that causes problems later. Check transliterations of names, accented characters, and the exact spelling of your birthplace before submitting.

Applying for a Minor

A parent can request the code on behalf of a child. The parent fills out the AA4/8 with the minor’s information and signs it, and submits a copy of the parent’s passport and a copy of the parent’s own codice fiscale along with the form.⁷

What You Receive and How Long It Lasts

You receive a paper certificate immediately (or a PDF by email if you applied through a consulate). This certificate is legally valid for all purposes, so you can start using the code right away for contracts, health service enrollment, and bank accounts.⁴

A permanent plastic card, usually integrated into the Tessera Sanitaria (National Health Card), arrives by mail later, generally two to four weeks after enrollment in the National Health Service. For EU citizens who enrolled in the SSN, the health card’s validity matches the registration period. For non-EU citizens, it matches the residence permit.⁸

The code itself never expires. It stays the same for life and does not change if you move abroad or change your residence within Italy.⁹ The physical card carries an expiration date, but the underlying code remains permanently valid whether or not the card needs renewal. If the card is lost, stolen, or damaged, you can request a duplicate at your local Agenzia delle Entrate office.¹⁰ Knowing the 16 characters is enough for most transactions in the meantime; many people save a photo of the card or keep the original PDF certificate as a backup.

How the Code Is Built

For individuals, the codice fiscale is generated from personal data in a fixed pattern. The first three characters come from your surname and the next three from your given name, with the algorithm pulling consonants before vowels. Five characters then encode your date of birth and gender, followed by a four-character code for your municipality or country of birth. A final check character calculated mathematically catches data-entry errors. Businesses and other legal entities use a different format: an eleven-digit numeric sequence.¹¹

1
Consolato Generale d’Italia a San Francisco. Codice Fiscale (Tax Identification Number)
2
Ambasciata d’Italia a Washington. Tax Code (Codice Fiscale)
3
European University Institute. Tax Codes, Imports, and Vehicles
4
Consolato Generale d’Italia a New York. Codice Fiscale (Italian Tax Code)
5
Agenzia delle Entrate. Tax Identification Number for Foreign Citizens
6
Agenzia delle Entrate. AA4/8 Application for a Tax Code
7
Consolato d’Italia Detroit. Codice Fiscale (Italian Tax Code)
8
Agenzia delle Entrate. Health Insurance Card for Foreigners
9
Ambasciata d’Italia Oslo. Tax Code (Codice Fiscale)
10
Agenzia delle Entrate. Services for Foreign Citizens
11
Consolato Generale d’Italia Vancouver. Italian Fiscal Code