Where you can travel visa-free with an Italian passport in 2026
186 destinations without a prior visa, the right to live and work in 27 EU countries, and the USA, the UK and Canada with an electronic travel authorisation. We cover the destinations, EU citizen rights and what the 2025 reform changed.
In short
An Italian passport gives entry without a prior visa to 186 of 227 countries and territories: the EU and Schengen are open for living and working, Japan, China, South Korea, Singapore and all of Latin America are visa-free, and the USA, the UK, Canada and Australia need an electronic travel authorisation. Russia requires an e-visa.
| Without a prior visa | 186 of 227: 142 visa-free, 27 on arrival, 17 with an electronic travel authorisation |
|---|---|
| Visa needed in advance | 40, of which 26 by e-visa |
| Schengen and the UK | Schengen area - free movement, United Kingdom - electronic travel authorisation |
| USA and Canada | USA - electronic travel authorisation, Canada - electronic travel authorisation |
| How to get it | by descent within the limits of the 2025 reform, through marriage or naturalisation |
| Checked | October 2026 |
An Italian passport opens 186 of 227 destinations without a prior visa: 142 fully visa-free, 27 with a visa on arrival and 17 with an electronic travel authorisation. That is 72 more than the Russian passport and one of the strongest positions in the world. A visa in advance is needed for only 14 countries.
But the key value of an Italian passport is not travel but EU citizenship. An Italian citizen lives, works, studies and runs a business in any of the 27 EU countries, as well as in Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Switzerland, without visas or permits. For a family from Russia, this is a direct path to life in Europe without residence permit renewals and checks at every border crossing.
We will work out online when you can apply and what fees and documents will cost for your family.
Where you can go visa-free with a Italian passport
Entry regimes differ in how much preparation the trip needs. Visa-free means the passport is enough and the permitted stay is set at the border. A visa on arrival means a fee and a stamp at the airport or checkpoint. An electronic travel authorisation is a short online form and fee before departure. An e-visa is also online but involves a check and a consular decision. A regular visa means a form, documents, often a personal visit to the consulate and waiting for a decision.
| Region | Visa-free or with an electronic authorisation | Visa on arrival or e-visa | Visa needed in advance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Europe | Schengen area (live and work), United Kingdom (online authorisation), Ireland (live and work), Cyprus (live and work), Belarus, Moldova, Turkey, Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albania, North Macedonia | Russia | - |
| Caucasus and Central Asia | Georgia, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan | Azerbaijan | - |
| Asia | China, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Philippines | Indonesia, India, Maldives | - |
| Middle East and Africa | UAE, Israel (online authorisation), Oman, Morocco, South Africa, Kenya (online authorisation) | Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Tanzania | - |
| Americas | USA (online authorisation), Canada (online authorisation), Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Peru, Panama, Dominican Republic, Paraguay, Uruguay | - | - |
| Oceania | Australia (online authorisation), New Zealand (online authorisation) | - | - |
The Italian passport is visa-free for the Balkans, Georgia, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan, Japan, South Korea, China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, the UAE, Oman, Morocco, South Africa and all of Latin America - from Mexico to Argentina and Chile. An electronic travel authorisation is needed for the USA, Canada, the UK, Australia, New Zealand and Israel. A visa on arrival is issued in Indonesia, the Maldives, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Egypt. An e-visa is needed for Russia, India and Azerbaijan.
The table shows the main destinations for travel, living and business, not all 227 countries and territories. An electronic travel authorisation is issued online within minutes or days; an e-visa is also applied for online, but it is a separate consular decision. Entry rules change several times a year: check with an expert for your trip.
Schengen, the UK, the USA and Canada
The EU and Schengen. An Italian citizen needs neither a visa nor a travel authorisation: they may live in any EU country indefinitely, work without a work permit and register as residents under the general rules for EU citizens.
United Kingdom. No visa is needed, but since 2025 an electronic travel authorisation is obtained before the trip: an online form and fee, usually decided within a few days.
USA. Italy is in the Visa Waiver Program: tourist and business trips of up to 90 days with an electronic travel authorisation. Anyone who has visited certain countries or was previously refused needs a regular visa.
Canada, Australia and New Zealand. With an electronic travel authorisation obtained online before departure.
Asia. Japan, South Korea, Singapore and Hong Kong are visa-free, and China temporarily admits Italian citizens without a visa for up to 30 days. India requires an e-visa.
What else a Italian passport gives
EU citizen rights. Freedom to live and work in the 27 EU countries and the European Economic Area, university tuition at EU rates and the right to vote in local elections in the country of residence. Where Italy has no embassy in the country of travel, any other EU country's embassy provides protection.
Dual citizenship. Italy does not require giving up a previous citizenship, so the Russian passport is kept. The Russian Interior Ministry must be notified of the second citizenship within 60 days.
Taxes. The passport does not make you an Italian tax resident: residence starts after more than 183 days in the country in a year or with registration as a resident there. Residents pay income tax at 23%, 33% and 43%, while a citizen living abroad registers in the register of Italians abroad and pays tax in Italy only on Italian income.
Children. After the 2025 reform, a child of an Italian citizen born abroad with another citizenship does not always become Italian automatically: it depends on where the parents were born and lived, and in some cases a declaration within the child's first year is required.
How to get a Italian passport
Until 27 March 2025 citizenship by descent passed down without a limit on generations. Law 74/2025 changed this: a person born abroad with another citizenship is deemed never to have acquired Italian citizenship unless a parent or grandparent held only Italian citizenship, or a parent lived in Italy for 2 years before their birth. The route is closed to great-grandchildren of emigrants.
The second route is marriage to an Italian citizen: you apply 2 years after the marriage if living in Italy or 3 years if living abroad, with the periods halved if you have children together. The third is naturalisation: 10 years of legal residence for non-EU citizens, 2 years for children and grandchildren of Italian citizens by birth. Marriage and naturalisation require intermediate Italian, level three of six.
Requirements, timelines and documents are on the page Italian citizenship by descent.
After the reform, an Italian passport starts with checking the right before collecting documents
The law does not forbid applying for Italian citizenship on your own. But mistakes cost more than the fees: documents collected for a line the 2025 reform has already closed, an ancestor's naturalisation certificate from the wrong archive, an uncertified translation, a language exam without preparation. We first check whether you have a right under the new law and choose the route - descent, marriage or residence - then gather the documents and see the application through to the passport.
The cost of support depends on the route and the number of generations; a manager will calculate it in the chat.
This topic in other countries
Visa-free travel with other passports:
- Visa-free countries with a Turkish passport in 2026
- Visa-free countries with a Serbian passport in 2026
- Visa-free countries with a Romanian passport in 2026
- Visa-free countries with a Bulgarian passport in 2026
- Where you can travel visa-free with a Moldovan passport in 2026
- Where you can travel visa-free with an Armenian passport in 2026
- Where you can travel visa-free with an Israeli passport in 2026
- Where you can travel visa-free with a Greek passport in 2026
- Where you can travel visa-free with a Latvian passport in 2026
- Where you can travel visa-free with a Lithuanian passport in 2026
- Visa-free countries with a Sao Tome and Principe passport in 2026
- Visa-free countries with a Nauru passport in 2026
- Visa-free countries with an Egyptian passport in 2026
- Visa-free countries with a Jordanian passport in 2026
- Where you can travel visa-free with a German passport in 2026
- Visa-free countries with a Mexican passport in 2026
- Visa-free countries with a Uruguayan passport in 2026
- Visa-free countries with a Paraguayan passport in 2026
- Visa-free countries with a Brazilian passport in 2026
- Where you can travel visa-free with a Kazakh passport in 2026
- Where you can travel visa-free with a St Kitts and Nevis passport in 2026
- Where you can travel visa-free with a Dominica passport in 2026
- Where you can travel visa-free with an Antigua and Barbuda passport in 2026
- Visa-free countries with a Grenadian passport in 2026
- Visa-free countries with a Saint Lucian passport in 2026
- Visa-free countries with a Kyrgyz passport in 2026
- Visa-free countries with a Sierra Leonean passport in 2026
- Visa-free countries with a North Macedonian passport in 2026
- Visa-free countries with a US passport in 2026
- What an Argentine passport gives
- What a Vanuatu passport gives
More on this country:
- How much Italian citizenship costs
- Italy and Russia dual citizenship
- Taxes in Italy
- Rome city guide
- Milan city guide
- Moving to Italy
Compare passports of different countries in our 2026 passport overview.
FAQ
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