The rules of entry and stay in Italy for foreign citizens from non-EU countries are regulated by the Consolidated Immigration Act (TU Immigrazione Decreto Legislativo 286/98). Every year the Government by means of a Decree known as “Decreto Flussi” sets the annual entry quota for foreign workers.
The Decreto Flussi 2021 (D.P.C.M. 21 December 2021) sets an annual maximum entry quota of 69,700 foreign workers for seasonal and non-seasonal subordinate employment and self-employment for the year 2022.

The overall quota is distributed as follows:

1 – ENTRIES FOR NON-SEASONAL SUBORDINATE WORK AND SELF-EMPLOYMENT
27,700 quotas are reserved for recruitment in the road haulage, construction and tourism-hotel sectors for citizens of countries that have signed or are about to sign cooperation agreements on migration with Italy.
More specifically, the aforementioned 27,700 entrances are distributed as follows:
17,000 quotas are reserved for workers who are citizens of Albania, Algeria, Bangladesh, Bosnia – Herzegovina, Korea (Republic of Korea), Ivory Coast, Egypt, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Philippines, Gambia, Ghana, Japan , Guatemala, India, Kosovo, Mali, Morocco, Mauritius, Moldova, Montenegro, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Republic of North Macedonia, Senegal, Serbia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Tunisia and
Ukraine.

3,000 quotas remain available to citizens of other countries with whom, in the course of 2022, cooperation agreements on migration will come into force.

100 quotas are reserved for foreign workers who have completed training and education programs in their countries of origin.
100 quotas are reserved for foreign workers of Italian origin on the part of at least one of their parents up to the third degree of direct ancestry, residing in Venezuela.

500 quotas are reserved for self-employed workers belonging to the following categories:
– Entrepreneurs carrying out activities of interest to the Italian economy that provide for the use of their own resources not less than 500,000 euros and coming from lawful sources, as well as the creation of at least three new jobs.
– Self-employed professionals belonging to supervised or unregulated professions that are representative at national level and included in the lists maintained by the Public Administration;
-Holders of corporate offices of administration and control expressly provided by the relevant Ministries Decree n. 850/2011;
– Foreign citizens hired as employees of an “Innovative start up” company pursuant to Law n. 221/2012.

2 – CONVERSIONS
7,000 quotas are reserved for those who have to convert into work permit the residence permit already held for another reason.

3 – ENTRIES FOR SEASONAL WORK
The Decree provides for 42,000 quotas for seasonal work entry. The quotas for seasonal work are reserved for the following nationalities: Albania, Algeria, Bangladesh, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Korea (Republic of Korea), Ivory Coast, Egypt, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Philippines, Gambia, Ghana, Japan, Guatemala, India, Kosovo, Mali, Morocco, Mauritius, Moldova, Montenegro, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Republic of North Macedonia, Senegal, Serbia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Tunisia, Ukraine and Guatemala.

In order to prevent illicit form of intermediation, within the total quota of 42,000 units, 14,000 units are reserved exclusively for the agricultural sector, for workers of the nationalities mentioned above, for whom the applications of the authorization are submitted, in the name and on behalf of the employers by the following professional organizations of employers: Cia, Coldiretti, Confagricoltura, Copagri, Alleanza delle Cooperative (includes Lega delle Cooperative and Confcooperative).

1,000 of 42,000 quotas are reserved for workers who want to enter for multi-year seasonal work.

The submission of a request for a “nulla osta” for the employment of a non-EU worker by an employer, whether Italian or a foreigner legally residing in Italy, represents the starting point of the entire procedure.
The final deadline for the submission of applications, set by the Decreto Flussi 2021, was on March 17, 2022.
On March 16, 2022 the Circular n. 2477 of the Ministries of the Interior, Labor and Agricultural Policies, since many places were still available, has extended the deadline to September 30, 2022 for the following categories of entrances:
– Workers of Italian origin on the part of at least one of the parents residing in Venezuela.
– Individuals who need to convert into residence permits for subordinate work a permit already held for one of those reasons:

● Seasonal work;

● Study, apprenticeship and/or professional training;

● EU residence permits for long-term residents issued by other EU member states;

– Individuals who need to convert into residence permits for self-employment a permit issued by other EU countries for:

● Study;

● Training:

● Long-term residents permit.