Normal residence for driving licence

To obtain a driving licence or a professional qualification in Italy, a person must meet the requirement of normal residence in the country. This rule also applies to citizens of the European Union and the European Economic Area and ensures that licences are issued only in the country where the person has a real and stable connection.

Normal residence is defined as the place where a person usually lives for at least 185 days per year. This stay must be connected to personal and professional interests, such as work, family, or other activities that demonstrate a stable link to that place. If a person does not have professional interests, personal ties alone, such as family or social life, can be sufficient to establish residence.

A person may have professional interests in another country but personal interests in Italy. In such cases, Italy can still be considered the place of normal residence, provided that the person returns there regularly. For example, someone working abroad but frequently returning to Italy where their family lives may still be considered resident in Italy for driving licence purposes. However, if the stay in Italy is temporary and linked to a fixed-term assignment, the requirement to return regularly does not apply.

Attending university or school courses in Italy does not automatically mean transferring normal residence. This means that a student who is in Italy only for study purposes is not automatically considered resident for driving licence purposes.

However, for the application of road traffic rules, student status in Italy can be treated as equivalent to normal residence if the person stays in the country for at least six months per year. In this case, the student may be considered resident and therefore eligible to obtain a driving licence in Italy.