STEP 01 — 2026–2028
Move & become resident
Transfer your residence from abroad and set your fiscal domicile in any Sicilian comune between January 2026 and December 2028.
New law · Applications open Sept 2027
Sicily refunds half your income tax if you move here.
Move from abroad between 2026 and 2028, buy a home within a year, and the Region of Sicily pays back 50–60% of your Italian income tax — every year, for three years. We read the 16-page decree so you don’t have to.
Based on D.D.G. n. 1017/2026 · Regional Law 1/2026, art. 25 · Updated August 2026
Not a tax break — a cash refund or tax credit, paid after you file Windows are fixed: move 2026–2028, first applications Sept 2027 Independent — we’re not the Region, and this isn’t tax advice
How it works
Three steps, three years of refunds.
The rules come from Regional Decree 1017/2026. The paperwork is very Italian — the money is very real.
STEP 02 — WITHIN 12 MONTHS
Buy (or renovate) a home
Purchase a property in Sicily within twelve months — or renovate one you already own. Towns under 5,000 residents raise your refund to 60%.
STEP 03 — EVERY SEPTEMBER
File, apply, get paid
Pay your Italian income tax as usual, then apply in each annual window (September–December, 2027 onwards). The Region pays back 50–60%. Three times.
50%
of your income tax refunded, per year
60%
if you buy in a town under 5,000 residents
3 yrs
of refunds per new resident
€100k
annual cap — irrelevant below €480k income
The honest part
Who qualifies — and who doesn’t.
Most sites bury this. The decree only rewards certain income types, and freelancers are left out entirely. Better to know before you plan a move.
Qualifies REFUND 50–60%
- Remote employees — payroll employees of foreign or Italian companies, taxed in Italy once resident. No qualification requirements.
- Pensioners — foreign pensions become taxable in Italy after the move, and the refund applies in any comune, big cities included.
- Assimilated income — company directors’ fees and continuous collaboration contracts count too.
Doesn’t REFUND €0
- Freelancers & sole traders — self-employment, business and professional income generates no refund at all.
- Renters — no property purchase or renovation within twelve months, no refund.
- Double-dippers — it can’t be combined with the 7% pensioner flat tax or the impatriati regime. You choose one.
Freelancer? Sometimes the 7% or impatriati regime beats this one anyway. Compare all three →
The Sicily File
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One email a month: decree updates, deadlines, town lists and real relocation stories. Written by a human who reads the Gazzetta so you don’t have to.
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We’d rather show you this than a form that quietly drops your address. Check back in a few days — or read the main guide meanwhile.