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Working as a freelance translator in Italy
Thread poster: Céline REY
Céline REY
Céline REY
United Kingdom
Local time: 18:42
English to French
Feb 12, 2021

Hello,

I've been working as a freelance translator (English=>French) in the UK for many years and I might have to move to Italy due to my husband's job (we have French passports, so would be considered as EU citizens).

I'm looking for any tips/recommendations/feedback on how to register (and work) as a freelance in Italy - status, administrative process, etc. It seems to be "slightly" more complex than in the UK!

Many thanks for your help!

... See more
Hello,

I've been working as a freelance translator (English=>French) in the UK for many years and I might have to move to Italy due to my husband's job (we have French passports, so would be considered as EU citizens).

I'm looking for any tips/recommendations/feedback on how to register (and work) as a freelance in Italy - status, administrative process, etc. It seems to be "slightly" more complex than in the UK!

Many thanks for your help!


Celine
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Tom in London
Tom in London
United Kingdom
Local time: 18:42
Member (2008)
Italian to English
Minefield Feb 15, 2021

If you and your husband are planning to move permanently to Italy, you will both find yourselves trapped in the labyrinth of the Italian adminstrative system. That labyrinth is the reason why I finally left Italy after 25 otherwise happy years living there. If you have not read Kafka, now is the time to do so.

Your first step into this labyrinth will be for both of you to obtain a residence permit (permesso di soggiorno) specific to the address where you will be living. Being in th
... See more
If you and your husband are planning to move permanently to Italy, you will both find yourselves trapped in the labyrinth of the Italian adminstrative system. That labyrinth is the reason why I finally left Italy after 25 otherwise happy years living there. If you have not read Kafka, now is the time to do so.

Your first step into this labyrinth will be for both of you to obtain a residence permit (permesso di soggiorno) specific to the address where you will be living. Being in the EU makes no difference; you still need it. Without a residence permit you will not be able to do anything else, e.g. own a car.

If at all possible, I would strongly suggest you try to continue working as a UK-based taxpayer.

[Edited at 2021-02-15 10:50 GMT]
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Wolfgang Schoene
P.L.F. Persio
 
Jo Macdonald
Jo Macdonald  Identity Verified
Spain
Local time: 19:42
Member (2005)
Italian to English
+ ...
Taxation Feb 15, 2021

Before you make the move find out how much being registered for tax in Italy will cost you compared to being in the UK.
That was one of the main reasons I moved to Spain after 20 years in Italy.


Angie Garbarino
Wolfgang Schoene
Tom in London
P.L.F. Persio
 
Angie Garbarino
Angie Garbarino  Identity Verified
Local time: 19:42
Member (2003)
French to Italian
+ ...
Me too Feb 15, 2021

Jo Macdonald wrote:

Before you make the move find out how much being registered for tax in Italy will cost you compared to being in the UK.
That was one of the main reasons I moved to Spain after 20 years in Italy.


I moved to Spain as an Italian for the same reason.


Jo Macdonald
Tom in London
P.L.F. Persio
 
Angie Garbarino
Angie Garbarino  Identity Verified
Local time: 19:42
Member (2003)
French to Italian
+ ...
Anyway Feb 15, 2021

There must be a sort of flat tax "forfettario" or "agevolazione" for newly registered freelances, I suggest you to contact an accountant also online and ask for it. No problem for residence with a French passport and a job.

P.S. a useful link, in Italian though

https://www.serviziocontabileitaliano.it/partita-iva-agevolata.html

[Edited
... See more
There must be a sort of flat tax "forfettario" or "agevolazione" for newly registered freelances, I suggest you to contact an accountant also online and ask for it. No problem for residence with a French passport and a job.

P.S. a useful link, in Italian though

https://www.serviziocontabileitaliano.it/partita-iva-agevolata.html

[Edited at 2021-02-15 08:37 GMT]
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Céline REY
Céline REY
United Kingdom
Local time: 18:42
English to French
TOPIC STARTER
Thank you Feb 15, 2021

Thanks for all the comments so far. Very useful (though a bit frightening!).
And Angie, thanks for the link - it seems that the flat-rate regime would be the best as a newly registered freelancer.


Angie Garbarino
 
Fiona Grace Peterson
Fiona Grace Peterson  Identity Verified
Italy
Local time: 19:42
Italian to English
Accountant Feb 15, 2021

While it is possible to manage your financial affairs independently, I would very much recommend getting an accountant. They keep up to date on all the changes in legislation, which in Italy can be a struggle even for them.

Do you know which area you might be moving to?


Tom in London
Angie Garbarino
Tony Keily
 
Tom in London
Tom in London
United Kingdom
Local time: 18:42
Member (2008)
Italian to English
Essential Feb 15, 2021

Fiona Grace Peterson wrote:

While it is possible to manage your financial affairs independently, I would very much recommend getting an accountant. They keep up to date on all the changes in legislation, which in Italy can be a struggle even for them.

Do you know which area you might be moving to?


Yes- an accountant is essential but be very careful about choosing the one who's right for you. Depending on where you're going to be living, there may be colleagues here who can give you some pointers.

This is an important decision because your accountant will want to know every detail of your life. The accountant will do all your book-keeping etc. But be sure not to make the mistake I made when, being in a hurry, I signed up with an accountant recommended by a work colleague. It wasn't until later that I found out the drawbacks, such as:

- I would never be able to change to a different accountant. The only way I was able to dump him was by leaving the country;
- His office was on the opposite side of the city, requiring up to an hour's driving there and back, in traffic, every time (half a day gone!);
- He called me all the time, and every time he insisted that I must go to his office;
- He was always asking me for favours on the side. e.g. finding an intern position in London for his son so that he could learn English;
- WORST OF ALL he based his fees on how much I was earning. The more I earned, the more he took.

My suggestion: tell her/him at the beginning that you only want to make use of her/him for a year or two, during which you want her/him to teach you how to do your own book-keeping and accounting. Thereafter (tell her/him) you will still require her/his services occasionally, on an ad hoc basis (i.e. for not for a fixed annual fee)

(P.S.) I assume you are reasonably fluent in Italian. There is a whole "fiscal lexicon" and a very complex spider's web of tax payments, of different kinds, all falling due on different dates, with which you will need to become familiar. Expect to spend about 1 or more full days per week simply keeping your accounts in order.

BUT ABOVE ALL as a much better alternative, if your husband expects to return to the UK at some point: keep your business in the UK (for tax purposes).



[Edited at 2021-02-15 15:28 GMT]


 
Angie Garbarino
Angie Garbarino  Identity Verified
Local time: 19:42
Member (2003)
French to Italian
+ ...
@Tom Feb 15, 2021

The above is not usual, you were unlucky

Tom in London
 
Tom in London
Tom in London
United Kingdom
Local time: 18:42
Member (2008)
Italian to English
I know Feb 15, 2021

Angie Garbarino wrote:

The above is not usual, you were unlucky


I know.... but nobody told me

[Edited at 2021-02-15 15:30 GMT]


 
Tom in London
Tom in London
United Kingdom
Local time: 18:42
Member (2008)
Italian to English
Deleted (mysterious double posting) Feb 15, 2021

.

[Edited at 2021-02-15 16:55 GMT]


 
Wolfgang Schoene
Wolfgang Schoene  Identity Verified
France
Local time: 19:42
Member
English to German
+ ...
Working as a freelance translator in Italy Feb 15, 2021

CR-London wrote:

Hello,

I've been working as a freelance translator (English=>French) in the UK for many years and I might have to move to Italy due to my husband's job (we have French passports, so would be considered as EU citizens).

I'm looking for any tips/recommendations/feedback on how to register (and work) as a freelance in Italy - status, administrative process, etc. It seems to be "slightly" more complex than in the UK!

Many thanks for your help!


Celine



For the same reason as my fellow refugees after 43 years I moved from Italy to France. Keyword for my decision was what they call(ed?) "Congruenza", definitely a rip-off.
Some nostalgia lifestyle-wise, not business-wise. Anyway, I'm just 40 km from the Italian border.


Tom in London
Angie Garbarino
P.L.F. Persio
 
Kate Chaffer
Kate Chaffer
Italy
Local time: 19:42
Member (2009)
Italian to English
No permesso di soggiorno Feb 15, 2021

Tom in London wrote:

Your first step into this labyrinth will be for both of you to obtain a residence permit (permesso di soggiorno) specific to the address where you will be living. Being in the EU makes no difference; you still need it. Without a residence permit you will not be able to do anything else, e.g. own a car.



[Edited at 2021-02-15 10:50 GMT]


EU citizens haven't needed a permesso di soggiorno since 2007 so that saves them a bit of bureaucracy! Unfortunately Brits are now being forced back to the questura for a 'carta di soggiorno'. While not mandatory, it's quite obvious we're not going to be able to do anything without it!


Angie Garbarino
Gabriele Metzler
Tom in London
 
Tom in London
Tom in London
United Kingdom
Local time: 18:42
Member (2008)
Italian to English
That was what I meant Feb 16, 2021

Kate Chaffer wrote:

EU citizens haven't needed a permesso di soggiorno since 2007 so that saves them a bit of bureaucracy! Unfortunately Brits are now being forced back to the questura for a 'carta di soggiorno'. While not mandatory, it's quite obvious we're not going to be able to do anything without it!


Yes- that was what I meant. Italian bureaucracy has evolved, but has not improved, since I left; but whether it's a "carta" or a "permesso" both terms imply the same thing: at least half a day standing in line at the police station clutching all the documents required. It's not mandatory but as you say, without it you can't do anything and if for any reason you're stopped (e.g. at a road accident) and you haven't got one, you could be deported. As I was saying, it's Kafkaesque.

[Edited at 2021-02-16 08:27 GMT]


 
Kate Chaffer
Kate Chaffer
Italy
Local time: 19:42
Member (2009)
Italian to English
French passport Feb 16, 2021

Tom in London wrote:

Kate Chaffer wrote:

EU citizens haven't needed a permesso di soggiorno since 2007 so that saves them a bit of bureaucracy! Unfortunately Brits are now being forced back to the questura for a 'carta di soggiorno'. While not mandatory, it's quite obvious we're not going to be able to do anything without it!


Yes- that was what I meant. Italian bureaucracy has evolved, but has not improved, since I left; but whether it's a "carta" or a "permesso" both terms imply the same thing: at least half a day standing in line at the police station clutching all the documents required. It's not mandatory but as you say, without it you can't do anything and if for any reason you're stopped (e.g. at a road accident) and you haven't got one, you could be deported. As I was saying, it's Kafkaesque.

[Edited at 2021-02-16 08:27 GMT]


As the OP has a French passport, they won't require either a permesso or a carta di soggiorno (and wouldn't be able to get one even if they tried!).


Angie Garbarino
 
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