Italy’s flat tax regime for new residents — introduced under Article 24-bis of the TUIR — allows individuals relocating to Italy to replace progressive IRPEF taxation on all foreign-source income with a single fixed annual lump sum. The amount is predetermined, uncapped in scope, and locked in for up to fifteen years from the moment of transfer.

The result is a structural advantage that is reshaping where internationally mobile wealth chooses to settle. Milan and Rome have emerged as the two natural poles of this shift: Milan for its financial infrastructure, depth of the prime property market, and connectivity; Rome for its unmatched historical heritage and growing appetite among international buyers seeking a residence that is also a statement.

For high-net-worth individuals, acquiring a prime property in either city is not incidental to the strategy — it is the legal foundation of Italian fiscal residence itself, and the most tangible expression of a planning decision that integrates tax efficiency, asset allocation, and quality of life.

→ Read the full analysis and see how the regime applies to a real acquisition opportunity in Milan.