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How much does an Italian tax code cost for a foreign citizen?

An Italian tax code for a foreign citizen is always free of charge: it is issued by the Revenue Agency, or by the police headquarters or the immigration office during a residence permit application, at no cost to the applicant.

Verifiable answer

An Italian tax code for a foreign citizen is always free of charge: it is issued by the Revenue Agency, or by the police headquarters or the immigration office during a residence permit application, at no cost to the applicant.

Question
How much does an Italian tax code cost for a foreign citizen?
Average cost
€0 / application
Price range
€0
Area
Italy
Last verified
29 July 2026
Confidence
Confidence: High
What is included
Assignment of the tax code by the Revenue Agency, a police headquarters or the immigration office; Delivery of the tax code card by ordinary post to the residence or the declared tax domicile; Issuance of a provisional tax code, where applicable, while the final one is processed
What is not included
Paid private services that offer to obtain the tax code on the applicant's behalf; Translation or legalization of identity documents, if required for specific cases; Travel to the relevant office, in Italy or at a consulate abroad; A notarised power of attorney for a representative, for anyone who cannot apply in person
What the price depends on
Whether you are an EU or a non-EU citizen; The reason for your stay: dependent employment, family reunification, other permits, international protection; Whether you apply from abroad through a consulate or directly in Italy; Whether you already hold a valid residence permit or are still obtaining one; Whether you apply in person or delegate someone with a power of attorney
Sources and methodology
2 sources

Short answer

There is no fee for a foreign citizen's Italian tax code: what changes is only which office issues it, depending on why the document is needed and the type of stay in Italy.

Anyone arriving in Italy from another country often hears about the codice fiscale as one more bureaucratic step that, like so many others, must come with a price tag. It does not: the Italian tax code is a free service provided by the state, and it stays free no matter who requests it or where. What changes is the office in charge, and that is where the confusion about cost comes from. A non-EU citizen entering Italy for dependent employment or family reunification receives the tax code from the immigration office, first in a provisional form and then in its final form once the residence permit is issued. Anyone applying at a police headquarters for another type of permit gets the final tax code straight away. An EU citizen, or a foreigner who already holds a valid residence permit, can instead request it directly from a local Revenue Agency office by submitting form AA4/8 and an identity document. None of these paths involves a payment. The real financial risk is not the public office but the private websites and services that offer to obtain a tax code for a fee, often targeting tourists or people still abroad: they charge for something that costs nothing through the official channels.

What is included

  • Assignment of the tax code by the Revenue Agency, a police headquarters or the immigration office
  • Delivery of the tax code card by ordinary post to the residence or the declared tax domicile
  • Issuance of a provisional tax code, where applicable, while the final one is processed

What is not included

  • Paid private services that offer to obtain the tax code on the applicant's behalf
  • Translation or legalization of identity documents, if required for specific cases
  • Travel to the relevant office, in Italy or at a consulate abroad
  • A notarised power of attorney for a representative, for anyone who cannot apply in person

How the price breaks down

How the price breaks down: The Italian tax code for a foreign citizen
ItemTypeFrequencyTypical
Issuance of the tax codeThe tax code is assigned free of charge, regardless of which office is responsible: the Revenue Agency, a police headquarters, the immigration office, or an Italian consulate abroad.Compulsoryone-off€0

What the price depends on

  • Whether you are an EU or a non-EU citizen
  • The reason for your stay: dependent employment, family reunification, other permits, international protection
  • Whether you apply from abroad through a consulate or directly in Italy
  • Whether you already hold a valid residence permit or are still obtaining one
  • Whether you apply in person or delegate someone with a power of attorney

Hidden costs

  • The fee charged by websites or private services promising a fast tax code for payment, for a procedure the public office performs free of charge
  • The waiting time for an appointment at a police headquarters or the Revenue Agency, which can mean more than one visit if a document is missing
  • The cost of a notarised power of attorney for anyone delegating the application to someone else
  • The delay in opening a bank account or signing a lease until the final tax code arrives

How to spend less

  1. Do not pay any website promising to get you a tax code for a fee: it is a free public service, available directly from the Revenue Agency or the relevant Italian consulate.
  2. If you are a non-EU citizen awaiting a residence permit, check whether the immigration office has already assigned you a provisional tax code before requesting a new one.
  3. If you are still abroad, ask your local Italian consulate whether you can request the tax code there, to avoid a trip to Italy.
  4. Check your mail after applying: the card is sent out automatically, so there is no need to go back to the counter to collect it.
  5. If you cannot apply in person, consider a written proxy to a relative or acquaintance in Italy before turning to a paid intermediary.

Frequently asked questions

Is the tax code for a foreign citizen really always free?

Yes. None of the available procedures — through the immigration office, a police headquarters or a local Revenue Agency office — involves a payment. This applies both to the first issuance and to the provisional tax code some foreign citizens receive while waiting for the final one.

Who issues the tax code to a non-EU citizen who has just arrived in Italy?

It depends on the reason for the stay. Anyone entering for dependent employment or family reunification receives it from the immigration office, first in provisional form and then in final form once the residence permit is issued. Anyone applying at a police headquarters for another type of permit gets the final tax code straight away.

Does an EU citizen follow the same procedure?

No, it is more direct. An EU citizen can request the tax code by submitting form AA4/8 and a valid identity document at a local Revenue Agency office, or at the Italian consulate in their home country, always at no cost.

Are there websites that charge for obtaining a tax code?

Yes, and they are the main source of expense linked to this procedure. Some private services, often aimed at people still abroad or at tourists, offer to obtain the tax code for a fee. The document remains obtainable for free by applying directly to the Revenue Agency or the relevant Italian consulate.

What happens if two people generate the same tax code?

The immigration office or the police headquarters issue a provisional numeric tax code and direct the person to a Revenue Agency office, which assigns the final tax code after a check. This extra step also involves no cost.

Can an unaccompanied foreign minor get a tax code?

Yes. In this case the Revenue Agency assigns it, at the request of the healthcare facility responsible for registering the minor with the National Health Service, which then communicates the tax code to whoever holds parental responsibility or to the facility caring for the minor.

Sources and methodology

How we worked it out

The starting fact — no fee for issuing the tax code — was checked against two separate institutional sources: the tax code page of the Italian Consulate General in Charleroi, which states explicitly that the document 'is issued free of charge,' and the Revenue Agency's own official brochure for foreign citizens, which walks through every issuing procedure — non-EU, EU, unaccompanied minors, asylum seekers, Ukrainian refugees — without ever stating an amount to pay in any case. The absence of any reference to a cost in a document entirely devoted to the procedure, published by the very body that issues the tax code, was treated as confirmation rather than as missing information. No estimate was made for private paid services, because no official source quantifies how common they are or what they typically charge.

Why this confidence level

High confidence: the service's free status is stated explicitly by an official consular source and confirmed by the complete absence of any cost reference in the Revenue Agency's own brochure for foreign citizens, a document that details every category of applicant. No institutional source was found stating an amount to pay, in any of the procedures involved.

  1. States explicitly that the tax code is issued free of charge

    Codice fiscale (opens in a new tab)

    Ministero degli Affari Esteri e della Cooperazione Internazionale — Consolato Generale d'Italia a Charleroi · Public authority · Verified on 29 July 2026

    Official consular page checked on 29 July 2026: the phrase 'it is issued free of charge and, once generated and assigned, has no expiration' is quoted verbatim.

    Authority5/5

  2. Official brochure describing every issuing procedure for foreign citizens without ever mentioning a cost

    Codice fiscale stranieri (opens in a new tab)

    Agenzia delle Entrate · Public authority · Verified on 29 July 2026

    Document published by the Revenue Agency and checked on 29 July 2026: it covers non-EU citizens, EU citizens, unaccompanied minors, asylum seekers and Ukrainian refugees, without citing an amount to pay anywhere.

    Authority5/5

Read the methodology

Revision history

First published on 29 July 2026: the service's free status verified against the Italian Consulate General in Charleroi's page and the Revenue Agency's official brochure for foreign citizens.

Published on
29 July 2026
Last verified
29 July 2026
Next review
29 October 2026

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