How I became the first Digital Nomad in Italy from the U.K.

After years of dreaming a seemingly impossible dream, on Monday 16th September 2024, I discovered I had become one of the first Italian Digital Nomads from the U.K. as my brand new visa got delivered.

It truly has been an incredible journey to get here, so I will share with you all of the practical bits and pieces (scroll to the bottom of the page), as well as the bit of magic that got added in as I manifested my dream life...

Why Italy?

For many years, we have hosted foreign students at our home in the U.K. who choose to stay with a host family whilst they study English. It's great fun and we've had the pleasure of hosting students from around the world, including Italy. I vividly remember one conversation I had with an Italian teenage boy one Summer who summed it up perfectly, "we know we live in a beautiful country, speak a beautiful language and eat beautiful food".

Rome happened to be mine and David's first ever trip abroad together back in 2016 and we had the most incredible time (imagine experiencing Rome with no queues or crowds!).

But we didn't really think about it again until June 2018, when we hosted a student called Riccardo from Como, Italy. We never host students on their own (we normally host four at a time) but there was something about this person that made us say 'yes' (for those following the intuitive threads of how this all came to be, this was the first important 'yes'). He was, and still is, one of the most incredible people we have ever met and his sheer love and passion for Italy meant we booked a holiday to Sicily in August of that year.

I fell in love with everything about Italy.

The amazing market selling the freshest, ripest fruit and vegetables every day, the climate, the friendliness and generosity of the people, the slower pace of life, the focus on 'la dolce vita', the history and culture...

In November 2018, David took his daughter to Milan for her birthday, and when Riccardo saw this on social media, he and his Mum made the trip from Como to Milan to meet David and Jessica and take them for the best Tiramisu overlooking the Duomo. It was truly heartwarming to experience the continued generosity of Riccardo (and meet his amazing Mum, of course!).

In August 2019, we enjoyed our first holiday to Lake Como. I will never forget arriving in darkness at our Air BnB, glimpsing the twinkling lights all around us, to awake in the morning surrounded by the most breathtaking mountains and lake! We live by the sea in Devon in the U.K., but nothing is quite like the experience of mountains reaching high above one of the largest lakes in Italy. Riccardo and his family invited us to their home for a fabulous meal and I was overwhelmed with emotion at how I could feel so 'at home' and connected with people who I had barely met or could speak the language of.

(On a side note, I secretly arranged to take us all paragliding over Lake Como and I highly recommend it!)

Then the global pandemic happened. But this is where the dream really started to come alive for us.

We spent hours researching properties for sale and the different regions to see where we'd like to live. We dreamt of the house and land we'd love to own and what our life would look like day to day. We watched tons of YouTube videos to learn as much as we could and immerse ourselves in Italy. As I took my daily dog walks, I would imagine I was walking through the Italian cobbled streets with the mountains as the backdrop. We began to learn the language and David started cooking fresh pasta and the most delicious Italian meals.

In March 2022, we flew into Milan and met Riccardo for lunch before taking the train to Florence. I'm not a city person, but I loved Florence from the moment I stepped foot off the train. It's like time has stood still there with every street seeped in history and beauty. And the food! Oh my! (I know I live in the north of Italy now but Tuscany still has the best food in my opinion!) :)

Now, given that our original dream was for a vineyard in Tuscany, I signed David up to a website called Workaway where hosts all over the world invite you to stay in their home (with food and board included) in exchange for a few hours of work each day. Initially, we thought it was a great way to get some experience working on a vineyard and get a feel for if it's something we'd like.

As it happens, all of the vineyard hosts were full, but a guy called Mark reached out to David to invite him to help restore and work on some boats in Italy. David has had a long and varied career wearing many different hats, one of them being a laminator at Princess Yachts. It's a job he was very good at, but it's not a job he particularly enjoyed (or would want to do again). Not feeling greatly enthused at the prospect, David responded and asked where Mark was in Italy; 'Menaggio, Lake Como'. 'I'm in' replied David. (This was to become yet another pivotal 'yes' in our journey here, see why a bit later.)

David had the most amazing time getting a real feel for daily life in Italy, as well as meeting Riccardo and watching him play football in Como.

I flew out to join him at Mark's house for his last weekend, where we were treated to a trip into Switzerland (I honestly felt like I had entered into The Sound of Music) and we enjoyed our first outing on Mark's boat (that David had been working on) meeting new friends and discovering another lake- Lugano.

After meeting Riccardo and his family for lunch near their home we headed down to Soriano nel Cimino, Lazio where we viewed properties in nearby Caprese Michelangelo (birthplace of Michelangelo). We were blown away by what we could buy out there for the money, and whilst we had no means to purchase or move right then, it strengthened the flame of desire even more.

In July 2022, we managed to get the whole family together and spent a week in a beautiful villa in Tuscany. The days spent in the pool, soaking up the sunshine and sharing meals together, was a special experience and gave us all an insight into what life in Italy could be like. David went onto another Workaway just south of Milan (Claire and Andrea) with his son-in-law, and I carried on to Bologna and Venice with my step-son and step-daughter before flying home.

At this point we had become close friends with Ricky and he met David in Milan where they both spent a day exploring Vienna before flying to Portugal where we spent a week on holiday together.

In September 2022, David returned to Claire and Andrea's before heading back to Lake Como to help Mark work on the boats. It's important to note here, that not only did the Workaway experience provide us with lifelong friends, but it also gave David a real lived experience of daily life in Italy. E.g. going to the DIY store, grocery shopping etc. We were never 'rose tinted' about life in Italy, we were very aware of the issues and ensured we were as well informed as possible, but I don't think there's any substitute for real lived experience in a place.

In March 2023, we flew to Venice and had our first experience of the Dolomites (an area I can't wait to visit again and do some hiking!). I love Venice (David isn't so keen), but it is a unique place and well worth exploring (although avoid the tourist traps). We caught the train to Florence, where I did the half-marathon, and we carried on our exploration of Tuscany with a visit to Lucca (it's up there with Florence for me and an absolute must-see!).

In May 2023, David stayed with Mark for the whole month doing some major repairs on one of his boats, and I was fortunate enough to join them for the last week as we explored more of the local area visiting the Balcone d'Italia (Balcony of Italy) and Villa Carlotta (both absolutely breathtaking).

In August 2023, David and I stayed at Hotel Merloni, Lake Como, enjoying time on Lake Lugano courtesy of Mark and his boat as well as our first experience of one of the stunning Swiss train journeys, taking the Bernina Express from Tirano, Italy to St. Moritz, Switzerland and back. An absolute must-do at least once in your life and it is very accessible from the north of Lake Como.

I also got to experience another desire coming true whilst visiting Riccardo's family boutique. I really don't enjoy shopping, and I have often dreamt about being able to walk into a boutique and have someone pick out clothes for me that I just try on without having to trawl through stuff I don't even know how to put together. And Leila (Ricky's Mum) gave me that experience. She got some prosecco and snacks and picked out perfect outfits for me. It was magical and I am eternally grateful for their love, kindness and patience with my almost non-existent Italian!

Roll on February 2024, and I set off on my biggest adventure yet. Seven weeks in the van driving through France and Italy with my two dogs and David. Oh, and with the Rome Marathon thrown in for good measure and my parents flying into Rome to meet us for their first experience of Italy. I share more about that here, so all I will say about it, is that it was during this trip as I was sat in the van overlooking Lake Lugano at the beautiful Camping Darna, that I first heard the Digital Nomad Visa for Italy had been released...

The announcement came totally out of the blue and shocked Italian lawyers who didn't believe it would ever be fully released. We had explored the Digital Nomad Visa in other countries such as Spain, Portugal and France, but it just didn't click. Ultimately, we wanted to live in Italy.

As you can imagine, as soon as I returned back to the U.K. I started working on securing a visa appointment and all the information that was required.

The Visa Process

Requirements do change so always check the latest most up-to-date guidelines directly with the consulate https://conslondra.esteri.it/en/servizi-consolari-e-visti/servizi-per-il-cittadino-straniero/visti/digital-nomad-visa-for-self-employed-only/

1. I applied for my visa appointment at the London office via VFS- https://visa.vfsglobal.com/gbr/en/ita/login

You'll need to set up an account with them and book an appointment for a National Visa D- Long Stay. They release appointments sporadically so once you have an account, you will have to keep checking the system for available appointments. I did get an appointment booked within a week for approximately four weeks time.

2. I applied for a second passport as I needed to still travel whilst my visa application was being processed (they hold your passport for processing). This was straight forward and only took a couple of weeks to do.

3. I found an apartment to rent on Idealista which was only about 1km up the road from where Mark lives near Menaggio, Lake Como. I contacted the landlord, as did Mark, and he arranged a viewing for first thing the following Saturday. With us on Facetime, Mark showed us around and then asked 'do you want it?'. We said, 'you're there and we trust you, so if you think it's good, we'll take it!'. Here's one of the points where our journey here is significant. The landlord had lots of viewings booked that day, but let us have the apartment. I believe this was down to him meeting Mark and them really getting along.

Here's the thing, you need a registered lease for the visa application, which means renting somewhere you ultimately won't be able to live in full-time if the visa doesn't come through. It's a risk but one that can't be avoided from what I understand.

We got lucky. It's a private landlord (who is lovely, we all went for beers when I moved in!) so we didn't have agency fees to pay, he sorts out all the utilities and bills me quarterly so I don't have lots of companies to deal with, and he lets us use his internet for €12 per month.

4. This is a list of all the documents I submitted at my visa appointment.

I didn't want there to be any room for error or a reason for them to deny a visa so I made sure I ticked all of the boxes.

When you attend the VFS centre, they check your appointment letter and send you to the waiting area for the country you are applying to. My appointment was at 1.30pm, I entered the visa centre at 1.20pm, I was seen at 1.30pm and I was out by 1.40pm. A quick and simple process.

My appointment was on 4th July and I put my travel date as 13th August. The processing time is anything from 14-120 days so I knew I wouldn't likely have my visa by 13th August. However, I had schengen time remaining so I was prepared to stay in Italy until that ran out, or my visa was granted.

5. On 14th August I received an email from VFS requesting further information. In addition to the documents already submitted, they wanted:

• a CIMEA declaration of my qualifications

• a cover letter

• proof that my lease was registered

The CIMEA declaration proved impossible as the whole website was closed until 8th September. I submitted a very passionate and heartfelt cover letter along with my lease registration and pleaded for an extension due to CIMEA being closed, but secretly hoping that I had provided enough information at this stage to be granted the visa.

6. On Thursday 12th September I received a message from DX Express that my delivery from VF services would be delivered tomorrow. So I knew it was a delivery from the visa office but no idea what. With me still being in Italy at this stage, I ensured there was someone in to accept the delivery. However, it was missed and the earliest I coule reschedule it was Monday. My mind wanted to keep playing out the 'what if's' but ultimately at this stage, what was done was done, it was just a bit more waiting.

Then on Monday, I received a call from my Mum as she opened the envelope with my passport AND visa inside!

I honestly felt like my heart was going to explode right out of my chest!

Keep In Touch:

I hope that this has been both informative and inspiring for your journey to Italy or life as a Digital Nomad.

If you'd like to know more or have any questions, please drop me an email to hello@debsthorpe.com

I will be documenting life here in a new Blog series and YouTube series called 'Dolce Vita Diaries' and I would love to stay connected.

Join me on YouTube here.

Follow more of my daily life and general Italian inspo on Instagram here and Facebook here.

And don't forget to sign up to my weekly newsletter for all the behind-the-scenes info and inspiration:

Points to Note:

I can only speak from my experience, and this being my first ever visa application which I submitted and received with no professional help...

My sense is that they want:

* Qualified professionals who are experienced in their field (I had six years of qualifications and twenty years experience)

*People who are committed to Italy (which I understand is a bit of a juxtaposition of 'digital nomad') and who understand the culture, history and country

*The registered lease is important. This is where the landlord submits your lease to the local commune and pays tax on it.

*Obviously, meeting the income requirement and being able to evidence your ability to be self-financing

Costs Involved:

Visa Application Fee (including postage to be sent the visa) =£135

Health Insurance (with Cigna Healthcare) =£80 per month

One Way Travel via Le Shuttle (including David and my two dogs) =£135

Animal Health Certificate (AHConline) =£129

Rental Deposit =€1500

Monthly Rent =€500

Me and Bailey on moving in day to our home in Italy!

Additional Info:

I've now been living in Italy for around 6 weeks and I have managed to:

*Obtain my codice fiscale (which is your tax code needed for everything in Italy)

*Open an Italian bank account

*Buy an Italian SIM card

*Set up accounts with CarreFour and Iperal (our local supermarkets)

So I will guide you through that process in my next blog post :)

Next challenge, getting David his visa as my husband!