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Italy: Seeking Immigration Advice:
I'd second the suggestion of a VERY good immigration lawyer.
If it was me, I'd avoid trying to asylum in Italy. The paperwork nightmare would be terrible. And the foreign nationals from north Africa have a tough enough time finding work, let alone Italians are having a hard time finding work. Our neighbor (Italian) has been trying for over a year. She's thinking of leaving Italy to find work.
If you had the money to do the Netherlands business idea, I'd just stay at hostels until I could find/make more $ for a better place to stay....
Italy: Automobile Registration/Insurance:
Those toll roads hit you hard. That's why we take the train, even though we have a car here. Sounds like you'll need to get an Italian one. Test is in Italian. Used to be offered in English, too, but that stopped as far as I know.
Your best option is the reciprocity with Qatar.
License and registration my husband said takes many visits/wait and is expensive. I stayed home with the kids!
Make sure you understand in the insurance if what you are buying is covering just you the driver or just your car or others driving your car. It wasn't like the US where you insure the car and anyone who drives in it because you own the car. Was really confusing and we had to have someone translate for us while we looked at the policies. Good luck!
Italy: Christmas in Tuscany:
If you're really thinking Tuscany ---Go to Sienna area and also to Pisa. Pisa is super touristy, but a quick stop just to climb up the tower is fun. Schedule the tower climb online before you get there or the wait is hours. If you have kids with you, they have to be a certain age or height - don't remember.
Tuscany has lots of farming and the the vineyards. Can tour a vineyard. Or stay at an agritourismo. Kinda like a bed and breakfast at a farm/vineyard. Tuscany's an Italian state just like Piedmont and Puglia. Like US states -Iowa or Ohio. There's the seaside, too. If you go north a bit there's Cinqueterra. Gorgeous walking trails along the seaside. We went on a sunny day in November and we took off our jackets walking there.
All this is easy via train. Parking is always difficult.
Winter is a bit rainy & chilly, but not cold like the northern states in the US.
Have fun!
Italy: Currency exchange+ Italy:
We've had friends use travelers checks from the USA to open an account in Italia. We had issues opening an account due to we had to have proof of residence - signed lease and our work permit. They said it was because we were US citizens and not EU. Check if your bank has a partner branch or suboffice in Italy. Would be much, much easier.
Italy: Getting Started:
Very smart to do a long term rental! Too many people try to go buy something and not know the area.
Real estate rental offices are each separate. So you have to go through each one to see what listings they have. Each agent even within that office can have his/her own listings within the office. No MLS type thing that lists all available for any agency at one time.
Word of mouth of a good agent in that area would be worth a lot. I'm in Torino - up north, so don't know offices down there, seen many technocasa listings online, maybe have an office where you are looking.
Italy: Looking for work in Alghero, Sardinia:
Look up your local foreigners club - ie. international women's club, FAWCO, sorts of groups for ideas of where other foreign nationals have found work. Teaching English is usually most people's first thought but there's many things. Could offer to help older ones do their shopping. Be a tutor once you have some Italian. Also try churches - many have English learning classes you could help with and maybe teach in.
Also, try to learn any Italian you can before you go. It will really, really help. Even just tourist Italian so you can communicate with your husband to be's new work friends/spouses/significant others. Helps you feel settled sooner.
Italy: Expat Options:
Bringing kids with you, I'd look toward cities that have an International School or school with an IB (international baculaureate?) program. The US and Italian state schools don't mesh as well after you return to the US - as other expats have told us after their return.
Check other US companies that have offices over there. GM, Boeing, Chrysler......Intessa San Paulo is a big bank here in Torino.
We had to be sponsored by the company my husband works for (a USA division of FIAT) to get a work permit (nulla osta) to come work in Torino. Hopefully your company has offices over there or some kind of connections that could give you an "in." Most expats we know got to Italy due to the option to transfer there with their current company to do a specific job for a specific time frame. We're here on a 2 year contract. We hear of many more younger Italians or other foreign nationals doing consultant-type (business, computer) work now than years back. Shorter terms (a year or 2) than when an Italian company hires an Italian, then the person has a job there until they retire if they want it....
Best wishes!
Italy: Expat in Sicily:
Thanks for this, Tom. I love recommendations. I'll look for it. I'm reading Stolen Figs by Mark Rotella. Set in Calabria. A man takes his father to meet relatives still living there. Not done yet...good so far.
Italy: Renting or Buying a Home in Italy:
If you are moving around the Torino are - I'd call Relocation Overseas -- info@relocationoverseas.it
Judy Stein
Judy is an American who lives permanently in Torino and owns the business.
An agency that I would avoid is HomeBase - Valter and friends. We had to go through them for work. A big mistake. I'd met Judy through the International Women's Club of Torino. Wish I'd known about her when I came.
Seriously, take a year to rent. Even from one of the vacation rental people to find out what neighborhoods are good and where you find you spend most of your time. If you want to drive and live outside the citta or no buy a car at all and live in town. Homes are expensive and much harder (paperwork) for non-EU citizens.
Italy: Health Care in Italy:
My experience in northern Italy (Torino) is you can easily access a doctor, just ask around. We needed one for a child before we got our residency. Cost us 100E for the visit. Was a friend of a friend (which is the best way to do most things in Italia:)
Prescriptions are cheap and doctor visits are free when you have a health care card (after you get your residency). What we considered over the counter medications are behind the counter at the pharmacy.
You are able to pick a doctor that's in your zone of town. Ask around to find out a good one. We were told of one that spoke English well. Other friends have been real frustrated trying to explain the problem when either the receptionist or doctor does not speak English well. Take a fluent friend with you.
You can make appointments. Getting the receptionist to understand your broken Italian over the phone to make one is another story:) I've come when I thought she said and it was closed. Never have been able to get a real schedule.
You can have private health insurance through your employer. Not many we know use the private much. More of a just in case. The health plans we can get thru work do not include dental or vision....lots of friends told us to go to Turkey for dental. Didn't understand that one. North American expats we know do their dental on visits back unless an emergency. One friend had issues with 2 dentists just wanting to pull teeth vs. try to salvage the tooth with crowns or bridges.
We've found the philosophy of pain management and child immunizations different to our midwestern US upbringing. Epidurals weren't the norm in child birth.
There can be really long waits if you come in an 1st. come 1st. hours at a regular doctor. My kids hate that. But some days when a kid's sick, there aren't appointments. My personal frustration was when my doctor wanted me to see a specialist. Had to go to a hospital, wait an hour, get an appointment time to come back in a few weeks. Then, when came back it was just an appointment DAY, not an appointment TIME. Saw the dr. many hours later & went home with another prescription....was a hard day to function on "Italian time" vs. "get in/get out/get" it done American style. Less patience when you don't feel good....
Our main healthcare difficulty has been special education services for autism. Our work told us there were services available at the hospital. Was somehow not what we told them we needed. Pretty non-existent for services that are easy to find in the US. Some is cultural differences for those with disabilities here. Many teachers have had no training in it either. Gotten to share lots with them. Hopefully we all will learn from it.
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