All I Wanted for Christmas Was Italy's Digital Nomad Visa
And I got it!
This is my first time offering a voice over—let me know if it’s something you like. Two warnings: there is a slight delay before it starts and also a garbled point that I couldn’t figure out how to fix as this is my first time using this, but in the garbled part I am saying that the Italian woman was “shocked, then delighted.”
A few months ago CNN ran a story that ricocheted around the Internet about a California woman who had gotten the elusive digital nomad visa to live in Italy as a remote worker. ‘Nothing less than a miracle’: How one California woman snagged Italy’s new digital nomad visa, the CNN headline taunted those of us who dream of living la dolce vita.1
The Italian government announced this new visa in mid-2022 and finally launched the program in April of 2024 but, as CNN reported, even in October of 2024 many "would-be movers say that there is so little information about the visa out there, they are beginning to doubt it even exists."
This California woman's story gave everyone hope.
Including me.
Getting this visa had been my plan since buying land in Italy in late 2023 where I planned to make a new life. But as time ticked on, it was hard to figure out precisely what would be required to obtain said visa. Information was scarce. I had one friend who had applied but got nowhere. She was unable to get any clear guidance even when she physically visited the consulate.
Without a visa, I was still able to stay in Italy, but with the clock ticking.2