Extra-EU carers, babysitters and domestic helpers: more channels for recruitment

Under this system, when families need an assistant, they will be able to hire him or her by applying for a nulla osta at the Single Desk for Immigration through the employers' associations that sign the Ccnl for the domestic sector or through an employment agency. The nulla osta will not be issued automatically, but after the Labour Inspectorate has checked the employer's income requirements and compliance with the recruitment procedures.

For 12 months, the worker may only work in family care, and changes of employer during this period must be authorised by the territorial labour inspectorates.

"The mediation of the employers' associations worked this year," explains Assindatcolf president Andrea Zini. "We hope that the entry of domestic workers without going through the click day can be applied to the entire sector, including baby sitters, domestic helpers and carers in general. A knot to be resolved is that of the time required to issue the nulla osta: for applications submitted since February and relating to the 2025 extra quota, there are cities such as Milan and Rome where they have not yet arrived'.

According to Lorenzo Gasparrini, secretary general of Domina, the national association of families of domestic employers, 'the overcoming of the click day meets the needs of families. It is not easy, in fact, to predict when an assistant will be needed for an elderly person. We hope,' he adds, 'that the labour inspectorates' checks can be carried out quickly, even if it is necessary to terminate the employment relationship before the 12-month deadline. In the domestic sector there is in fact the possibility of termination by the employer if the chosen assistant does not turn out to be the right person'.

Outside of assistance to the elderly and disabled, for example for babysitters and domestic helpers (who often take care of the home and domestic tasks even at the service of the elderly, although they are not full-time carers), the channel of the three-year flows decree remains open: the Prime Minister's Decree for the three-year period 2026-2028, preliminarily approved by the government on 30 June, accepts the requests presented by the sector, and provides for 13,600 posts for 2026, 14,000 for 2027 and 14,200 posts for 2028. The relevant click day will be 18 February 2026. But like the decree-law on flows, this Dpcm also awaits publication in the Official Gazette.