A quarter of remittances abroad leave from Rome and Milan
The 8.6 billion sent by foreigners to Italia exceeds public development aid
Key points
Money sent from immigrants to Italy to their countries of origin exceeds the total expenditure of the Italian State for international development cooperation, which in 2025 was 6.7 billion and in 2026 will be 6.56 billion. In 2025, the volume of remittances sent from Italia was 8.6 billion, a slight increase compared to 2024 (+3%). Bangladesh is confirmed as the first destination, with 1.7 billion remittances, 19.6% of the total. It is followed by India and Morocco, with just under 600 million. These are some of the results of the Leone Moressa Foundation's elaborations on the data published by the Bank of Italia, anticipated in Monday's Sole 24 Ore.
According to UN and World Bank estimates, migrants have sent more than USD 5 trillion to low- and middle-income countries over the past decade, in many cases exceeding official development assistance flows and with amounts comparable, in some contexts, to foreign direct investment.
"Remittances," notes Enrico Di Pasquale, researcher at the Leone Moressa Foundation, "are characterised by a strong stability and resilience: even during the Covid 19 pandemic, they suffered a smaller contraction than other financial flows, confirming themselves as a reliable source of income for millions of households.
The numbers
The Bank of Italy data monitor remittances that pass through formal channels, i.e. money transfers abroad via payment institutions or other authorised intermediaries, without passing through accounts in the name of the originator or beneficiary. Considering also informal flows (e.g. those arriving at their destination in the form of cash accompanying the traveller or entrusted to trusted persons), it is estimated that the actual total volume of remittances from Italia may range between 9.9 and 12.5 billion.
More than a fifth of the remittances come from Lombardy (1.9 billion). The second region is Lazio, with 1.4 billion. Emilia-Romagna follows, with just over 800 million sent in 2025. A quarter of the total resources come from Rome (1.19 billion) and Milan (944 million). Naples and Turin follow, with 489 and 263 million respectively.
