Non-EU work, first yes to the Flussi Decree. Baby sitters for small children also among the 10,000 out-of-quota entries

Today the Chamber of Deputies gave the green light to the Flux Decree, originally approved by the Council of Ministers on 4 September and then returned to the CDM on 2 October. The text now goes to the Senate for final conversion into law, completing the framework according to the schedule of 500,000 admissions in the three-year period 2026-2028 defined by the Dpcm already published in the Official Gazette. In twelve articles, the measure pursues several objectives: it renders structural the mechanism of the pre-compilation of applications on the Ali portal of the Ministry of the Interior; it lengthens the time for the issuance of the nulla osta and the stipulation of the residence contract for work reasons; it renews on an experimental basis for 2026-2028 the out-of-quota channel for 10 thousand family and social-health assistants, also including baby sitters for children up to 6 years; it strengthens controls and action to counteract the farm labour market and labour exploitation in agriculture.

In the first article, the Law Decree raises from seven to 15 days the deadline within which, after the issue of the nulla osta, the employer must proceed with the confirmation of the application, on which the issue of the entry visa depends. Also increased from eight to 15 days the term, which starts from the date of entry of the worker into Italy, is to stipulate the contract of stay for subordinate work, from which the issue of the residence permit depends. All the steps - confirmation of the nulla osta, contract and any documentation to be attached - can be carried out through the employers' organisations that are representative at national level or through certain categories of professionals (labour consultants, lawyers, accountants and accounting experts). For the permit for subordinate work there are 60 days for the decision on the nulla osta; twenty for seasonal work.

The anti-abuse and infiltration of organised crime crackdown, on which the government has shone a spotlight both with the complaint to the National Anti-Mafia Prosecutor's Office presented by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in June 2024 and by introducing the pre-filling of applications, is strengthened. By amending the Consolidation Act on Immigration, the decree law requires administrations to carry out checks on the veracity of statements provided by employers for the issuance of work authorisation in special cases outside the quotas and for highly qualified workers (such as managers, university lecturers and professors, translators and interpreters, artists, corresponding journalists, digital nomads and remote workers from outside the EU, nurses, doctors accompanying sports delegations for competitive events), by the organisers of volunteer programmes and research institutes, and by host institutions for the purpose of issuing intra-corporate transfer authorisation to foreigners holding an ICT residence permit issued by another State. In the event that the self-certifications or declarations in lieu of affidavit reveal "flaws" or omissions that can be detected ex officio, the official in charge of receiving the documentation notifies the interested party that he must regularise or complete the documentation.

In addition to bringing the pre-filling phase of applications and the ceiling of a maximum of three applications for each individual employer into full swing, a provision added to the Law Decree during its examination in committee at the Chamber of Deputies provides that the National Labour Inspectorate can also carry out the inspections falling within its competence in advance. This is in addition to the non-sampling checks conducted on all pre-filled applications through the interoperability between the Viminale's IT system and the services of Unioncamere, Agenzia delle Entrate, Inps and Agid.

The measure also intervenes on the procedures for foreigners who have attended a training course in their countries of origin: a maximum term of 30 days is introduced for the issuance of the work authorisation from the moment the application is submitted in their names, and the requirement that the application for an entry visa must be accompanied by the employer's confirmation of willingness to hire is eliminated. The Ministry of Labour is required to inform the Interior and the Farnesina of the identities of course participants within seven days of the start of the courses in the country of origin and to provide those of employers interested in hiring at the end. With an amendment passed in committee, the deadline for submitting an application when education and training activities abroad have been completed has been extended from six to 12 months on an experimental basis until 31 December 2027.