Documents from your landlord
The papers only the flat's owner can give you, for residence, the housing-suitability certificate your family's visas need, and the 48-hour hosting declaration.
Checked November 2026 · rules change, so confirm fees and deadlines on the linked official pages
Why the landlord matters
Four procedures depend on papers only the owner of your flat can give you: registering residence, the housing-suitability certificate (idoneità alloggiativa) needed to bring family, the police hosting declaration, and your permit applications and renewals. Ask for everything below before you sign. A landlord who won't provide them can block your family's visas for months.
The landlord's document checklist
| Document | What it is | Needed for |
|---|---|---|
| Registered rental contract + registration receipt | The lease and the Agenzia delle Entrate receipt (RLI form, or the cedolare secca option), registered within 30 days | Residence, idoneità, permit, family visas |
| Planimetria catastale | The official floor plan from the land registry, matching the flat as it is today | Idoneità alloggiativa |
| Visura catastale | Land-registry extract: owner, category, size. Anyone can get it for a few euros | Idoneità; checking who really owns the flat |
| Owner's ID (copy) and tax code | Front and back of the owner's identity card or passport | Consent letters, hosting declaration |
| Dichiarazione di assenso | Signed letter: the owner agrees that you and named family members live in the flat and register residence there | Family reunification; residence for anyone not named on the lease |
| Certificati di conformità impianti | Electrical and gas installation certificates (DM 37/2008), or a dichiarazione di rispondenza for older systems | Idoneità alloggiativa |
| Libretto della caldaia | Boiler booklet with the latest service and flue-gas check, if the flat has its own boiler | Idoneità; safety |
| APE | Energy performance certificate; by law it must be given to the tenant with the contract | Contract; sometimes idoneità |
| Dichiarazione di ospitalità / cessione di fabbricato | Notice to the police that a non-EU citizen lives in the flat (see below) | Legal requirement; permit files |
Exact lists vary by procedure and Municipio; check the current forms on the Comune di Milano site before applying.
Housing suitability certificate (idoneità alloggiativa)
To bring a spouse, children or parents, the Prefettura needs proof your home is big enough and healthy. In Milan the Comune issues an attestazione di idoneità abitativa, handled by the Municipio where the flat is (find it on the Comune's Geoportale).
- You submit: the request form, your ID and permit, the registered contract, the floor plan, system certificates where asked, two €16 marche da bollo, and a delegation form if someone applies for you.
- Applications are handled in order of arrival, with no urgent procedure. Apply as soon as the lease is registered.
- Some flats, including those under 28.8 m², need an inspection or a technician's hygiene report. Private technical studios prepare the whole file for about €180–350 plus VAT.
| People living there | Minimum usable floor area |
|---|---|
| 1 | 14 m² |
| 2 | 28 m² |
| 3 | 42 m² |
| 4 | 56 m² |
| 5 | 66 m² |
| 6 | 76 m² |
National health standard (DM 5 July 1975): 14 m² each for the first four people, 10 m² for each one after. Usable area excludes walls, balconies and cellars. Bedrooms need at least 9 m² for one person and 14 m² for two, with an opening window. Count your family before choosing a flat.
Hosting declaration within 48 hours
- Anyone who gives housing to a non-EU citizen, even a relative, must file a dichiarazione di ospitalità (also called cessione di fabbricato) within 48 hours of their arrival.
- As a tenant, your landlord usually files it for you. When your spouse or parents arrive and live with you, you file it for them.
- Attach a copy of your ID, the guest's passport and the registered contract. Get it stamped at the Comune, local police or a Commissariato, then send it to the Questura's immigration office by PEC, registered letter or in person.
- Missing it can bring a fine of €500–3,500, and Questura files often ask for a copy.
Registering family residence
- Once family arrive on their visas, register them at the Anagrafe at your address with a dichiarazione di residenza. Bring their passports, permits or post-office receipts, and apostilled, translated marriage and birth certificates so they are recorded as your family.
- If a family member isn't named on the lease, the Anagrafe can ask for the owner's consent letter and ID.
- A local police officer will visit to confirm everyone lives there. Make sure names are on the doorbell and letterbox.
- Residence then unlocks each person's health card, ID card and school enrolment.