School enrolment in Italy – nurseries, state schools, international schools and university fees
Last updated 25 September 2026Rules checked every MondayOfficial sourcesSources & methodology →
School enrolment in Italy is open to every child, whatever their papers, and it can happen in the middle of the year. Here is how the system works from nursery to university, what changed for 2026 and what places, bonuses and degrees cost.
School enrolment in Italy follows the same procedure for your children as for Italian ones, and foreign minors have a right to education whatever their residence status. From 2026, one application for the nursery bonus from INPS (the national social security institute) lasts until the August of the year your child turns three. Since 2025/26, a dedicated Italian teacher can be assigned to classes with many new arrivals. And from 2026/27, a student visa requires proof of €10,179.85 a year.
How does the Italian school system work?
Schooling is compulsory for ten years, from 6 to 16 – a national rule. After that, every young person has a right and duty to education or training for at least 12 years in total, or until a three-year vocational qualification by 18. Nothing is compulsory before six, and nurseries are run by each comune (municipality), so places, fees and rules differ locally.
| Stage | Ages or length | Compulsory? |
|---|---|---|
| Nido (nursery) | 3–36 months | No – run by the comune |
| Scuola dell'infanzia (preschool) | 3–6 | No |
| Scuola primaria (primary) | 6–11 | Yes |
| Scuola secondaria di primo grado (lower secondary) | 11–14 | Yes |
| Upper secondary: liceo, istituto tecnico or istituto professionale | 14–19 | Until 16 |
| IeFP vocational courses, instead of upper secondary | 3 or 4 years | Run by the regions, so the offer differs |
Source: the Ministry of Education and Merit (MIM), read 23 September 2026.
You can meet the obligation at a state school or a scuola paritaria (recognised private school). A non-recognised school or home education (istruzione parentale) is possible, but your child must then pass eligibility exams, among other conditions. State schools charge taxes only in the last two years of upper secondary – €6.04 to enrol, €15.13 for attendance, €12.09 for exams and €15.13 for the diploma – and families with an ISEE of €20,000 or less are exempt. The ISEE is the household means-test indicator you get by filing a DSU declaration with INPS. Other school contributions are voluntary.
Nurseries in Italy: places, fees and the nursery bonus
There is no general legal right to a nido place: municipal places go by ranking, and fees follow your ISEE. In Rome, 2026/27 applications ran online from 24 February to 30 March 2026 for children born between 1 January 2024 and 31 May 2026, ranked by points, then lowest ISEE. Milan's window ran from 4 to 25 February 2026 and required registration in the city's population register (residenza anagrafica), with special rules for families moving in.
| Rome, 10 hours a day (2026/27) | Milan (2025/26, latest table) | |
|---|---|---|
| Free | ISEE up to €5,000 | ISEE up to €6,500 |
| Examples a month | €53.60 (ISEE €5,000–10,000); €266.79 (€20,000–25,000); €450 (€35,000–40,000) | €111.30 (€6,500–12,500); €250.60 (€12,500–27,000) |
| Maximum a month | €600: ISEE above €50,000, or none | €502.20: ISEE above €27,000, or none |
| Also | The September fee is a non-refundable enrolment fee | Enrolment fee €56.20; non-residents pay €669.35 a month |
Source: Roma Capitale and the Comune di Milano, read 23 September 2026.
If your child's compulsory vaccinations under Law 119/2017 are not in order, the preschool place lapses; Rome and Milan also require them for municipal nurseries.
The INPS nursery bonus (bonus asilo nido) pays towards fees at regionally authorised nurseries and similar services – monthly, for up to 11 months a year, never above the fee and not alongside the tax deduction for nursery fees. You qualify if you live in Italy and are an Italian or EU citizen, or a non-EU national with an EU long-term permit or another listed permit valid for at least six months, such as a Blue Card or work permit.
| Child born | Minors' ISEE | Nursery bonus, 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| From 1 January 2024 | Up to €40,000 | Up to €3,600 a year |
| From 1 January 2024 | Above €40,000, or none | €1,500 |
| Before 2024 | Up to €25,000.99 | €3,000 |
| Before 2024 | €25,001–40,000 | €2,500 |
| Before 2024 | Otherwise | €1,500 |
Source: INPS, read 23 September 2026.
Since 2026, one application covers every year until the August in which your child turns three; each year you pick the months and upload receipts by 30 April of the following year. Apply online or through a patronato (welfare advice centre).
How does school enrolment work in Italy?
First-year enrolment at state primary and secondary schools is online, on the ministry's Unica platform, with SPID, CIE, CNS or eIDAS. For 2026/27 the window ran from 13 January to 21 February 2026. Preschool enrolment is on a paper form at the school office, and the school re-enrols your child automatically in later years.
Children turning 6 by 31 December 2026 must be enrolled in primary school for 2026/27; those turning 6 by 30 April 2027 may start early.
Arriving mid-year or without documents
You need no residence permit to enrol your child, and you can apply at any time of the school year. Without a codice fiscale (tax code), go to the school in person: staff identify you and apply online, and your child gets a provisional code. With incomplete documents, your child is enrolled con riserva (provisionally).
Your child normally joins the class matching their age, unless the collegio dei docenti (teachers' board) decides otherwise. Children with refugee or subsidiary protection and unaccompanied minors study on the same terms as Italians. Since 2025/26, a dedicated Italian teacher (class A-23) can be assigned where newly arrived pupils without A2 Italian make up at least 20 per cent of a class.
International schools and foreign qualifications
A foreign school in Italy must be recognised by its own state and authorised by Italy; ask each school about fees and the diplomas it awards. Italian citizens returning with children schooled abroad need a nulla osta (clearance) from the Ministry of Education and Merit for them to continue at a foreign school here, requested before lessons start.
For a foreign secondary diploma, the local ufficio scolastico territoriale (school office) can grant equipollenza (equivalence). A foreign degree has no legal value in Italy until an Italian university recognises it, which takes up to 90 days.
University in Italy: admission, fees and student visas
After the upper-secondary state exam come universities, AFAM institutions (art, music and dance) and ITS Academies; some courses have limited places (numero chiuso) with an entrance test. EU citizens, and non-EU nationals living legally in Italy or another EU country, enrol directly, with no visa or quota. Fees at state universities follow your family's ISEE: Law 232/2016 sets a no-tax area up to €13,000, and since 2021/22 a ministerial decree (DM 1014/2021) has extended relief as below; from the second year, exemption also depends on credits.
| Family ISEE | Annual contribution at a state university |
|---|---|
| Up to €22,000 | Fully exempt |
| €22,000–30,000 | Reduced by 80, 50, 25 or 10 per cent, falling as the ISEE rises |
| Above €30,000 | Set by each university |
Source: the Ministry of University and Research (MUR), read 23 September 2026.
Applying from outside the EU? Pre-enrol on Universitaly, the only official, free portal. Once your university validates it, apply for a type D study visa – for 2026/27 degrees, by 30 November 2026. New for 2026/27, universities may validate only up to their places reserved for foreign students plus 20 per cent. You need €10,179.85 a year from lawful, traceable sources, health insurance and at least B2 in the course language (B1 for foundation courses).
Within 8 working days of arrival, apply for a study permit at the Questura (police immigration office). It lets you work up to 20 hours a week, within 1,040 hours a year.
What to do now
| Step | What | When |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | File a DSU with INPS to get your ISEE | Before applying for nurseries, bonuses or fee reductions |
| 2 | Apply for a nido place at your comune | In your comune's window – February and March 2026 in Rome and Milan |
| 3 | Apply once for the INPS nursery bonus | When your child has a place |
| 4 | Enrol on Unica, or at the school if you arrive mid-year | January–February before the school year |
| 5 | Seek equipollenza or recognition of foreign diplomas and degrees | Before you apply for courses |
| 6 | Non-EU students: pre-enrol on Universitaly, then apply for the visa | By 30 November 2026 for 2026/27 |
Source: MIM, INPS, Roma Capitale, the Comune di Milano and MUR, read 23 September 2026.
Official sources
The official pages this guide is based on, read 23 September 2026. Links open the authority’s own website.
- Ministero dell'Istruzione e del Merito (MIM) – Sistema educativo di istruzione e formazione · mim.gov.it
- MIM – Scuola dell'infanzia · mim.gov.it
- MIM – Circolare iscrizioni n. 100847 del 17 dicembre 2025 · mim.gov.it
- MIM – Iscrizioni online 2026/2027 / Unica · istruzione.it
- Unica – Iscrizioni on line (MIM) · unica.istruzione.gov.it
- Ministero del Lavoro – Portale Integrazione Migranti (page last updated Nov 2020); Prefettura di Roma · integrazionemigranti.gov.it
- Normattiva – D.L. 31 maggio 2024 n. 71, art. 11 (conv. L. 106/2024), text in force from 31-7-2024 · normattiva.it
- Roma Capitale – Avviso pubblico iscrizioni servizi educativi 0-3, a.e. 2026/27 · comune.roma.it
- Comune di Milano – Quote contributive Nidi e Sezioni Primavera a.e. 2025-2026 · comune.milano.it
- Comune di Milano – Comunicato n. 4/2026 (27 Jan 2026) · comune.milano.it
- INPS – Scheda Bonus asilo nido ( · inps.it
- INPS – comunicato stampa 31 marzo 2026; Circolare 29/2026 · inps.it
- INPS – Circolare n. 29 del 27 marzo 2026, §2 · servizi2.inps.it
- INPS news 10 July 2026 · inps.it
- MIM – Titoli esteri / Nulla osta · mim.gov.it
- MIM – Riconoscimento titoli esteri · mim.gov.it
- MUR – news 31/08/2021 on DM 1014/2021 · mur.gov.it
- MUR – DM 1016/2021 (quoting L. 232/2016) · mur.gov.it
- MUR – Universitaly 'Studenti stranieri'; Ambasciata d'Italia Tirana (4 June 2026) · universitaly.it
- MUR – Circolare studenti internazionali 2026/27; Consolato Generale Buenos Aires · universitaly-private.cineca.it
Relocate in Europe provides general information, not legal or financial advice for your individual situation. Check with the authority named above before you act – rules change, and your case may differ.