Why Expats Are Leaving Italy: The Truths No One Talks About
Video Overview & Insights
Why Expats Are LEAVING Italy in 2025 - The Uncomfortable Truth No One Talks About
Chris, we have been following your videos for quite some time now and really enjoy you content (even if you did "defect" to Tuscany). We pick up our ERV's tomorrow at the Boston Consulate. I think everything you have said in this video is completely on point and hope your subscribers take everything to heart - especially the part about not trying to change the culture. One minor point, there was a "landmark" ruling last June where the Regional Administrative Court of Lazio (TAR Lazio Decision No. 19676/2025) struck down the practice of requiring every adult in a family to independently meet the full passive income threshold. So, based upon that ruling you would add 30% for a spouse and 20% for each child to the base €30,540 requirement. Anyway, that doesn't mean that all of the Consulates are necessarily following the law, but there is legal recourse if that's the reason they get turned down (which would be outlined in the obligatory rejection letter they would receive). Thanks again for all your great content.
Thousands of people move to Italy every year chasing the “Under the Tuscan Sun” dream… but a growing number are packing up and leaving after just 6 - 24 months. In this video I break down the REAL reasons expats are quietly exiting Italy in 2025 - and how to avoid becoming one of them.
Whether you’re planning your move or already here, these are the biggest mistakes that turn the Italian dream into a nightmare.
Really helpful video, thanks for sharing your knowledge and experience. We're from Malta - neighbours of Italy and Sicily, but still a little island. We are frequent visitors to Sicily and now becoming really familiar with their ways. Getting things done in Italy - and especially Sicily - could be a daunting task. Paperwork seems endless. Permits are needed for almost everything - good thing you mentioned the need for a geometra if renovating your house. We might buy a second home in Sicily to use as a holiday home for now and eventually retire there. I am keen on certain sports that I can more easily practice in Sicily as in Malta it is very limited in resources and land space. Although I know quite a bit about Italy, I am always learning new stuff so thank you for that. I'll have a look at your other videos. Cheers!!
🕖 TIMESTAMPS
00:00 - Intro: Dream vs. reality
Italian and being somehow prepared to deal with Italian bureaucracy are crucial everywhere but things might look different as far as crosses and having to deal with certain cultural aspects (although one needs to keep in mind that probably more than 90% of people have a Catholic background so everybody has somehow to deal with that one way or another) depending on whether one settles in a small town in the south or a middle to large city in the north.
00:52 - #1 Unrealistic expectations
01:48 - #2 Health Issues
For all you people who aren't able to integrate to our beautiful nation and culture their is a huge door and take it and goodbye. Please don't come back 😀
03:23 - #3 Learning Italian
04:33 - #4 Culture must change for them
You mean theres rules for foreigners that want to live there???? What a concept. America should take note.
06:17 - #5 Us vs. Them
13:45 - #6 Italian bureaucracy
For humans "the grass is greener on the other side" until you get there. Contentment comes from within. Expenses- yes sometimes we have to move to a less expensive place but nothing stops us from getting a good rental in a cheap country for a while without totally moving away from the country of origin. If over 60 and deciding to move - it is the worse thing to do - you will never assimilate, never get used to another way of lifestyle. So think beofre you leap.
12:19 - My advice
If you’re thinking about moving to Italy (or already here and struggling), this is the video I wish I’d watched before I came.
I am an atheist, but am charmed and fascinated by all the religious icons scattered about Italy. The churches are so beautiful, they make me cry. I can't imagine a foreigner demanding the town remove its religious icons. What a jerk.
Drop a comment: Are you staying or leaving Italy in 2025? 👇
👍 Thanks for watching! Please comment, like, and subscribe.
Great advice for any country. Thanks
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I guess some expats don't like being told to speak the language, where they are moving to or told, to go back to your country!!!! Can dish it, but can't take it . Just want to take over, wherever they go!!!!
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Best to do a long 3+ month stay.
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I know many Mexican expats living in US and they say the same.
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I have to deal with US bureaucracy in the past. A nightmare, as immigrant you worth ad a sand grain, and it's easy to find weird situation like to find a job you need an SSN, but you can't have a SSN without a work. As immigrant you don't have a credit history, so you can't have a loan for a car or if you have one the interest rates are insane and you can't have one if you don't have a fixed residence, you can't have a fixed residence without a SSN....
Also come join our Facebook group "All About Italy" here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/205311277354653
Disclaimer: I am not a real estate agent in Italy nor am I an architect or attorney. Please consult with the appropriate professional on your own specific circumstances.
About the trash schedule, probably every place has it's own system. But what I saw in Pitigliano was a good system: every neighbourhood had it's own carbage dropping site, with coloured clico's, green for organics, grey for general, blue for glass, etc. You just drop your carbage in the right container and don't have to worry about what day of the week it's collected. No problems at all in that regards, there.
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If you can lose the distracting, annoying, totally unnecessary 'background music', we'll actually be able to hear you and focus on what you are saying, which we're sure is very insightful. Please.
More User Perspectives
I’ve never lived outside of California but am always baffled by these stories of folks who refuse to learn the language of the place they move. I’ve encountered it in the past when some Mexican guy for instance expected me to fill out a rent check for him because he didn’t know English, or an older Cantonese lady here in San Francisco for 30 years who still needs a translator.
I wouldn’t dream of being that person. If I was lucky enough to retire to some beautiful Italian town I would definitely expect to be fluent within a year and try to assimilate.
Where are these beautiful views from? Awesome video btw :-)
@annas.5794Accommodationing immigrants is the absolute wrong thing to do.
@carmentartaglia7133Don’t expect people in Italy to speak English. Same in Spain
@ElizabetaDanteI wish these same guidelines would apply to immigrants coming to the United States. Those who come legally mostly adhere, but illegal immigrants and recent asylum seekers mostly do not
@tamedshrew235It sounds to me like not knowing the language is a decidedly difficult obstacle to overcome... technology will help here soon, I guess. Thank you for this important perspective. Honestly, it kinda scares me off 😊
@mvpapaliaI hate how anglophones just go to other countries without speaking or at least knowing the basics of the local language. With that superior expat mindset and blinkered expectations.
@elisabethdorrer4831But surely standing in line waiting gives you the opportunity to talk to the locals, but i live in England and we queue for everything 😁
@Piccyman1Why immigrants are leaving Italy.
@annreilly2680Ex pats? You mean USA expats? Other expats are available.
@ashleighhogan941Great info! Thanks! For people who think they are going someplace and expecting the comforts of where they left, they are not embracing Italia. No matter where you travel, you have to respect the culture, embrace the locals, and if an expat or on vacation, honor their traditions. My favorite moments on my trip to Italy were the ones where Nona’s and locals taught me their traditions. There are so many local vendors and markets for anything you need! Keep it local, support the artisans and small farmers. I had a medical emergency in Italy and with Google Translate it was a positive experience. I was impressed with the treatment, follow up and tests, state of the art and extremely fast results! I plan to learn the language before I return next year, hopefully mingle with more Italians, learn as many secrets of the land and retire there with the goal of offering my work to enhance what they have done so perfectly thus far!
@Renegade.VideosI had a chance at jure sanguinis citizenship through my great grandfather. The new law being challenged in the courts would disqualify me. I tried for almost three years to get an appointment at the consulate in Phila. I knew residency & real estate ownership don’t go hand-in-hand. Another concern is mold.
@dominiccarpin5651‘Expats’. You mean immigrants.
@timcronin-v6wI wouldn't move to western Europe now if they paid me. It's becoming a nasty 3rd world..
@PinkbunnylawIf not moving from western Europe the immigrants culture imposing their will is too oppressive. Especially if they visited years before the current conditions are unpleasantly shocking
@PinkbunnylawAmericans moving from a country whose economy is based on Capitalism to a country whose economy is based on Socialism are in for a shock. Government inefficiency, narrow streets, poor sanitation, power outages, huge taxation, price controls, fuel shortages, etc. Free markets don't exist . The European Union sees to that !! Yes, you Americans made your money and gladly earned it under the Capitalist system, yet you think that you can move to a Socialist governed country and have the same freedoms guaranteed by the US Constitution!! You have traded those basic freedoms when you moved overseas! Tell me again,,,,why?
@jmp.t28b99But as an illegal migrant... you get to stay, without the bureaucracy!
@davidroux7987Its kinda embarrassing any of this has to be said out loud. I live in Asia. Same here
@thedot66What if foreigners coming to the US would accept the culture and not be try to change it. How many languages do we have to offer drivers licenses in? How many come to get our welfare?
@Justhangingout12345Paese che vai usanze che trovi
@la7079Europe so far... it's now socialist until it turns FULLY Authoritarian. Good luck. I am from Ireland living in NY, a citizen of both. My husband the same but from Italy. I think we are better off here in the States. Stay close to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ folks🎉❤ that's all I'll say
@sheilaperrone7654So if you are just visiting, and you don’t speak Italian…you cannot rent a car?
@monikamir1What stupid person expects the crosses to be removed? You are the invader.
@Elis-o4t2vIt is a responsibility to learn the language and the culture. It is not your home country, so dont expect the natural residents to change for you. You are the expat
@Elis-o4t2vWhy isn’t there an English drivers license test like in the US?!
@TacosnowWhere can we obtain the list of facilitators that you use?
@nkumu52Portugal is worse
@emilyo4330Depends wether you go to work there or retire, who wants to spend their later years in the UK, as for Health ive never trusted this service no matter what Country im in, drugs and a knife not real Health, also so many things are changing in the very near future the 3 Matrix is coming down at last
@williamthomas5237I onli like videos AFTER I have seen them, not beforehand.
@otx-200I left nyc for Madrid a d soeaker spanish even in Madrid I find they lack functionality and a progressive mindset. italy must be quest and milan!! omg the rudest people worst than parisian’s, they think if you are they’er you have to kiss their feet, they are very small minded. I will never even visit there again. they don’t value turist or that you invest there. not all italians are nice.
@lizz9840We lived in Italy for two years then returned to the US. In hindsight we regret leaving Italy. We are thinking of returning but with greater 'hands on' experience. Accurate video, we know all the frustrations, just where to settle this time.
@levetemusicTake down the stations of the cross? In Italy? 🇮🇹. 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
I wish I could have seen the locals reactions!
The first rule of Italian driving, "whatsa behind me issa not important."
@JamesO-m7iI am willing to learn a different language but I am not good at doing that. I tried. Some people have a real problem learning a different language. Some are very good at it and learn several.
Not sure why.
Siens is wonderful. I'm envious. : )
@maisondusuaveI know myself, and I know I would not be able to tolerate the inefficient, somewhat corrupt bureaucracy. I have heard stories about Italy and Spain, in particular. Good for those who have the patience, and the funds, to deal with it.
@donnafrey1404