Hey Im coming to the end of my three month stay here in Italy and I would like to stay longer! Would it be possible to obtain a Visa here in Italy ...maybe from the American Embassy.. or would I have to return back to the States anyway?

thanks!

Mpoppins, as you were told on your thread in the US Forum, the US government has nothing to do with your extending your stay in Italy. That is up to the Italian government. Sure you can apply but be aware with all the red tape you will go through even if you are allowed to stay the answer won't be overnight. So if you are getting to the end of your 90 days I seriously doubt you would get permission that quick. But check on the Italian government's website for futher info or contact their Embassy or Consulate. Best regards.

hi, mpoppins,

in the UK, you normally have to leave in order to reapply.

i don't know what the rules are in Italy, but you could come here [it's non-Schengen] then return to Italy when the requisite period has expired.

good luck,

regards, ann

Hello ann, I don't think that is true in Italy. I say that as a woman from another country went to Italy to be with a Italian man she met when he visited her country. He is a good friend of mine. They hit it off and she received the proper permission to stay in Italy. Now I think he has some pull so to speak so that probably helped I am sure. But anyway she didn't have to leave Italy at all. But there sure are some strict requirements of course to obtain the permission to stay. Financial, health insurance etc.

Oooops, in that it seems unlikely that mpoppins would obtain the permission before her 90 days are up that is a good thought regarding going to the UK and applying from there. I believe the UK allows Americans to stay 6 months?

You can contact the Italian government (I would do it online) and I'm almost positive they will tell you to go home and apply for whatever type of visa you think you can qualify for.

Getting one will require a fairly long and complicated process and you will either have to prove you are a legitimate student in an Italian educational institution - or are wealthy enough so you can survive without working long-term and have full health insurance coverage.

"I believe the UK allows Americans to stay 6 months"

Only if they can demonstrate they're going to be self-sufficient. It's not a given that the Italian Embassy in London will accept an application for extended stay from a foreigner with no permanent UK address.

The poster HAS to start with the Italian embassy website in her home country. But if she seriously thinks it's possible to get permission to be a drain on the Italian taxpayer by asking some foreign country's embassy in Rome, she may well find the Italians will refuse her anyway on the grounds of mental deficiency.

Does she really think the Italian embassy in Washington doles out US visas to Italians? And if not, why on earth does she think Italy's going to be more tolerant of foreign spongers than the US?

Mpoppins

You cannot extend your 3-month stay in Italy while you are still there - there is no mechanism for extending 90-in-180 days stay within Schengen area (of which Italy is a member). Your option is to leave Schengen for 3 months (such as UK, Ireland, Croatia etc) and then return for further 90 days. Or as suggested, apply for a long-stay visa, usually in your country of residence. This isn't routinely issued, there's a lot of red tape, and takes a long time to come through as all applications are referred to Italy for approval.
There may be a way of applying for a different kind of visa within Italy, such as fiancée, marriage, work or study, but we are only talking about tourist stay?

thanks guys!
Italy is great, Ill be sad to go!

Flanneruk-

you are absolutely correct. I must be the mentally deficient idiot you imply me to be. although I think a more correct and, possibly, more polite thing to say or imply is "naive teenager" .but, anyhow, thank you.

Naive is cute until you're about 15. After that it implies either ignorance (doens;t bother to ask basic questions in advance) or hubris (assuming one is so important one can have whatever one wants - regardless of rules).

Sorry - naivte is nothing to be proud of once you're an adult.

I'm naive about many things and it's nothing to be ashamed of.

Mpoppins, your question was perfectly reasonable (I live in Italy, so I don't know the answer). flanneruk and nytraveler are scolding, insulting posters to everybody with imagination. Hope you come back!

Hi,

I have a similar question to the OP but I am traveling to Italy & France. I know that the limit is 90 days but is for one country and for both? For example: Italy (90 days) & France (90 days), which totals 180 days, OR Italy & France (90 days)?

I am applying for EU citizenship and then for an Italian passport. Both of my parents were born in Italy and I am allowed to apply under these circumstances. However, as most of you have been suggesting, it does take time. I had to apply for my birth certificate because they want the long form, which I didn't have. My mom has all of her required documents that I need in order to process my application but it looks like I might have to order my parents' marriage certificate because again, they want the long form.

I'm planning to travel at the beginning of August and stay until the beginning of November. However, I'm wondering if I will be able to stay longer (if I choose to) if my application is processed and approved after I have left Canada?

I will also mention that I am staying with my mom's family for about 3-4 weeks (break this up at the start and end of my trip) and close family friends for about 1 week.

Thanks for your help. Moppins, I hope that my posting has helped you understand what you need to do. They have documents/applications on the Italian Consulate website. You can print them off there.

Isabella36: You are limited to 90 days in any/all Schengen countries - not in each one. So no you can't have 90 in Italy and then 90 in France -- just 90 days total.

Thanks.

Isabella were your parents still Italians citizens when you were born?

You can only stay 90 days total within 180 days.

kismetchimera - To answer your question, yes, my parents were still Italian citizens when I was born. My dad became a Canadian citizen in his 40's and my mom became a Canadian citizen 4 years ago - mostly because she was frustrated with the process she had to go through in order to renew her Italian passport. My mom told me today that a lot of Italian people she knows (friends' of the family) have also applied for Canadian citizenship because of all the problems in dealing with the Italian Consulate. I have to admit. They are not the most efficient or helpful people that you will meet. It took her 4 separate visits just to update her Italian passport! It's ridiculous. My mom has a few comments/phrases that she express in Italian to explain how long the process will take. They're funny. I'm hoping to get my EU citizenship & Italian passport before I leave so that I can stay longer than 90 days but I don't know if the process will be completed by then. I would only want to stay another 10-12 days. I will see how things go. I'm awaiting my parents' marriage certificate and then I will have all of the documents that I need. Also, I haven't booked my flight yet because I was hoping to calculate the 10-12 days into my flight reservations but I may not have the time to wait. What do you think?

Hello everybody i am an american that has been living in the czech republic for about 7 months and only was supposed to be here for 3 i wanted to know when i come back to the US am i going to have problem to late to do anything about it no but just wanted to know so im prepared

Isabella,

Very curious about what you mean when you write "am applying for EU citizenship and then for an Italian passport."

I am probably a very ignorant adult, and should really should know about this as I live in an EU country (France).

I did not realize that EU citizenship exists unless someone already is a citizen/passport holder of one of the member states. Need to do my homework about this. I have been totally focused on obtaining my titre de sejour, based on husband's UK/EU citizenship.

Cathin...,

I have both American and EU citizenship. I obtained my EU citizenship back in the 1980s based on having grandparents who were born in Ireland. Once I obtained citizenship, I applied for an EU passport. Then I got EU citizenship and EU passports for my children. I believe the Irish law regarding foreign-born citizens changed in 1999, though - not sure it would still be possible today.