In a scheme reminiscent of the Italian €1 House Scheme launched in Sicily, another Italian town – Presicce in Puglia – is going one step further – by offering new residents €30,000 to move there in 2023.

If laid-back living in a beautiful Italian town sounds like your bag, then this article is just for you.

There are, of course, some T&Cs attached:

New residents will most likely have to move there on a semi-permanent basis, and the entire grant amount is to be used to purchase and renovate a home in the town.

With an ageing population of less than 6,000 inhabitants, the local town authorities are seeking to breathe new life into the town as a socio-economic ecosystem.

According to local municipal councillor Alfredo Palese, there are many empty properties in the historical centre built before 1991, and which they – [the local authorities] – would like to see alive again with new residents.

While no minimum in-town presence requirements have been announced for this offer as of this writing, Italy’s Non-Lucrative Residency Visa program typically requires non-EU applicants to reside in Italy for more than 183 days per year.

This duration of time typically also comes with local tax implications.

For those seeking a more flexible option, the Italian Golden Visa Program may be better suited, although this option is priced from €250,000+.

(Although Southern Italy is home to some exceptional tax incentives for new foreign residents).

And without EU residency, most foreigners will not be able to visit Italy for more than 3 months out of every rolling 6-month period.

So while the devil will be in the details, Presicce free €30K house buying budget offer is bound to spark a tsunami of enquiries from around the globe.

Moving to a sleepy Southern Italian village, however, is not going to be practical for everyone.

While it is not presently known what the broadband internet situation in Presicce looks like, according to Telecom Italia, over 99% of Puglia had broadband coverage by as early as February 2021.

In a similar vein, the island of Sardinia offers new residents $15,000, Calabria offers $33,000, and Santo Stefano di Sessanio is promising new residents up to $52,500 to move there.

So if laid-back living in a beautiful Italian town sounds like your bag, the Presicce program might be just the thing for you.

For more details on the program, visit the official town website in the coming weeks for more updates.