San Marino · Relocation guide
Moving to San Marino: a practical relocation guide
San Marino does not issue entry visas and is not an EU member. Stays beyond 30 days require a Sammarinese stay permit or residence, while access normally runs through Italy and therefore still depends on the traveller's Schengen position.
Content updated 12 September 2026. Individual source-check dates are listed below.
Separate Italian access from Sammarinese residence
San Marino issues no entry visa. A non-Sammarinese foreigner staying beyond 30 days must regularise the stay through a permit or residence, while the journey through Italy requires any Schengen visa or entry entitlement applicable to that traveller.
Temporary stay permits cover tourism, work, spouse-and-child family reunion or cohabitation and listed special purposes. Registered residence is narrower; elective and atypical residence are statutory investment or foreign-income routes, not automatic approvals.
| Plan | Route to examine | Boundary |
|---|---|---|
| Local employment | Work Stay Permit | Obtain the employment and stay approvals; Italian access does not grant Sammarinese work rights. |
| Join spouse or children | Family Reunification Stay Permit | Relationship and sponsor status must support the application. |
| Investment-backed residence | Elective Residence Permit | Investment, insurance and statutory restrictions apply; approval is not a property-purchase entitlement. |
Apply through the competent Sammarinese office
The Gendarmerie Foreigners Office handles stay permits. A temporary permit regularises stays from three months to one year, is valid for no more than 12 months and may be renewed on request. Confirm the correct filing point for the period between day 30 and month three directly with Foreign Affairs.
Use the current official form and document list. Keep passport, Italian entry evidence, purpose documents, housing and civil records together, but treat each family member as a separate applicant.
Make the job and home conditional on approval
A work stay permit is not a general residence award. Confirm employer sponsorship and the lawful start date before beginning work. Business and management residence grounds require the actual qualifying activity, not a shell registration.
Housing supply is limited. Ask whether the lease can support the Foreigners Office and civil-registry processes before paying a long deposit, and record the inventory and utilities at handover.
Verify health and tax status independently
Elective and atypical residence applicants must hold health insurance and cannot work in the enlarged public sector or receive state contributions. Other residents should confirm whether employment or family status registers them with the Social Security Institute and maintain suitable cover until entitlement is confirmed.
Atypical residence is expressly a tax regime for qualifying foreign-income residents. All movers should obtain advice on residence and foreign income rather than infer tax treatment from the immigration label.
Coordinate family, school and practical services
Family reunion is defined for spouse and children on the official overview; cohabitation is a separate stated purpose. Confirm eligibility before moving a wider family member and prepare authenticated civil records as requested.
Ask the Education Department about the child's placement and record requirements. Banks apply identity, residence, tax and source-of-funds checks; an account is not proof of migration approval. Check driving licences with the Civil Aviation and Navigation Office because Italian and Sammarinese vehicle processes are distinct.
Renew before the temporary status lapses
Calendar the maximum 12-month permit validity and ask the Foreigners Office when it will accept renewal. Preserve continuing purpose, home and insurance evidence.
Elective and atypical residence may consolidate only after the official ten-year period and continued compliance; this is not citizenship and should not be presented as guaranteed naturalisation.
Your moving checklist
Tick off the tasks that apply to you. The timing is a planning order, not a substitute for the deadlines on your permission or an official instruction.
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Sources and checks
The linked authorities set the rules. VisaAtlas explains how the steps fit together; planning suggestions are not a decision on your immigration status, tax residence or entitlement to services.
- San Marino Foreign Affairs: stay permits and residenceSource checked 12 September 2026
- European Commission: San Marino and Schengen border arrangementsSource checked 12 September 2026
- San Marino Economic Activities OfficeSource checked 12 September 2026
- San Marino Social Security InstituteSource checked 12 September 2026
- San Marino Tax OfficeSource checked 12 September 2026
- San Marino Department of EducationSource checked 12 September 2026
- Central Bank of San Marino: consumer informationSource checked 12 September 2026
- San Marino Civil Aviation and Navigation Office: vehicle and licence servicesSource checked 12 September 2026