Incentives for moving to Sicily: what exists in 2026

Sicily does not pay you to move. Headlines like that keep circulating, but what actually exists in November 2026 is narrower and more useful: a regional refund of 50% of IRPEF (income tax) for people moving from abroad who buy or renovate a home, a €30,000 grant paid to employers that hire remote workers living in Sicily, a few 1-euro house schemes that are really renovation deals, and a public coworking in the Madonie mountains that has worked since 2021.

Below is each scheme with its status as we last checked it, starting with the overview. For anything involving tax, check your own case with a commercialista before you sign a deed or a contract.

All schemes at a glance

The 50% IRPEF refund for new residents (art. 25 L.R. 1/2026)

This is the measure behind the "Sicily refunds half your taxes" stories. It is real, and it is in article 25 of the Sicilian regional law L.R. 5 January 2026 n. 1, with implementing rules in decree DA n. 30 and in decree DDG n. 1017 of 5 August 2026. Most coverage leaves out the condition that matters most: you have to buy or renovate a property.

Who can claim it

• Individuals who move their residence from abroad to Italy and their tax domicile to Sicily between 1 January 2026 and 31 December 2028. The move from abroad is a legal requirement: people moving from another Italian region do not qualify.
• With employment income, income treated as employment income, or a pension, taxable in Italy. Self-employment or business income only counts in addition to these, and then the refund falls under the EU de minimis limits. On the text of the decree, someone with only self-employed (partita IVA) income does not appear to qualify. The Region's April 2026 release, which spoke of self-employment and business income too, was broader than the final rules.
• Who, within 12 months, buy a habitable property in Sicily or carry out renovation work on a property they own (recovery, restoration, conservative refurbishment or renovation; ordinary maintenance does not count).
• Who keep residence, tax domicile and the property until 31 December of the second year after the move. Otherwise the refund is revoked and must be paid back.
• Who have not received, or applied for, other state or regional tax incentives for new residents.

How much

• 50% of the IRPEF actually paid, 60% if, besides buying or renovating, you take your tax domicile in a comune with fewer than 5,000 inhabitants (ISTAT figure at 31 December of the year before the move).
• For 3 years, with a cap of €100,000 a year.
• Paid by bank transfer or as a tax credit usable in the F24 form (not transferable).

When to apply

You claim it after the fact, once you have filed and paid, with one application a year for each of the three years (form Mod. ICNRS). For people who moved in 2026, the windows are 1 September to 31 December of 2027, 2028 and 2029; for a 2027 move, 2028 to 2030; for a 2028 move, 2029 to 2031. The decree says applications go through an online tool that "will be made available": as of 4 November 2026 it has not been launched. The Region decides within 60 working days and replies by PEC (certified email).

What the decree settled, and what it didn't

The text of DDG 1017 answers the doubts we flagged earlier this year: the move must be from abroad, and residence, tax domicile and the property must be kept until 31 December of the second year after the move (the April release's "year after" was wrong). One point remains open: total IRPEF or the regional share? The decree speaks of 50% of the IRPEF due to the Region, but the Region's August 2026 release gives an example (€100,000 of IRPEF, €50,000 back) that only works on total IRPEF. The amount you get depends on which reading prevails.

The refund cannot be combined with other state or regional tax incentives for new residents, and you must not even have applied for one. The decree does not name them, but the national regime impatriati and the flat tax for new residents very likely fall under that exclusion: get a written opinion before choosing. The Region's own estimate in December 2025 was 50 transfers in 2026, 100 in 2027 and 50 in 2028: a small, targeted measure.

We go through examples and the application steps in a dedicated article: Sicily's 50% income-tax refund for new residents.

The South Working grant (art. 3 L.R. 1/2026)

The second regional measure is often reported as a "€30,000 bonus to live in Sicily". It is not a bonus for you. It is a non-repayable grant of €30,000 per worker paid to the employer, in five annual instalments of €6,000.

Conditions

• The company has a production unit outside Sicily: elsewhere in Italy, in the EU or outside the EU.
• It hires on a permanent contract, or converts a fixed-term contract to permanent, from 9 January 2026.
• The worker is resident in Sicily on the date the grant is awarded.
• The work is done mainly remotely from Sicily for at least 5 years, with presence at the company's premises off the island limited to 20% of annual working days.
• The sources only describe employees: freelancers and self-employed people are not covered.

How it works

The budget is €18 million a year for 2026–2028 (€54 million in total). The scheme is run by IRFIS FinSicilia. The notice was published on 15 April 2026 and the application platform opened at 12:00 on 30 June 2026. Applications are handled first come, first served until the money runs out; as of 4 November 2026 we found no report that the funds were exhausted.

What it means for you: if you are negotiating a permanent remote job with a company based outside Sicily, the grant is something your future employer can apply for, and you can point them to it. It does not suit short-stay nomads, and it does not suit foreign freelancers. Our article on the €30,000 South Working incentive has a checklist for employers.

1-euro houses: what they really are

"Case a 1 euro" are abandoned houses, usually in old town centres, that a comune sells at a symbolic price to buyers who commit to renovating them within a set period. The buyer pays the notary and transfer costs, and some towns ask for a renovation plan up front. These are property-renovation schemes, not programmes for remote workers, and in November 2026 no Sicilian town runs a dedicated "nomad village" with incentives for remote workers.

If you are tempted: calls are published on each comune's website and albo pretorio (official notice board), so check there rather than on aggregator sites. Budget for renovation costs, not the €1. If you are moving from abroad, buying or renovating within 12 months could also meet the IRPEF refund's property condition (the decree accepts renovation work but not ordinary maintenance); have a commercialista check it against the other conditions. Some of these are mountain towns (Cammarata, for one, has colder winters), and connectivity varies: read the internet chapter before you fall for a stone house you will also have to work from.

Small-town relocation bonuses

Between 2022 and 2024 several small towns offered cash for new residents, funded by the national Fondo di sostegno ai Comuni marginali 2021–2023. None of them targeted remote workers, and none was confirmed open in 2025–2026.

• San Mauro Castelverde (PA): €5,000 to people who move their residence there, more for opening a commercial, craft or farm business. Status uncertain.
• Burgio (AG): €5,000 per household that moves residence, plus a separate notice for new businesses. Status uncertain.
• Petralia Soprana (PA): contributions for new residents and businesses; the notice had expired by January 2024. Closed.
• Calamonaci (AG): notices for new residents and new shops, with a March deadline. Closed.
• Montalbano Elicona (ME): a 2022 notice to attract residents and small businesses. Closed.

If you see one of these advertised as open, ask the comune for the current notice before you plan anything around it.

Resto al Sud 2.0

Resto al Sud 2.0 is run nationally by Invitalia for people aged 18 to 34 who are inactive or unemployed (among other categories) and want to start a business or self-employment in the South, Sicily included. Invitalia lists it as active (checked November 2026), with €356.4 million in total. It offers a non-repayable voucher of up to €40,000 (up to €50,000 with the increase), or a grant on investment programmes: 75% for programmes up to €120,000, 70% between €120,000 and €200,000. Applications have been open since 15 October 2025, handled first come, first served while funds last; details are on invitalia.it. It is relevant if you are young and plan to open a partita IVA in Sicily, less so for an established freelancer.

Castelbuono and the Madonie

The most concrete remote-work project in Sicily is not a cash incentive. It is a place.

The public coworking in Castelbuono

In the Madonie mountains, in the province of Palermo, Castelbuono has run a public coworking since the end of 2020, launched in February 2021 by locals who had come home to work remotely, under a public–private agreement with the Comune and with the South Working – Lavorare dal Sud association. Il Sole 24 Ore calls it Italy's first structured, ongoing public coworking.

• Run by the non-profit Social Green Hub, in an 18th-century building with a geothermal system.
• 40 permanent desks, expandable to 70 for company retreats.
• 750 to 800+ users and more than 11,000 bookings in five years, about 350 active users (Il Sole 24 Ore, July and September 2026).
• Affordable memberships and free learning activities; we did not find a published price list.

Madonie Nomad Residency

The Madonie Nomad Residency held its first edition in September 2026: a free festival in Castelbuono on 4–6 September, followed by an "Open Stay" (sources give 7–13 or 7–20 September) where participants lived and worked in the area. A local host arranged rooms and workspaces at capped rates, and visitors were expected to share skills with local young people and businesses. It drew 200+ people from 22 Madonie towns, 12 Italian regions and 12 countries. It is promoted by So.Svi.Ma, the Madonie development agency, and funded by the Ministry of Enterprises (MIMIT). The organisers say the project continues year-round; no date for a second edition has been announced. Updates are on madonienomads.com.

More on living and working there in our article on remote work in the Madonie. For a broader list of shared workspaces, see the coworking directory; the South Working association also maps community workspaces ("presidi") on southworking.org.

How to check whether a scheme is still open

• Find the law or notice number (for example art. 25 L.R. 1/2026) and read the official page, not a news summary.
• Check the dates: when you must move, buy or apply.
• For regional measures, check regione.sicilia.it and irfis.it; for towns, the comune's albo pretorio.
• Look for the conditions that cost money: buying a property, renovating, keeping residence for years.
• Ask whether it can be combined with the regime impatriati or other tax breaks.
• Get a commercialista to run the numbers on your actual income.

Next: the codice fiscale, bank and healthcare chapter for the first practical steps after you arrive.