Italy work visa 2026 from Pakistan and Bangladesh: decreto flussi quotas, click days and nulla osta

Italy admits non-EU workers within yearly quotas set by a decree of the Prime Minister. The current one, of 2 October 2025, covers 2026 to 2028 and was published in the Official Gazette on 15 October 2025 ^{1 6}.

Year	Non-seasonal work	Self-employment	Seasonal work	Total
2026	76,200	650	88,000	164,850
2027	76,200	650	89,000	165,850
2028	76,200	650	90,000	166,850

Source for the table: ^{1 6 2}.

Inside the non-seasonal quota, 25,000 places a year are reserved for citizens of a list of countries that includes Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, Nigeria, Ghana and the Philippines ¹. Another 18,000 places in 2026, 26,000 in 2027 and 34,000 in 2028 go to countries whose migration cooperation agreements enter into force during the period, and 13,600 to 14,200 a year to domestic care work ¹. From 2027 Kenya joins the countries of origin, after a memorandum signed on 2 July 2026 ².

Non-seasonal jobs must be in sectors listed in the decree, such as agriculture, construction, manufacturing, hotels and restaurants, transport and logistics, and health and social care ¹. Before applying, the employer must check with the local job centre (Centro per l'impiego) that no worker already in Italy is available ¹.

It is November 2026, so the 2026 click days have passed and the next round is for 2027 ².

Precompilation. Employers fill in the forms on the Portale Servizi ALI of the Ministry of the Interior from 09:00 on 23 October 2026 to 20:00 on 7 December 2026 ². From 9 to 13 December 2026 the portal reopens only to complete and save forms already started; new forms cannot be added ².

Click days 2027, all from 09:00 ²:

Date	Work	Form
12 January 2027	Seasonal agricultural work	C-Stag agricolo
9 February 2027	Seasonal tourism work	C-Stag turistico
16 February 2027	Non-seasonal work	B2020
18 February 2027	Domestic care work	A-bis

Applications can be sent until 31 December 2027 while quotas last ². Applications that do not enter a quota within 6 months of 31 December, and nulla osta not followed by a visa in that time, lapse and are archived ¹. As a private user of the portal, an employer can file no more than three nulla osta requests ⁴.

1. Nulla osta. The immigration desk (Sportello Unico per l'Immigrazione) issues the work permit within 60 days of assigning the request to the quota, and the nulla osta is valid for up to 6 months ⁴.
2. Extra checks for Pakistan and Bangladesh. For workers from Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Morocco the nulla osta is never issued automatically when the deadline passes: it needs a favourable opinion of the police headquarters (Questura) and a prior check of the employer by the National Labour Inspectorate ^{6 5}.
3. Visa at the embassy. With the nulla osta you apply for a type D work visa at the Italian Embassy in Islamabad, or through VFS Global for the Embassy in Dhaka ^{7 8}.
4. Employer confirmation. After the checks on your visa application, the employer must confirm the request within 15 days. Without confirmation the request is refused and the nulla osta revoked ^{2 4}. The employer must also tell you about every communication it receives on your file ².
5. Contract of stay. Within 15 days of your arrival in Italy, you and the employer sign the contract of stay, and the employer sends it to the immigration desk for your residence permit ^{2 4}.

The law sets the 60-day deadline for the nulla osta and the 15-day deadlines ⁴. We found no fixed deadline for the embassy visa decision. In October 2024 the Embassy in Dhaka announced that the Italian Government had suspended the validity of all work nulla osta issued to citizens of some countries, Bangladesh included, until each one was verified. Under decree-law 145/2024 the embassy issues the visa only after the immigration desk in Italy confirms the check, and a nulla osta does not expire while it waits for that confirmation ⁹.

Islamabad ⁷:

• Pakistani documents need an apostille, and documents from other countries an apostille or legalisation.
• Documents must be in English or come with an Italian translation certified by a notary, with the notary's signature apostilled.
• Documents are valid for 6 months from issue.
• You must live in the embassy's consular district: bring a certificate of residence and a copy of your CNIC.
• Visa form and one recent ICAO photo.
• Passport valid at least 3 months beyond the visa, flight booking showing your name and the cities of departure, arrival and any stopover, nulla osta, the contract document issued by the immigration desk, a copy of the employer's ID or passport, and the employer's chamber of commerce extract (company) or last Certificazione Unica or tax return with an apostilled family status certificate (individual).
• A certificate of good conduct from the Pakistani authorities, with apostille.
• Health insurance, if the job contract does not include it and your flight stops in the Schengen area.
• Minors must apply with one or both parents or a legal guardian.

Dhaka (checklist published by VFS Global) ⁸:

• Type D visa form in English or Italian, two ICAO photos, passport valid at least 3 months beyond the visa with two blank pages.
• A copy of the immigration desk's communication to the employer that the nulla osta was issued. Check that your name, gender and date of birth are correct on it.
• Proof of work experience or qualification in the sector of the job.
• Only one apostille per document is accepted, and you cannot file two visa applications at the same time, even with two passports.

In October 2024 the Italian Government suspended work nulla osta for Bangladeshi citizens, among others, because of the high number of false and counterfeit documents, as the Embassy in Dhaka announced ⁹. On 2 September 2026 the Italian Minister of Labour welcomed an operation by the Carabinieri and the anti-mafia prosecutors of Catanzaro that dismantled two criminal networks running labour exploitation and fraud linked to the decreti flussi ³.

How to protect yourself:

• The request belongs to an employer in Italy, who confirms it and sends the contract of stay directly or through authorised professionals or employers' organisations ². An agent in Pakistan or Bangladesh cannot get you a nulla osta on your own.
• Ask for the employer's details and check that the company exists. The Islamabad embassy asks for the chamber of commerce extract or the tax return of the employer ⁷.
• Check the nulla osta with the employer, who must forward you every communication on your file ². The Dhaka embassy asks applicants to contact their employer for updates and to avoid writing to the embassy or VFS about verification ⁹.
• Be wary of anyone selling a "click day place" or a guaranteed visa. Quotas are assigned in order on the click day and nothing guarantees a place ^{1 6}.
• Keep your passport. Give it only to the embassy or its visa centre when you apply ^{7 8}.