Domicile: legal address and business address
Legal Address for an Italian Company, in Place Before the Deed
The registered office and both PECs arranged before the notary signs, so the filing never waits on the address. Later moves of the seat too.
- One sede legale per company
- The seat decides the Register and the chamber
- Registering the PEC: no stamp duty, no secretarial fee
Your company's legal address in Italy
The legal address of an Italian company is its sede legale: the place the deed names as the company's administrative centre. The Register of Companies states that every business has one and only one, and likens it to a person's domicile. Registered office and registered address mean the same thing.
We coordinate the address, both PECs and the filings; the notary receives and files the deed. We work for founders abroad forming a company (see the company formation page) and for companies moving their seat.
What's included
An address that can be the seat
On the founder's premises or at a host's office, which the Register records as common practice for capital companies. For mail and meetings, see our business address service.
The right details in the right document
The municipality goes into the deed (Art. 2463(2)(2) c.c.); the street and house number go into the Register application (Art. 111-ter disp. att. c.c.).
Both PECs before the filing
The company's own PEC and the director's separate personal one, both active before the notary files. Background: certified email for companies.
Follow-through to the Register entry
We follow the notary's filing to the Register entry and the receipts that arrive at the company PEC from the chamber and the agencies.
The first annual chamber fee set out
We set out the diritto annuale owed to the chamber of the seat, with its channel and deadline, so the first payment is not missed.
A later move of the seat
We prepare the directors' filing for a move within the municipality, or coordinate the notary for a move to another one.
Who this service is for
- A founder abroad forming a new company
The seat and both PECs come first, before the deed is booked. For the whole Rome sequence, see registering a company in Rome.
- A buyer of an existing company
They take over a company and move its seat after the transfer; the visura shows the seat and PEC on record. See the ready-made companies page.
Read: The Visura Camerale Explained
- A registered company moving its seat
A company changing its street within the same municipality, or moving to another municipality, with the filing each route needs.
- A group with a structured file
A holding held through the società fiduciaria mandate, or a company preparing MiCA authorisation in Italy, that wants the address and PECs settled with the rest of the file.
From the address to the Register entry, step by step
Address chosen
The founder picks the municipality and street; where a third party hosts the seat, they sign a domiciliation agreement with the host. No statutory term.
Company PEC opened
The founder or future director opens it with a provider. Without it, a new company's application is suspended (Art. 16(6-bis) D.L. 185/2008).
Director's PEC opened
The director opens a personal PEC, distinct from the company's (Art. 13(3) D.L. 159/2025): due on appointment, so before the filing.
Deed signed
The deed names the municipality of the seat. The notary receives it in person, by proxy, or by videoconference for an S.r.l. seated in Italy with cash capital (D.Lgs. 183/2021 Art. 2).
Filing
The notary files with the Register of the seat's district within 10 days (Art. 2330 c.c.), with the street, house number and company PEC.
Register entry
The Register (CCIAA Roma for a Rome seat) enters the company within 10 days of protocol, 5 for an electronic filing (Art. 11(8) D.P.R. 581/1995).
Receipts at the PEC
The chamber confirms within 5 days; the Agenzia delle Entrate, INPS and INAIL each within 7 (Comunicazione Unica guide).
First annual fee
The company pays its first diritto annuale to the chamber of the seat within 30 days of the application (Marche chamber, 2026).
Steps 1 to 3 come before the clock. Our 48 hours run from the signed deed once the address, both PECs, the codice fiscale and the documents are in hand: practice, not law.
Before the clock: no statutory term
- Address chosenMunicipality and street; a host's agreement if a third party hosts the seat
- Company PEC openedWithout it a new company's application is suspended
- Director's PEC openedPersonal and distinct from the company's
- Papers in handCodice fiscale and documents
From the signed deed
48 hours: our practice, not a legal term
- Deed signedNames the municipality of the seat (Art. 2463(2)(2) c.c.)The clock starts
- Notary filesWith the street, house number and company PECAt most 10 days (Art. 2330 c.c.)
- Register entryCCIAA Roma for a Rome seat5 days for an electronic filing (Art. 11(8) D.P.R. 581/1995)
- Receipts and first feeReceipts at the company PEC; diritto annuale to the chamberChamber 5 days, agencies 7, fee 30 days
Want the address and both PECs ready before your deed?
Tell us where the company will sit and who will direct it; we line up the address and both PECs before the deed.
What must be in hand before the deed
A filing waits for whatever is missing, so these come first.
- The municipality of the seat, for the deed
- A street and house number, for the Register application
- The right to use the address: own premises or a host's agreement
- The company PEC, active before the filing
- The director's personal PEC, different from the company's
- A codice fiscale for each founder and director
- Identity documents for each founder and director
- If a founder will not attend: a procura, apostilled or legalised, sworn Italian translation
- The operating address, if different, for a separate notice
- Where the business is really run (third parties may rely on it, Art. 46(2) c.c.)
What Italian law attaches to the legal address
The address carries legal effects beyond the post; each row names its source.
| Rule | What it means for the company | Source |
|---|---|---|
| One sede legale per company, which is its domicile | The company has a single legal address; it works as the company's domicile | Register of Companies, "Sede legale e unità locali"; Art. 46(1) c.c. |
| The deed names the municipality of the seat | The deed states the municipality of the seat and of any secondary seats | Art. 2463(2)(2) c.c. |
| The street and house number go into the Register application | A later change of street within the municipality is a declaration by the directors | Art. 111-ter disp. att. c.c. |
| The seat decides the Register | The notary files the deed with the Register of the seat's district within 10 days | Civil Code, Art. 2330 |
| The operating address is a separate entry | It may or may not coincide with the seat, and is notified to the chamber | Register of Companies |
| The effective seat counts too | Where the registered seat differs from the effective one, third parties may treat the effective seat as the seat | Civil Code, Art. 46(2) |
| Every company registers a PEC as its digital domicile | Registering or changing it is free of stamp duty and secretarial fees | Art. 16(6) D.L. 185/2008 |
| The director's PEC is separate | The sole or managing director's PEC may not coincide with the company's | Art. 13(3) D.L. 159/2025 |
| The annual chamber fee follows the seat | The diritto annuale is owed to the chamber of the seat on 1 January of the year | Marche chamber, diritto annuale 2026 |
| The seat can decide tax residence | A sede legale in Italy for the greater part of the tax period makes the company Italian-resident for income tax | Art. 73(3) TUIR, law in force on 8 October 2026, valid to 31 December 2026 |
The rules Italian law attaches to a company's legal address, as in force on 8 October 2026.
Sources per row; Civil Code rules stated by article.
Moving the registered office: two routes and their state charges
State charges with source and year. The notary's fee has no official scale; ours is on request.
| Within the same municipality | To another municipality | |
|---|---|---|
| Who decides | The directors | The members, by a resolution minuted by a notary (Art. 2436 c.c.) |
| Who files | The directors: an application with the new address through the Comunicazione Unica (Rome chamber) | The notary who minuted the resolution (Rome chamber) |
| What is attached | No deed | The notarial resolution amending the deed |
| State charges (2026) | EUR 65 stamp duty and EUR 30 secretarial fee (fee table, revision 16 of 27 January 2026) | EUR 156 stamp duty on the deed (chamber guidance on the MUI), EUR 200 registration tax (Art. 26(2) D.L. 104/2013), and the Register filing lines |
| Updated articles | None for a street change: the deed names only the municipality | Deposited as a separate Register line: EUR 65 stamp duty and EUR 60 secretarial fee (same fee table) |
| Term | The Rome chamber's page states none | The notary files within 30 days, after checking the legal conditions (Art. 2436(1) c.c.) |
| Annual chamber fee | Unchanged | If the seat moves to another province, owed to the chamber where the seat is on 1 January (Marche chamber, 2026) |
Two routes for moving the seat of a capital company, with the 2026 state charges line by line; no total is given.
A transfer is entered only on acts lawfully adopted by the company's bodies (Rome Register judge, decree of 24 April 2015, per the Rome chamber).
- Who decides and files
- The directors, no deed
- Stamp duty
- EUR 65
- Secretarial fee
- EUR 30 (fee table revision 16, 27 January 2026)
- Who decides and files
- Members' resolution minuted by a notary, who files within 30 days (Art. 2436(1) c.c.)
- Stamp duty on the deed
- EUR 156
- Registration tax
- EUR 200 (Art. 26(2) D.L. 104/2013)
- Updated articles
- EUR 65 stamp duty and EUR 60 secretarial fee
- Notary's fee
- No official scale
Problems we solve
- A formation held for a missing PEC
The Register suspends a new company's application until its PEC is added (Art. 16(6-bis) D.L. 185/2008). We set up the company's PEC and the director's separate one before the deed.
- A PEC that quietly lapsed
An inactive PEC must be replaced within 30 days of the Conservatore's request, or it is struck off, with a doubled Art. 2630 c.c. fine and an ex officio domicile (Art. 16(6-ter) D.L. 185/2008).
- The "struck off for unreachability" warning
Partnerships and sole traders can be cancelled ex officio for it (Art. 3(1)(a) D.P.R. 247/2004). For an S.r.l. or S.p.A. the Rome Register states it has no such route; the exposure is the PEC and effective seat.
- An address the application cannot carry
The Register application needs a street and house number (Art. 111-ter disp. att. c.c.). We check the address against that before the deed is booked.
- A move filed the wrong way
A same-municipality filing and the notarial route are different acts, and the Register enters a transfer only on lawful company acts. We prepare the filing the route requires.
Is your company's address or PEC one of these cases?
Tell us where the company sits today and what has changed; we check it against these cases and set out the filing.
Why work with us
From our practice
We settle the address and both PECs before booking the deed, because an application waits for its PEC.
Lorenzo Gatti, formation and corporate changes lead, Rome. Sets up registered-office contracts and follows the deed to the Register entry and the PEC. Italian, English, Spanish.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need an Italian address before the notary signs?
Yes. The deed names the municipality of the seat (Art. 2463(2)(2) c.c.), the Register application carries the street and house number (Art. 111-ter disp. att. c.c.), and the notary files the deed with the Register of the seat's district within 10 days (Art. 2330 c.c.). The address is settled before the deed is booked.
What does a registered office in Italy cost?
The law sets no fee for the address itself. On the state side, registering the company PEC is free of stamp duty and secretarial fees (Art. 16(6) D.L. 185/2008), and the annual chamber fee is owed to the chamber of the seat. Address providers charge on their own terms. Our fee for coordinating the legal address is on request.
Can the registered office be at a provider's or a professional's office?
Yes. The Register of Companies itself records that capital companies and cooperatives name a professional's office as their registered office. No statute read for this page sets the terms of the hosting agreement, so its content is agreed between the company and the host.
Does the registered office have to be where we work?
No. The operating address is a separate entry that may or may not coincide with the registered office, and it is notified to the chamber. Where the registered seat differs from the effective one, third parties may treat the effective seat as the seat too (Art. 46(2) c.c.).
What is the PEC and why does it go with the address?
The PEC is the certified email address registered as the company's digital domicile. Every company must have one, registering it is free of stamp duty and secretarial fees, and a new company's application is suspended until it is added (Art. 16 D.L. 185/2008). The director registers a separate personal PEC (Art. 13(3) D.L. 159/2025).
What happens if the PEC stops working?
If the Conservatore finds the PEC inactive, the company is asked to name a new one within 30 days, after which the address is struck off. A company with no PEC, or a struck-off one, is fined at the doubled Art. 2630 c.c. rate and the Register assigns it a digital domicile ex officio (Art. 16 D.L. 185/2008).
What does it cost to move the registered office?
Within the same municipality: EUR 65 stamp duty and EUR 30 secretarial fee, with no deed (fee table of 27 January 2026). A move to another municipality needs a notarial amendment: EUR 156 stamp duty on the deed, EUR 200 registration tax and the Register filing lines, plus the notary's own fee, which has no official scale.
Who files a change of seat, and how fast?
Within the same municipality the directors file an application with the new address; the Rome chamber's page states no term. For a move to another municipality the members pass a resolution minuted by a notary, and the notary files it with the Register within 30 days (Art. 2436(1) c.c.).
What if a company cannot be found at its registered office?
For partnerships and sole traders it is a ground for ex officio cancellation (Art. 3(1)(a) D.P.R. 247/2004). For an S.r.l. or S.p.A. the Rome Register states it has no power to cancel the company or move its seat on that ground; the live exposure is the PEC regime and the effective seat.
What is the legal address of a company?
It is the sede legale: the place the deed of incorporation names as the company's administrative centre. Every company has one and only one, and the Register of Companies likens it to the domicile of a natural person. Registered office and registered address mean the same thing.
How do I check a company's information or registered office in Italy?
The free search on the Register of Companies portal shows a company's registered office and PEC; see our guide to searching the Register of Companies. For an extract, a capital company's visura ordinaria costs EUR 5.00 and the visura storica EUR 6.00; the English visura counts as an ordinary one.
What format does an Italian registered address need?
The deed of incorporation names only the municipality of the seat (Art. 2463(2)(2) c.c.). The full street and house number go into the application to the Register of Companies, and a later change of street is filed by the directors as a declaration (Art. 111-ter disp. att. c.c.).
Does the legal address decide where the company is resident for tax?
It can on its own. A company whose sede legale is in Italy for the greater part of the tax period is Italian-resident for income tax, as is one with its effective management or main ordinary management here (Art. 73(3) TUIR, as in force on 8 October 2026, valid to 31 December 2026). Rates sit with our tax advisory service.
Request a legal address plan
Send us the founders' details and where the company will sit; we reply with the address and PEC steps for your file.