The Foreign Ministry’s majestic Farnesina Palace is hosting more than 120 heads of mission for the biennial Conference of Italian Consuls on 12–13 June. According to pre-event briefs, the agenda is dominated by service modernisation: expansion of the ‘Fast-IT’ online appointment platform, rollout of remote-video interviews for certain visa categories and coordinated campaigns to clear summer passport backlogs. Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani opened the session by stressing that efficient consular services are “an export booster,” facilitating both inbound tourism and outbound investment. Interior-Minister Matteo Piantedosi added that consular posts will play a frontline role in the EU’s new Migration and Asylum Pact, pre-checking applicants likely to be channelled into Italy’s accelerated border procedures. From an expatriate-mobility perspective, the most concrete deliverable is a plan to allow Italian nationals registered with AIRE (Anagrafe Italiani Residenti all’Estero) to apply for electronic ID cards (CIE) at Italian municipalities from 1 June 2026—a move expected to ease bottlenecks at busy consulates in London, Buenos Aires and New York. Consuls are also considering a pilot that would let high-volume corporate sponsors—shipping firms, cruise lines and fashion houses—upload batches of work-visa applications via an API rather than the standard web portal. If adopted, the feature could shave days off processing times for seasonal workers needed during Milan Fashion Week and Venice cruise turnarounds. The conference closes with a Q&A session streamed live; Italians abroad have been invited to email questions in advance. Mobility managers should monitor the final communiqué for timelines on new digital tools and for any fee changes linked to API-based applications.
