Who can be a shareholder

The following persons may set up and own a company:

• Anyone who is an Italian, EU or EFTA citizen
• Any non-EU citizen for whom the condition of reciprocity has been verified
• Any non-EU citizen who holds a residence permit or a visa valid for occupation as an employee or for self-employment, for the running of an individual business, for family reasons, for humanitarian reasons or for reasons of study, and their family members who have valid residency
• A citizen of one of the countries with which Italy has concluded bilateral agreements on investment promotion and protection (so-called BITs)
• A stateless person or refugee provided they have been resident in Italy for at least three years.

Minors, too, and incapacitated and legally incompetent individuals may become shareholders by way of a series of specific permissions. This is the case where a child inherits a shareholding; or where there is a shareholding by a person for whom a supporting administrator has been appointed. Given that these are very special cases, in-depth advice from a notary is needed before any decisions are made.