Once you get to Italy: What to Do
You now have a VISA and got to Italy. Within 8 working days of your arrival date in Italy you must request the “Permesso di soggiorno” (Residence Permit) for study purposes. You also need to get the Tax Code (“Codice Fiscale”) card. These two steps are described below. Once you have applied for your “Permesso di soggiorno” and have your “Codice Fiscale”, you may now go in person to the Campus Registry Office with the originals of your documents (transcrips, DOV, etc) and finalize your matriculation.
Campus Registry Office (called “Segreteria Studenti di Ingegneria e Architettura”. Address: Parco Area delle Scienze, 23 – Campus universitario – Parma. Phone: +39 0521 905111, Fax +39 0521 906051, e-mail: seging@unipr.it. LMCE reference person: Mrs Marina Corradini.
Segreteria Service Hours:
Monday: online on Teams (you must reserve on https://easyacademy.unipr.it/portaleplanning/servizi/prenota/servizi by selecting “Appuntamento Segreteria Corsi Ingegneria”. Appointments are in slots of 15min each. Once your Appointment time is confirmed, you will get a personal Teams Link by email a few minutes before the appointment)
Thursday 11am-1pm: in presence at the Campus Registry Office (even without reservation, but priority given to reservations). At that time, please have with you:
BUS Warning (this mishap occurs to so many incoming foreign students that it is worth remarking) : When you are in Italy and take a Bus, you need to have a ticket AND VALIDATE IT ONBOARD AT THE TICKET MACHINES or else you will be fined (75 Eur fine, and the probability of getting caught in Parma is close to 1). You can buy the ticket on board from the driver (more costly) or before taking the bus at any Journals stand or at any Tobacconist shop (those with a big T sign outside the shop).
How to get the Residence Permit (“Permesso di soggiorno”)
To do this, you must get the “Residence Permit Kit” (“Kit per il Permesso di Soggiorno”), an envelope with a yellow band containing forms, instructions, and a payment slip. You can get the kit at any Post Office offering the service “Sportello amico” (“Friendly help desk”): please ask in any Post Office directions to find the closest office offering the service, or go to the Central Post Office, address: Via Carlo Pisacane, 1, in the center of Parma. Once you have the kit, an example of English instructions to fill-in the residence permit forms can be found for instance at: https://www.som.polimi.it/downloadbrochuremip/DOCUMENTI_ISO/ISO_APPLY_PERMIT_STAY.pdf.
After completing the actions explained in the kit instructions, you must buy a “marca da bollo” for 16 euros (a stamp duty) from any tobacconist shop (“tabaccheria”) and attach it to the filled forms in the kit.
The completed kit must be submitted to a Post Office: there you will be asked to show the passport and pay 137 euros (approx.). You will also be given a postal receipt and a letter with details of an appointment date for the Immigration Office of the Questura (Police Headquarters – Immigration Office), in via Chiavari, 15 – Parma, where the Residence Permit will be finally issued.
That postal receipt is an important piece of document, as it proves that you are legally in Italy and it replaces the Residence Permit until that is officially issued. The receipt must always be with your passport.
A convenient Post Office to submit the filled kit is found at this address: Strada Quarta, 6 – Parma (PR).
It is close to the Revenue Agency Office where the “Codice fiscale” is issued (see next section), so submitting the kit and getting the code can be done at one time.
Map: http://goo.gl/maps/Pr6ZREDSSfk.
Keep in mind that the “permesso” must be renewed every year. You need to have passed at least 2 exams to get your permesso renewed.
How to get the Tax Number (“Codice fiscale”) CARD
The “Codice Fiscale” (Tax code) is a taxpayer unique identification code that is used in all interactions with government agencies and public administrations in Italy. It is similar to the National Insurance number (NI) in the UK or the Social Security Number (SSN) in the US. It is a 16 alphanumeric digit code.
The “Codice Fiscale” (CF) card is issued by the “Agenzia delle Entrate” (the Italian Revenue Agency). It looks like a credit card and can be used for many purposes, such as getting medical care.
As of September 2023, a dedicated University office called International Students Desk (ISD) is now active to issue incoming international students their codice fiscale. The office also helps international students with their permesso di soggiorno, house rental agreements and other bureaucratic issues. Info at: https://www.unipr.it/en/sportello-studenti-internazionali.
To access the ISD services you must have an account on ESSE3 and you need to have paid the regional tax. Here is the address and the working days and hours
International Student Desk
address: piazzale San Francesco 3 – 43121 Parma
OPEN ON
– Mondays: 9.00 – 13.00
– Tuesdays: 9.00 – 13.00 (in presence of C.I.A.C. for PERMESSI DI SOGGIORNO)
14.30 – 17.00 (in presence of AGENZIA DELLE ENTRATE for CODICI FISCALI)
– Thursdays: 9.00 – 13.00 (in presence of C.I.A.C. for PERMESSI DI SOGGIORNO)
You can either go directly (and hope to get service) or you can book an appointment at the link
https://easyacademy.unipr.it/portaleplanning/servizi/prenota/servizi
select CIAC for the permessi di soggiorno and select Agenzia delle entrate for the Codice fiscale.
Accommodation
The University of Parma, like most Italian universities, is not a residential university, i.e., it does not have dormitories or apartments for students. Therefore students must search for an accommodation on their own. However, help is provided to students who search for housing through the WELCOME OFFICE (see below), as explained at the following page.
Tuition fee reductions and ERGO Scholarships
Information for newly enrolled students is provided on this operational web site at the following page.
FOR THOSE WHO GOT TUITION FEE REDUCTION THE PREVIOUS YEAR: Please keep in mind that you MUST APPLY EVERY YEAR through the ERGO website for Tuition Fee reductions, or else you will have to pay the maximum amount of Tuition Fee. For this you have to:
a) apply for tax reduction on the ERGO website by Nov 03 at 5pm and provide the updated documentation of your family’s income and properties, apostilled and translated, by Nov 05 of the present year;
b) to enroll in the second year you need to have passed in the period from 11/aug of previous year till 10/aug of the present year at least 10 CFUs to be eligible for the minimum tax (that means in practice 2 exams, 6CFUs each).
To enroll in the third year (i.e. the first “out-of-course” year) you need to have passed 25 CFUs to get a tax discount. After the third year no tax discounts are allowed.
If instead you got an ERGO scholarship, you must pass at least 30CFU (i.e. normally 5 courses, 6CFU each) every year to have your scholarship renewed.
Welcome Office
For problems related to finding accommodation in Parma, you can contact the “WELCOME OFFICE ” (SERVIZIO ACCOGLIENZA), Piazzale San Francesco, 3 (in the centre of town), email: welcome@unipr.it , Telephone: +39 0521 034150; contact person Mrs Tiziana Cordaro. The welcome office website is: http://cai.unipr.it/it/accoglienza-e-sportello-alloggi/accoglienza—english-version/156/.
A comprehensive university guide for foreign students in Parma is the “welcome package for Erasmus and international students”, which can be downloaded together with other general university information at the link https://www.unipr.it/en/prepare-your-arrival-parma.
Place where classes are held
All classes and other academic activities of the course in Communication Engineering are held on Campus.
The Campus, officially named “Parco Area delle Scienze”, is located six kilometers south of the town center and is reached by a bus service (no. 7, 21, or campus express) in 20 min from the town center.
Detailed Maps of Campus are provided here.