Aussies travelling to Italy face $3000 fine for little-known rule

by Admin
July 26, 2024

Aussies travelling to Italy face 00 fine for little-known rule

While most travellers feel safer leaving their passports in their hotel room safe while out exploring, this isn’t the best idea when travelling in one popular European destination.

According to visa and passport agency Travel Visa Pro, there are laws in Italy which require all non-European visitors to carry their passport on them as their form of identification.

Police can ask travellers at any time to present their passport, which must be valid and have the entry stamp into the Schengen Area — an area encompassing 29 European countries that are border-free.

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“Failure to have a valid passport can land you in trouble as the police cannot identify you and gauge whether you are in Italy legally,” Travel Visa Pro said.

“In many cases, the police can accept passport copies as enough proof. However, this depends on the police officer questioning you, as some can detain you until you can provide a valid passport.”

Travellers who cannot present a passport which meets the requirements may face a fine of up to €2000 ($A3,315) or even up to a year in prison.

One person revealed on Reddit they only learnt about this largely unknown rule the hard way when they were pulled up by police in central Florence earlier this year.

The person and their boyfriend were walking home from dinner when police demanded to see their passports, which they had left back at their hotel.

“I always keep my passport in the hotel safe so it’s less likely to be lost/stolen and we explained it was back there, a 10-minute walk away,” they wrote.

“They were not happy and proceeded to essentially scold/yell at us for several minutes insisting that we must have it on our person, asking us a million questions, and no, a photo was not good enough, because they specifically need to check the Schengen entry stamp to make sure more than 90 days has not passed.”

The couple pleaded ignorance and were eventually let off with a stern warning.

“It was very unnerving and stressful,” they wrote.

To avoid losing your passport or having it stolen while you are carrying it, Travel Visa Pro suggested using a special belt or wallet that is designed to carry a passport.

It also advised to keep it hidden at all times so as not to draw attention to it.

People can also consider suggested making coloured copies of the passport, including the visa stamp, just in case.