The Dolce Vita of Tourism and Real Estate

An article written by Christopher Downing, Advisor at Invest in Italy for the IM Yearbook 2025.

Italy is the third-largest economy in the eurozone and a member of G10. It is not just a country; it is a world-famous brand, synonymous for design and quality, with their consumer items such as clothes, furniture, and cars. However, Italy’s most famous export is the memories of tourists that contribute to Italian invisible exports through its tourist industry.

In 2023, the Italian tourist industry contributed over $240 billion (United States Dollars) into Italy’s Gross Domestic Product, representing over 10 percent to Italy’s total economic output. Italy is the fourth most popular tourist destination in the world, welcoming over 50 million tourists a year, ahead of the United Kingdom, Turkey, Greece and Portugal including in 2023 over one million visitors from China.

Since the Covid-19 pandamic, the Average Daily Rate (ADR) in Italy has grown by 46%, whilst the Revenue Per Available Room (RevPAR) is up by +45%. Moreover, the Italian tourist industry is now forecast to grow at an impressive compounded 6.5% annual growth rate (CAGR) over the next decade.

The World Travel and Tourism Council has estimated that tourism will contribute over $300 billion per annum into the Italian economy, employing one in every seven workers by 2034. Dolce Visa SICAF is an Italian domiciled closed-end Alternative Investment Fund established under Government regulations and managed by Gamma Capital, a regulated Fund Management Company authorised by the Bank of Italy, strategically designed to capitalise on the continuing growth of Italy’s hospitality sector.

The business case for DV SICAF is both simple and compelling; it is an investment fund that provides stable returns to investors through strategic investments into high-potential income-producing real estate assets, namely hotels. Investment into DV SICAF also provides the ability to receive a residence permit for Italy, plus visa-free travel to mainland Europe and, for those who may require it, a hedge against instability, with immediate access to a safe haven and an introduction to a high quality of life.

Currently, DV SICAF has a share capital of € 3 million and a further invested net capital of € 10.5 million and has acquired its first asset and has achieved a plurality of investment. It is focused on acquiring and asset managing a diversified portfolio of real estate income-producing assets that are strategically identified to capitalise on the continued growth of Italy’s hospitality sector.

DV SICAF is also investor eligible and pre-approved for Italian Investor Visa Initiative applications. This is subject to only applicant probity and correct documentation on the application.

Investors can collect a visa within 30 to 40 days after submitting the initial online application, and they can collect the residence permit within three to four months of the initial application. This unique offering provides an institutional investment option for the direct ownership of a diverse portfolio of Italian hotel assets through an Investment Fund while obtaining the right and permission to receive an Italian Residence Permit.

This is done by investing the equivalent of €500,000 into a preapproved, regulated, and managed Fund that is focused on providing attractive financial returns for its investors. From inception, the principal driver for DV SICAF was the creation of a fund that had at its core demonstrable investment merits, with the right to obtain a residence permit almost becoming a by-product of what is a compelling investment case.

Its experienced supervisory board directly manages DV SICAF, plus it has a team of legal and financial advisers, all located and domiciled in Italy. The DV SICAF is structured as it is as an Investment Fund and is subject to further oversight and compliance to ensure true value and a sustained income stream for acquired assets.

For example, the hotels will be independently valued by Colliers, providing peace of mind and a transparent investment framework for investment. The Fund has been created both income and fiscal growth, with a projected 15% IRR and a 3.5 return on initial invested funds ascribed to the Fund over the next 10 years Applications to receive a Residence Permit under the Italian Investor Visa Initiative are also risk-free, for unlike other schemes where the absolute purchase of a property or the making of an actual investment into a fund or company starts the journey, for Italy, this is not the case.

It is unique in simply that the process for the Residence Permit does not require any prior investment into the country or the purchase of any property prior to the application process. The final investment can be made into DV SICAF after the granting of the Residence Permit. Also, the scheme is open to the investor, their spouse, and dependent family, without additional investment. Its highlights include a total circa 120-day turnaround time, the issuance of the first visa fast-tracked and given within 30-40 days, and the unique risk-free advantage that the investment can be made up to 90 days after the applicant’s first visit to Italy, which is effectively 60 days after the Residence Permit is granted.

The Residence Permit is granted for an initial two years as a probation period and is automatically renewable for a further rolled over three-year period, and this rollover period is granted in perpetuity, provided that the original investment is made and then maintained in DV SICAF. Permanent Residence is also possible, this after five years of issuance of the Investor Visa Residence Permit, providing the investor and dependent family with an option to fully relocate to Italy.

One can apply for full citizenship after 10 years, which entails full residence and a language test, whilst flat tax options are also available.

The requirements to obtain the Residence Permit are simple: applicants must simply choose to invest in DV SICAF as the qualifying investment, confirm no criminal record and that the investment is not the proceeds of crime, terrorism or money laundering and that all passports should have an unexpired period of at least two years and three months.

“Applications to receive a Residence Permit under the Italian Investor Visa Initiative are also risk free, for, unlike other schemes where the absolute purchase of a property or the making of an actual investment into a fund or company starts the journey, for Italy, this is not the case.”