If you’ve been dreaming about living out your own “Under the Tuscan Sun,” now’s your chance. The rustic Italian region, known for wine and rolling hills, recently announced it will pay people to move to its rural towns.
Called the “Residenzialità in Montagna 2024″ – which translates to “Residentiality in the Mountains 2024″ – the new initiative by the Tuscany Region offers between 10,000 euros (about $10,715.10) and 30,000 euros (about $32,145.30) to those willing to move to a Tuscan town with 5,000 residents or less.
The payment is meant to go toward the purchase of the home and renovation costs but cannot exceed more than half of the home’s price. The home will also need to become a residence or habitual residence, not just a vacation home.
The initiative’s launch is “to favor and encourage the repopulation and socio-economic revitalization of mountain areas, acting in contrast to the marginalization of these areas,” according to the application’s official website.
Italy is incentivizing new residents to help revitalize its rural villages suffering from a dwindling population.
Unfortunately, you’ll need to move quickly to take advantage of the initiative: the application window opened on June 12 and ends on July 27 at 1 p.m. local Tuscan time.
There are also some strict requirements: Americans must apply for a residence permit “lasting no less than 10 years,” register as residents in an Italian town or city and not already live in a mountain village.
Applications can be completed online at the Tuscany Region website.