½ûÂþÌìÌÃ

½ûÂþÌìÌÃs can only have one place in which they are resident, so a second home owner can't get the resident rate on the home in which he is not registered as resident. I think that the resident rate is ONLY applied to supplies of 3.3kW: there is no difference in what you pay if you have more than 3.3kW - (Badger's links should make this clear).

I can't let you get away with the assertion that anyone other than Ronald Ashri destroyed the 'old' forum. He had some misguided belief that he could, by way of an ill judged all singing all dancing bug infested user interface, turn himself into Zuckerberg, while simultaneously implementing a 'registration' process which made the early incarnation of Google+ seem positively welcoming! The old forum had certain social difficulties, but you, Gala, could quite easily have implemented the ignore button (maybe there is also one on this forum, which you have been clever enough to discover if you have succeded in concealing the posts from Flip and Esme). Having said that the techy change was a compete piece of imbecility, even the old forum would have been a pale shadow of its former self by now - a victim of the realisation that buying a dream home in Italy is not, and never was, the way to great riches.

At the moment there is no requirement for an over 65 year old to show any evidence of private health cover - it is assumed that 'pensioners' are treated free under all EU health systems, thus they become exempt from the arrangements put in place by most European health authorities concerning non nationals of the country. However the bar for both men and women is set at 65. I can't recall anything about the 'proof of income' requirement being irrelevant (or relaxed) for over 65s, but I haven't looked into this. The issue of being taxed under the ½ûÂþÌìÌà system on worldwide income would become irrelevant if the only income was derived from occupational or state pension payments (clearly covered by dual tax arrangements). An income derived from a private pension probably would be taxed under ½ûÂþÌìÌà tax regulations. If you have any substantial income it is important to run your options past an informed cross border tax specialist before committing to ½ûÂþÌìÌà residency. I have heard only good reports about this firm, if you need cross border tax planning

I had a look to see if the english language guide was up on the site, and it doesn't seem to be, yet. However, in terms of when you have to deliver your completed census form, I came across the following - clear as mud, isn't it! First inform yourself of the population of your comune.... Il termine di scadenza della consegna del questionario da parte dei cittadini sarà differente a seconda dell’ampiezza del Comune di residenza, come di seguito indicato: entro il 23 dicembre 2011: nei comuni con meno di 20.000 abitanti; entro il 31 gennaio 2012: nei comuni compresi tra 20.000 e 150.000 abitanti; entro il 29 febbraio 2012: nei comuni maggiori di 150.000 abitanti.  

The other replies are substantially correct. If you decide to take the agevolazione on the 'stamp duty', then you are obliged to formally declare yourself resident and attach yourself to the anagrafe of your comune within 18 months of  purchasing your house (as prima casa and getting the tax break on the 'stamp duty'). As others have mentioned, the requirements for being accepted as a resident (assuming you are EU citizen), may seem to be quite onerous - but perhaps you can accept these (or are over 65 years old when they become much less onerous). However, becoming 'a resident' does (IMO) have serious taxation implications. If you declare yourself 'resident' then the default assumption is that you spend more than 6 months of the year in Italy, and you are then (by default) liable to be taxed in Italy on your worldwide earnings. The historic ideas of 'domicile' for tax purposes seem to me to have been altered - (the 'double taxation' agreements remain in place) - but if you have any substantial income it would be worthwhile getting advice about whether saving a few thousand Euros on the 'stamp duty' is a sensible decision.

Hmmm, hopefully it willl all go smoothly, but you should be aware that ½ûÂþÌìÌà bureaucracy is a serial process, and you may not be able to establish contracts or the like until you are the proprietor of your house. It isn't as if anyone is determined to block your rational ideas of getting it all sorted "ahead of time" - just that maybe they cannot comprehend why you would want to do this! I'm just posting this to alert you to an ½ûÂþÌìÌà mindset which you might encounter and find offensive or obsructive: that is not their intention (in my experience) they are just being 'sensible' in their terms.

Alexcal gives good advice on 'chiavetta' coverage, and if TIM isn't good for you then maybe 3 or Wind or Vod could be. Ask a neighbour. However, your options might include a non land-line based service for decent broadand access without using a mobile network. I'm completely in the dark about Sardegna, but it's possible that or will offer you the option of putting in your address and sending round a rep to see if you have 'line of sight' to one of their wide area wifi (microwave based, I believe) networks. These can be quite economical for full time residents - about €20 per month, and you don't have to pay the TI canone. I doubt that you could receive - but you never know. Alternatively (because I only know about mainland central Italy) why not try a search on using search terms adsl and sardegna.

Well alanh is giving you a complete rally roadbook (personally I'd test out their knowledge of tulip diagrams!) but to be serious. Give utterly precise distances if any of the route involves gravel or potholey road stuff, and tell visitors to use their trip speedometer. 1.7km on a truly bad road could easily take 20minutes, (and of course the tarmac dwellers will imagine they have done ten kilometers and completely missed your house). If they've hired a modern Panda the trip is instantly available at the end of the stick on the rhs of the steering wheel - not quite where you'd expect it perhaps! I promise you if you instruct a drive of 1.85km even the thickest mug will clock that you are serious and read their handbook to find out how to set the trip.

It really isn't a big issue - apart from your name and place of birth, country of origin, and where you lived in the past (which have to be written in ½ûÂþÌìÌÃ, which means you put Gran Bretagna or Stati Uniti eg rather than England or US) all the rest is just box ticking. alanh's query is not answered in the bumf, and as soon as the helplines open I will find this information because everybody is asking about it. Could I ask Karen where she found the information that the form should be returned by Nov 20? I can't find a 'scadenza' and the 'help line' remains open until the end of Feb 2012.

AFAIK it is obligatory (whether ½ûÂþÌìÌà or a visitor) to carry acceptable ID with you at all times while in Italy.   I have always interpreted 'acceptable' as an (½ûÂþÌìÌà or other EU ex UK) ID card, any passport, an ½ûÂþÌìÌà driving license (maybe also a UK photo driving licence would suffice.) A credit card or a health card (which do not have a photo) would not pass my test in any way. For internet access - I agree that people are starting to enquire about it for holiday rentals - and I suppose it depends on how many weeks you have 'booked in'. I'd be very reluctant to supply a landline ADSL (min €20 per month, and as far as I know there are no 'part time' deals) - so I'd look at a 'dongle hire' solution. If the guests need it, it's - what - an extra €5 a week? Some plan without a Gb limit of course. (Maybe get the guests to sign something so that they are responsible for any access to porn sites while they are renting! Same as the car hire people do, if, indeed, this is an issue.)