How to get an Italian SIM card

What documents do you need to buy a SIM card in Italy?

One valid identity document, always. The Codice delle comunicazioni elettroniche requires operators to identify every customer before a service is activated and to keep a copy of the document shown. For citizens of countries outside the EU, the operator takes a copy of the residence permit, of the passport or an equivalent travel document, or of another recognised identity document. The same article allows the check to be done remotely, which is why online activation works¹.

In practice the shop assistant, il commesso or la commessa, will ask for «un documento» and photograph or scan it. A passport is the safe choice for anyone who is not Italian, because it is the document the law names for non-EU citizens¹.

Do you need a codice fiscale to get an Italian SIM card?

The law does not require it, but the operators' own forms often do. TIM's online activation starts by asking for your codice fiscale and the first five digits of the SIM's serial number, and its video check wants photos of both your identity document and your tessera sanitaria². Vodafone's eSIM page lists a valid identity document and the tessera sanitaria, which carries the codice fiscale, as the two things to have ready⁵. iliad's privacy notice lists the codice fiscale among the data it collects at sign-up, next to a copy of your carta d'identità, passport or driving licence¹². WindTre lets you prove who you are with SPID, with the electronic identity card or with a short video, and asks for the document itself only on the video route⁹.

So the honest answer is: if you plan to live in Italy, get the codice fiscale before you go to the phone shop. It is the key the forms ask for, and it unlocks the normal offers rather than the tourist ones. If you are visiting for a few weeks, you do not need it, because the tourist offers below are built for exactly that case.

Can tourists buy an Italian SIM with just a passport?

Yes. Two of the main networks sell prepaid offers aimed at visitors, and both run for thirty days.

WindTre's Tourist Pass Full is, in the words of its own tariff sheet, reserved for customers born abroad who do not hold a codice fiscale registered in Italy. The sheet, dated 22 January 2024 and the most recent one we could open, lists 14.99 euro for thirty days with 70 GB in Italy, 15 GB of EU roaming, 3 GB in Switzerland, unlimited minutes within Italy and 100 minutes to 53 countries. It switches itself off after thirty days and cannot be reactivated on the same SIM¹⁰. WindTre's shop pages would not open for us, so we cannot confirm the offer is still sold under that name or at that price. In the shop, ask for the current «offerta per turisti».

TIM Tourist, as shown on TIM's page on 26 October 2026, costs 14.99 euro for thirty days plus 10 euro for the SIM card, with 200 GB of which 23 GB work in the EU, unlimited minutes to Italian numbers and 100 international minutes. It is for new customers; TIM's page points you to a shop to get it⁴. Prices change often, so treat both figures as the ones we saw on that day, not a promise.

• Bring the passport itself, not a photo of it. The assistant needs to copy the original¹.
• Expect to give a phone number, which TIM uses to send temporary passwords, and an email for its communications and the eSIM QR code².
• Ask «Quando sarà attiva?», when will it be active. TIM says a few hours for a new line².

What is the difference between a SIM ricaricabile and a contract?

A ricaricabile, or prepagata, is prepaid. You load credit, il credito residuo, and the offer's monthly cost is taken from it. An abbonamento is a subscription billed on an invoice, which is what Vodafone's own support page says the difference comes down to⁶. iliad's contract describes its whole mobile service as prepaid and rechargeable¹¹. For a newcomer, prepaid is the one to ask for: no bank account, no invoices, and you can walk away.

One trap: a prepaid SIM is not forever. Vodafone's prepaid terms give the SIM an initial twelve months, extended by another twelve after every top-up. If you never top up, the contract does not continue, and in the final month you can only receive calls⁷. Keep an Italian number alive by topping up at least once a year.

Topping up is easy. Vodafone lists tabaccherie, edicole, ricevitorie and supermarkets, cash machines of partner banks, Postamat, the operator's app, its website and your bank's home banking⁸. The phrase is «fare una ricarica», and the tabaccaio will ask which operator and how much.

Can you get an Italian eSIM instead of a physical SIM?

Yes, from the main operators, and the identity check is the same. TIM sells its eSIM at 10 euro, the same as a physical SIM, of which 5 euro is credit and 5 euro activation; swapping an existing physical SIM for an eSIM costs 15 euro. Buy online, the QR code arrives by email, and you identify yourself in the MyTIM app with SPID or a video³. Vodafone sends a video-recognition link by email once the eSIM order is accepted⁵. iliad has sold eSIMs since June 2023¹⁴, and its sign-up page on 26 October 2026 showed a 9.99 euro SIM activation charge with an eSIM option¹³.

Two things to know before choosing an eSIM. Your phone must support it, and if you are a tourist it is simpler to let the shop do it, because the video identification asks you to upload photos of your document and record a short video, with the instructions in Italian².

What does the shop assistant ask you, and what do you say?

The conversation is short and the questions are predictable. Use «Lei» with the assistant. These are the lines that carry the whole visit.

What does a real exchange at the phone shop sound like?

1. CommessoBuongiorno, mi dica. Le serve una SIM?Good morning, how can I help? Do you need a SIM?
2. YouSì, vorrei una SIM prepagata. Cosa include l'offerta mensile?Yes, I'd like a prepaid SIM. What does the monthly offer include?
3. CommessoMinuti illimitati e cento giga al mese. Per attivarla mi servono un documento e il codice fiscale.Unlimited minutes and a hundred gigabytes a month. To activate it I need a document and your tax code.
4. YouHo il passaporto, ma il codice fiscale non ce l'ho ancora. Va bene lo stesso?I have my passport, but I don't have a tax code yet. Is that still okay?
5. CommessoPer i turisti abbiamo un'offerta apposta. Mi dà il passaporto, per favore?For tourists we have a dedicated offer. Can you give me your passport, please?
6. YouCerto, ecco. E come si ricarica?Of course, here. And how do I top up?
7. CommessoDall'app oppure in tabaccheria. La linea sarà attiva tra qualche ora.From the app or at a tobacconist. The line will be active in a few hours.
8. YouPerfetto, grazie. Quanto le devo?Perfect, thanks. How much do I owe you?