New passport service to launch in Rome, Milan and Naples in September.

Italy is now offering passport services at post offices in the cities of Bologna, Cagliari and Verona, after launching the initiative at post offices in 300 small towns earlier this year.

The service allows Italian citizens living in Bologna, Cagliari and Verona to apply for passports directly in the post office without having to go to the questura police station.

When submitting their application, applicants can choose to collect their passport from the questura or request home delivery.

Passport applications can also be submitted for children and the service is active in 32 post offices in Bologna, 32 in Verona and 17 in Cagliari.

The initiative, a collaboration between Poste Italiane and Italy's interior ministry, was launched in March in towns with populations of up to 15,000 people.

Poste Italiane: da oggi il servizio passaporti è disponibile nelle città di Bologna, Verona e Cagliari.
I cittadini residenti e domiciliati nelle tre città possono richiedere il rilascio del documento direttamente all’ufficio postale con consegna a domicilio.

II servizio… pic.twitter.com/UwHygOZoNO— Poste Italiane (@PosteItaliane) August 6, 2024

The service will be extended to Rome, Milan and Naples from mid-September, Poste Italiane general manager Giuseppe Lasco confirmed in an interview with Il Sole 24 Ore newspaper on Tuesday.

Lasco said the service would be offered in 100 post offices in Milan, 72 in Naples and 200 in Rome, adding that the average time to receive the passport will be 15 days.

"We are the only country in the world where the state uses a private company to issue passports" - Lasco told Il Sole 24 Ore - "Many are looking to our example, even Japan."

Last month the Italian passport was ranked the world's joint second-most powerful after Singapore, according to the 2024 Henley Passport Index which is based on data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

Italy's passport, along with those of France, Germany, Japan and Spain, offers its holders visa-free travel to 192 destinations.