The Casellario Giudiziale: How Italy's Criminal Record Certificate Works

The casellario giudiziale is the register Italy keeps of a person's criminal convictions and a defined set of other judicial measures. Most people who search for it are not worried about their own history. They need to produce the certificato del casellario giudiziale, the certificate drawn from that register, for a job application, a professional licence, a residence or citizenship file, or a visa application abroad.

This page explains what the certificate covers since a 2018 reform, who can request it and how, what it costs, how long it lasts, and the narrow cases in which an employer can lawfully ask a candidate for one. recordinglaw.com does not process casellario giudiziale requests and does not access anyone's criminal record. Every request described below is made by the individual directly, or by an employer within the specific cases the law allows, with the official offices of the Ministero della Giustizia. For what happens after a crime is reported rather than a certificate requested, see denuncia versus querela, and for the offence most often confused with ordinary harassment, see stalking under Italian law.

Information verified on 21 July 2026. This page provides general legal information and does not constitute legal advice for an individual situation.

What changed in 2018, and what the certificate covers now

Before 26 October 2019, a person needing proof of their criminal record had to choose among three separate documents: the certificato penale, the certificato civile and the certificato generale, each covering a different slice of the same register. D.Lgs. 2 ottobre 2018, n. 122 rewrote art. 24 of the testo unico sul casellario, DPR 14 novembre 2002, n. 313, merging the three into a single certificato del casellario giudiziale. The reform took effect one year after its publication in the Gazzetta Ufficiale, so the single certificate has been the only one in issue since 26 October 2019.

Art. 24, comma 01, states plainly that the interested person has the right to obtain the certificate without giving any reason for the request. That right belongs to the individual, not to whoever is asking them for the document, which matters later on this page when the question is whether an employer can request the certificate directly rather than simply asking the candidate to bring one.

The certificate is not, however, a complete transcript of everything ever recorded. Art. 24 excludes several categories by law, among them convictions for which rehabilitation was granted and not later revoked, convictions for contravvenzioni punished only by a fine, convictions covered by a special cause of extinction under art. 556 c.p., certain decreti penali and art. 445 c.p.p. measures below a two-year threshold, and cases where a messa alla prova concluded successfully. A reader comparing what they remember happening with what the certificate shows should not assume every past event will appear on it.

The certificato dei carichi pendenti: a separate document

A different certificate, the certificato dei carichi pendenti, covers criminal proceedings that are still open rather than convictions already on record. It is regulated separately, in art. 27 of the same testo unico, and it carries its own right to request it without giving a reason. Someone asked to prove they have «no pending charges» needs this document, not the casellario giudiziale, and the two are not interchangeable even though both are requested through the same local offices.

How to request your own certificate

Three channels exist, and as of the verification date on this page all three currently end the same way: collecting the physical document in person. The certificate can be requested in person at the Ufficio locale del casellario, which sits inside the Procura della Repubblica of any city that hosts a Tribunale, by presenting a valid identity document and the appropriate form. It can also be requested by post, enclosing a copy of a valid identity document.

The third channel is online booking through the certificaticasellario.giustizia.it portal, authenticating with SPID, CIE or the Carta Nazionale dei Servizi. Booking online reserves a slot and produces a request form or booking number by email, but the certificate is still picked up at the counter of the chosen local office, and no reminder email is sent ahead of the appointment. pagoPA online payment is not available for this certificate as of this page's verification date, checked directly on giustizia.it, so payment is made at the counter using marche da bollo regardless of channel.

A person applying to become a licensed driving instructor needs a certificate to include with the application file. They book online with SPID, choose the local casellario office nearest their home Procura, and receive a booking number by email. On the appointment day they bring valid ID and the booking confirmation, pay the ordinary fee at the counter, and receive the certificate on the spot rather than waiting for it to be mailed.

Cost and validity

The certificate has a fixed fee schedule, and the same schedule applies whichever channel produced the request.

The ordinary fee of 19,92 euro is split between a 16,00 euro marca da bollo for every two pages of certificate and 3,92 euro in diritti di certificato. Requesting it with urgency adds a further 3,92 euro on top, bringing the total to 23,84 euro. However it is obtained, the certificate is valid for 6 months from its date of issue, not from the date it was requested, and it cannot be renewed by simply asking; a new request has to be made once it expires.

Worked example: an urgent request against a deadline

A dual national living abroad receives a job offer that requires the certificate within 5 working days, faster than the standard processing time at a busy Procura. She travels to the Ufficio locale del casellario in person, requests urgent processing, and pays 23,84 euro in marche da bollo, the standard 19,92 euro plus the 3,92 euro urgency supplement. She collects the certificate the same day rather than waiting for the ordinary queue. Because the certificate is only valid for 6 months, requesting it months before the actual submission deadline risks it expiring before it is used, so the better timing is to request it close to when it will actually be handed over.

When an employer can lawfully ask for a casellario certificate

A private employer does not have a general right to demand a candidate's criminal record certificate as a condition of hiring. The right to obtain the certificate under art. 24 belongs to the individual, and the law requires a private employer, including a volunteer association, to request it directly from the casellario office, using its own form together with the employer's identity document, when establishing an employment relationship that involves direct and regular contact with minors. Art. 25-bis DPR 313/2002, introduced by D.Lgs. 39/2014, frames this as a duty rather than a permission, and non-compliance is an administrative offence. A public administration may request the certificate directly under the equivalent rule when establishing an employment relationship, using its own form.

A youth swimming club hiring a part time instructor who will have direct, regular contact with children falls squarely inside that exception, so the club itself requests the certificate from the casellario office rather than simply asking the candidate to bring one. An ordinary retail shop hiring a cashier has no comparable basis in the law to request the certificate directly, and a candidate volunteering to bring one on their own initiative does not convert into a legal basis for the employer to request it from the casellario office.

Self-certification as an alternative

Where the certificate would otherwise be produced to a public administration or a manager of a public service rather than a private employer, art. 46, lettera aa), of DPR 28 dicembre 2000, n. 445 offers a shortcut. It lets a person sign a dichiarazione sostitutiva, a self-declaration, stating that they have not been convicted of a crime and are not the subject of the security or preventive measures and civil decisions recorded in the casellario giudiziale, instead of producing the physical certificate. The receiving public administration can verify the declaration directly with the issuing office rather than asking the individual to obtain and hand over the document themselves.

That shortcut has real teeth on both sides. It saves a trip to the Procura and the fee, but signing a false declaration, or presenting a certificate whose contents are no longer accurate, falls under art. 76 of the same decree, with penalties under the ordinary criminal law increased by between a third and a half. The autocertificazione route generally does not extend to a private employer, who, outside the minors-contact case above, has no comparable statutory basis to accept or request either document.

What this page does not do

recordinglaw.com is an information resource, not an intermediary. It does not submit casellario giudiziale requests on a reader's behalf, does not look up or hold anyone's criminal record, and does not act as a document service for employers or public bodies. Every step described on this page is carried out directly between the individual, or the employer in the cases described above, and the official offices of the Ministero della Giustizia. For the procedure that follows when a crime is reported rather than a certificate requested, see denuncia versus querela; for the specific offence of stalking, see atti persecutori; for the site's wider Italy coverage, see recordinglaw.com's Italy hub.