The conclusion first: the forms are not the hard part — what the counter will accept is. With the same kit, I have been told two different things at two different post offices.
How the day actually went
- 9:10, arrived. Took a ticket for Sportello Amico at the machine by the door — not the ordinary postal queue, do not press the wrong button.
- 9:35, called. The clerk looked at my passport and the entry stamp first, then went through my photocopies.
- Turned back, first time: I had only copied the pages of my passport with something on them. What they want is every page, blank ones included.
- Reprinted them at the stationer's next door, back at 10:20 to take a new ticket — your number is not held for you, which stings.
- Turned back, second time: on Modulo 1 I had written my place of birth as the pinyin city name. They wanted the customary Italian spelling plus the country.
- 11:05, third attempt, accepted. The clerk cancelled the €16 marca da bollo, took the file, and printed the ricevuta and the appointment slip for the questura.
Worth remembering
- Photocopy every page of the passport. That was the biggest loss of the day: two trips, an hour gone.
- Your ticket does not carry over. Get turned back once and you queue again. Bring everything the first time.
- I had bought the marca da bollo at a tabaccheria the day before and the counter accepted it straight away. If you cannot find one there, any nearby tabaccheria has them.
- The clerk spoke only Italian. I had written my one sentence into my phone's notes beforehand:
> Buongiorno, vorrei presentare il kit per il permesso di soggiorno per studio.
Read it out and that is enough — he will point at whatever comes next.
Once you have the ricevuta
That ricevuta is your temporary proof of legal stay. I used it to open a bank account the same afternoon and the teller did not ask anything else.
First thing when you get out of the post office: photograph both sides of the ricevuta and put it in the cloud. You will be using that piece of paper for months.
The date on the appointment slip was two months out. Do not turn up early on your own initiative — without an appointment they will not see you.