The Constitutional Court, with sentence no. 67 of 2024, declared the provision of the Veneto regional law (law no. 39 of 2017) unconstitutional which limited residents in the region for at least five years. A historic decision that reaffirms the access to public housing (Erp) to citizens and foreigners only right to housing as an inviolable right of every person, regardless of the duration of residence in a given territory.
An unjustified obstacle to the right to housing
The rule in question, contained in article 25, paragraph 2, letter a) of the regional law, introduced in 2017, established that to access ERP housing it was necessary to demonstrate a residence of at least five years in Veneto. A requirement which, according to the Consulta, was evident unreasonable and discriminatoryas it did not take into account the real housing needs of citizens and hindered access to housing for those in need, regardless of their residence history.
In fact, the Council considered this requirement to be unreasonable and conflicting with the principles of equality and reasonableness provided for in Article 3 of the Italian Constitution.
The Consulta: priority to need, not to residence
In its ruling, the Constitutional Court underlined that the right to housing is a fundamental right protected by the Italian Constitution and that access to the ERP must be guaranteed to all those who find themselves in a situation of need, without discrimination based on length of residence.
The Court highlighted that prolonged residence in a territory does not represent a reliable indicator of housing needas those who find themselves in economic difficulty are often forced to move to look for work or better opportunities.
Furthermore, the five-year residence requirement risked discriminating against those who, for work, study or other reasons, had not been able to establish continuous residence in Veneto.
What happens now?
The ruling of the Council entails the cancellation of the five-year residency requirement for access to the ERP in Veneto. The Ater (Territorial Agencies for Residential Construction) will therefore have to review their notices and their rankings to comply with the new legislation.
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The abolition of the five-year residency requirement for access to the ERP in Veneto represents a step forward towards a more inclusive and supportive Italy, where the right to housing is guaranteed to all, without discrimination of any kind.
