Italy Imposes In-Person Identity Verification for Short-Term Rental Guests

Tourists in Italy will no longer be able to access short-term rental properties using key boxes, following a directive from the country’s police chief mandating that owners personally verify guest identities. This measure has been introduced for security reasons and mirrors a similar policy previously implemented in Florence. The growing popularity of short-term rentals in recent years has coincided with the widespread adoption of key boxes and other systems that enable guests to check in remotely and enter properties without ever meeting their hosts. For some, these boxes have become emblematic of overtourism and have also drawn criticism regarding their visual impact. Police Chief Vittorio Pisani informed journalists that the necessity had arisen to “implement stringent measures” aimed at preventing risks stemming from “the possible housing of dangerous persons and/or persons linked to criminal or terrorist organisations.” In a circular distributed to local prefectures, he stated that during a “delicate historical moment at an international level,” his office “confirms the obligation imposed on the managers of accommodation facilities of any kind or type to verify the identity of guests by means of a visual check.” Pisani indicated that the order was issued in consideration of the “intensification of the phenomenon of so-called ‘short-term rentals'” as well as “the numerous political, cultural and religious events being planned,” including the Catholic Church’s 2025 Jubilee celebrations. Rome Mayor Roberto Gualtieri yesterday expressed his approval of the order, which originated from the Interior Ministry. He commented that it would lead to “more effective controls on access, and a first brake on unfair competition.”