Hiring a geometra, architect or engineer in Italy

What the law makes the technician do

The renovation paperwork gives the technician specific jobs. The notice of works known as a CILA must be sworn by a qualified technician (tecnico abilitato), who certifies under his or her own responsibility that the works comply with planning and building rules, are compatible with the seismic and energy rules and do not touch the structure; see renovation permits. For tax deductions the Agenzia delle Entrate says the earthquake bonus relies on a risk-class classification and on certification by “qualified professionals” that the works worked, and that the deduction for removing architectural barriers requires a sworn statement from qualified technicians that the conditions are met. The costs of classifying and checking a building’s seismic performance are themselves deductible for the earthquake deduction (sismabonus).

The pages read do not say which of the three professions may sign which type of work. That is set by each profession’s own rules, which I did not read, so ask the technician in writing which title qualifies them for your job and where in the register you can see it.

The estimate you are entitled to

Article 9, paragraph 4 of decree-law 1/2012 says the fee for professional services is agreed in the forms provided by the profession’s rules when the engagement is given. It then requires the professional, in writing or digitally, to tell you the complexity of the job and all the costs you can expect from the start to the end, and to give you the details of the insurance policy. It adds that the fee must be disclosed beforehand in a general estimate, be proportionate to the importance of the work and be agreed by listing, for each service, all the cost items, including expenses, charges and contributions.

Use that as a checklist when you compare two quotes:

• What does the fee cover: survey, design, permit filing, tax-deduction paperwork, site supervision, final certification?
• Are expenses, social-security contributions and VAT inside the figure or on top?
• Who pays municipal and cadastral fees?
• What happens if the municipality asks for changes?

I have given no price range because the law sets none and the pages I read publish none. Get at least two written quotes.

The insurance disclosure

Article 5 of the professions decree (DPR 137/2012) obliges every regulated professional to take out suitable insurance for harm caused to the client in the course of the work, including custody of documents and valuables. The professional must tell the client, when taking on the job, the details of the policy, its ceiling and any later change; failing to insure is a disciplinary offence. Ask for the policy certificate with the quote and compare the ceiling with the cost of your works.

Checking the title yourself

Payotte does not rank or recommend technicians, and nothing here means a title has been checked for you; you check it.

• Geometra: the national council of surveyors publishes a search form (choose the provincial collegio, then surname, register number or specialisation).
• Architect: the Albo Unico Nazionale lists architects, planners, landscape architects and conservators enrolled with the provincial orders and lets you look up a person by name and provincial order. Its page says the data are public under the law and that unauthorised use of them is prosecutable.
• Engineer: I did not read an official register page. Ask for the engineer’s enrolment in a provincial order of engineers and the enrolment number, and check it with that order.

Use a register only to check the one person you are about to hire; the architects’ page warns against unauthorised use of the data, and Payotte’s own pages do not compile lists.

Contract points worth fixing in writing

Beyond the estimate, make sure the engagement letter states the scope and the deliverables, who files each document with the municipality and the cadastre, who signs the notices, whether the technician supervises the works, and the payment stages. For deduction purposes, the Agency says works over €70,000 started after 28 May 2022 must state in the awarding deed that building-sector collective agreements are applied, so make sure the contractor’s contract contains that clause. A health-authority notice (ASL) before works is also required unless site-safety rules exempt the job.

Which professional to consult

Ask the surveyor or the architect for the first estimate, and an engineer for the structural calculations if your project needs them. A notary is not a building technician; the notary checks the deed and the title.