The invisible obstacle: how financial exclusion holds back the integration of migrants in Italy
PAF! Project – Financial Literacy Programme
The invisible obstacle: how financial exclusion holds back the integration of migrants in Italy
“When your residence permit has expired, it is impossible to carry out any transaction: neither at the post office nor at the bank. You can’t even open a bank account. The only solution is to find an Italian who will go with you and declare that they know you, but the procedure is very difficult.”
“And then there are those who have applied for asylum and have never had the chance to open an account: they need to work with a contract to help the outcome of their residence permit, but at the same time they cannot open an account because they don’t have an identity card.”
These statements by citizens with a migrant background are among the critical issues that emerged during the PAF! Project, the financial literacy programme active in Lombardia, Lazio, Sicilia and Campania, which aims to remove the obstacles that make it difficult for migrant workers to fully integrate.
In a market economy, the right to “bankability” — that is, the possibility of opening a bank account to receive a salary or manage expenses — should be a pillar of civil rights. Yet, for people with a migrant background in Italy, this right often remains a mirage or an obstacle course.
The research “Bussate e (non) vi sarà aperto” (Knock and it shall (not) be opened)
These critical issues are highlighted by the research “Bussate e (non) vi sarà aperto”, carried out as part of the PAF! Project, which shows how the Italian financial system still struggles to keep pace with a changing society, often leaving citizens with a migrant background on the margins.
The study, coordinated by Fondazione ISMU ETS with the collaboration of CIR (for Catania and Roma) and Consorzio La Rada (in Salerno), analysed four key local financial contexts: Catania, Milano, Roma and Salerno. These urban areas were chosen precisely because of the high share of resident population with a migrant background.
The barriers that remain invisible
To truly understand the barriers to access, the researchers took a field-based approach to bring out the “mismatch” between what banks offer and people’s real needs. The survey was carried out through focus groups and by listening directly to foreign citizens and third-sector representatives, revealing the daily difficulties of those who experience exclusion first-hand.
Listening to those directly involved reveals deep critical issues that go beyond purely economic data:
- The language barrier — poor command of technical Italian is the first major obstacle.
- The bureaucracy trap — those whose legal status is perceived as “uncertain” (even if legal, such as asylum seekers or those waiting for their permit to be renewed) may face difficulties in opening basic bank accounts.
- The lack of specific skills — people often rely on word of mouth or informal advice, with the risk of signing contracts that are not suited to their needs.
Financial education for lasting inclusion
Adequate financial education could help limit the impact of these risks, strengthening people’s ability to manage their economic resources in an aware, responsible and long-term way.
Financial inclusion — the possibility of accessing payments, savings, credit and insurance in an informed way and at sustainable costs — is a fundamental element for the economic and social empowerment of people and businesses.
Promoting it means not only improving the quality of life of migrants, but also supporting their full integration into the economic and social fabric of the country, laying the foundations for a stable and lasting path to inclusion.
The PAF! Project is co-funded by the European Union under the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF, in Italian FAMI) 2021-2027, Specific Objective “2 – Legal migration/integration”, Implementation measure “2.d”, Scope of application “2.k” — Intervention “Active participation of migrant citizens in economic, social and cultural life”.