Veneto approves law to combat public housing occupation

The Veneto Regional Council has approved a new law aimed at strengthening measures against the illegal occupation and unauthorized use of public residential housing (ERP). The legislation seeks to ensure equity and protect families who are legally registered on housing waiting lists.

Key provisions of the law include stricter sanctions: individuals occupying housing without title will be barred from future ERP applications for 10 years. A 5-year exclusion will apply to those facing validated evictions, those who used fraudulent documents, or those using housing for illegal activities. Additionally, families must transfer their residency to the assigned housing within 30 days, and the maximum period of absence allowed before forfeiture is reduced from six to three months.

The law also establishes a single regional registry to monitor housing stock, maintenance, and assignments. To support enforcement, a technical inter-institutional table will be created, and 300,000 euros have been allocated for 2026-2028 to train local police.