Voluntary work

To become a civil protection volunteer, join one of the organizations included in the Central List or the Territorial Lists available on our website and the websites of the Regions and Autonomous Provinces. 

To find the most suitable organization to join, you can consider these aspects:

• the territorial scope of intervention (international, national, regional, municipal);
• the type of events for which it intervenes;
• the eventual operational specialization of the organization (divers, dog handlers, AIB);
• the level of participation in institutional activities, the availability required of volunteers;
• the distance between the association's headquarters and your home.

Contact the organization you are interested in directly to request information on how to register and the possible limitations (e.g., the age requirement for registration).

For further information, check our website's section dedicated to Voluntary work.

To help with interventions in areas affected by disasters, it is necessary to be part of a voluntary organization that is already trained in intervention.

In these cases, the contribution of single individuals does not ease the rescue actions. If you already belong to an organization, ask your referent for instructions.

Otherwise, if you intend to offer help for the first time, you must register with a Civil Protection voluntary organization included in the Central List or the Territorial Lists.

The employer must grant paid leave (reimbursements will be recognized under Article 39 of Legislative Decree 1/2018).

There are no restrictions on the performance of civil protection volunteer activities for a civil employee, except in the case of management activities of voluntary organizations (for example, you cannot hold management positions within the association where you decide to perform your voluntary activity).

To request reimbursement, fill out the Employer Reimbursement Request Form and send it to the entity that activated the organization within two years of the conclusion of the intervention, exercise, or training activity in which your employee participated.

On the letterhead, kindly provide the employee's name, employment dates, the event they participated in, the company's tax code, and details on receiving the reimbursement. The owner or legal representative of the company should sign the form.

For further information, you can visit the Refund Procedures section of our website.

To request reimbursement, fill out the Self-employed Person's Reimbursement Request Form and send it to your Region or the Civil Protection Department, along with the tax return for the previous year.

For more information, visit the Refund Procedures section of our website.

The vehicles of the Civil Protection Department have red license plates in the format DPC*A00000, with an asterisk featuring the seal of the Italian Republic and a number that increases starting from A00001.

If your report does not involve one of these vehicles but pertains to a vehicle belonging to a voluntary organization or a municipal civil protection group, please submit the issue directly to the relevant Municipality or Region.

Road network management does not fall within civil protection tasks, but it is an exclusive competence of the Public Safety Authorities and of the subjects in charge.

In particular conditions, however, the civil protection organizations can support the Police Forces by carrying out activities of assistance and information to the population.

The use of volunteers is, therefore, allowed under the following conditions:

• The subject coordinating the activities is univocally identified (Local Police or other Police Force)
• It is established and shared with the volunteers employed that the activities to be carried out do not involve any replacement or substitution of functions (for example, the use of "traffic bollards" is prohibited)
• The volunteers employed are informed of the tasks to be carried out. They are organized and coordinated through actions planned by the competent Police Authority, which remains, at all times, the contact person responsible for the activities.

Reports of improper use of volunteers should be addressed to the municipality where the event was held.

For more information on how to involve civil protection volunteers in public events, you can consult the circular of the Head of the Department of Civil Protection of August 6, 2018.

If you feel that the tasks you've been given are unrelated to civil protection activities, please send the report to your organization's national secretariat. If you are part of a municipal group, send it to the municipality and your Region.

For further information on the involvement of voluntary associations in organizing events, see the circular of the Head of the Civil Protection Department dated August 6, 2018.

The Department of Civil Protection may grant contributions to voluntary organizations registered on the National List to upgrade equipment and means, improve technical preparation, and train citizens.

The contributions are granted within the limits of the appropriations allocated. Applications for granting contributions must be submitted by December 31 each year using the appropriate forms.