Online Condominium Assembly in Italy: When It Is Valid

Short answer: yes, an Italian condominium assembly can be held by videoconference, and the law says so in one sentence. The sentence has conditions, and most of what is repeated online about "valid online assemblies" goes beyond it.

What the law says

Art. 66, sixth comma, of the implementing provisions (disp. att.) to the Civil Code: "Anche ove non espressamente previsto dal regolamento condominiale, previo consenso della maggioranza dei condomini, la partecipazione all'assemblea può avvenire in modalità di videoconferenza." That is, even where the regulation does not provide for it, participation by videoconference is possible with the prior consent of the majority of the condòmini.

Three conditions follow from the text:

1. Consent of the majority of the condòmini, prior to the videoconference meeting. The word is previo.
2. The notice says it. Art. 66 disp. att., third comma: if the meeting is held by videoconference, the notice must contain the indication "della piattaforma elettronica sulla quale si terrà la riunione e dell'ora della stessa". The place of a physical meeting is replaced by the platform.
3. The verbale follows its own rule (below).

What the text does not say

This is where the internet goes wrong.

• "Mixed" or "hybrid" assemblies. The comma speaks of participation by videoconference. It does not describe a mixed format, does not say how people present in the room and people online are counted together, and does not prescribe a platform.
• A consent form. There is none in the Code. It does not say how the consent is collected, or whether the majority is counted by heads or by value. If the regulation is silent, put the consent in writing, so it can be shown if the resolution is challenged. That is our advice, not a rule of the article.
• Identification, voting method, electronic signature. Art. 66 disp. att. prescribes no specific method of identification, voting or signature. The chair still needs to know who is present and how many millesimi they represent, to check the art. 1136 quorums. The verbale is "redatto dal segretario e sottoscritto dal presidente"; the text does not say in which medium.
• Different quorums. Art. 1136 has no separate rule for a meeting by videoconference. The same constitutive and deliberative quorums apply; we explain them in the post on the seconda convocazione.

The notice: same rules, one extra item

Everything in the post on convocation still applies: specific agenda, at least five days before the first call, delivered by registered post, PEC, fax or by hand. Ordinary email is not on the list. The one addition is the platform and the time. A notice that says "online" with no platform is an incomplete notice, and an incomplete convocation makes the resolution voidable (art. 66 disp. att., third comma; art. 1137). If you need a starting text, there is an avviso fac-simile.

The verbale

Drafted by the secretary, signed by the chair, and "trasmesso all'amministratore e a tutti i condomini con le medesime formalità previste per la convocazione". So the same four channels, again not ordinary email. It then goes into the register of minutes the administrator keeps (art. 1136, last comma; art. 1130, no. 7). What to put in it is in the post on the verbale; for an online meeting, note also the platform and who joined.

Proxies

Art. 67 disp. att. lets a condòmino be represented by a delegate with a written proxy. Above twenty condòmini the delegate cannot represent more than one fifth of the condòmini and of the proportional value. The administrator cannot be given proxies, for any assembly. Nothing in the Code treats online proxies differently; a written proxy is still a written proxy.

Checklist for an online assembly

• Consent of the majority obtained before the videoconference meeting (art. 66 disp. att., sixth comma: "previo"). Practical advice: collect it before sending the notice and keep it in writing; beyond "prior", the Code sets no specific moment or form.
• Notice by registered post, PEC, fax or hand, at least five days before the first call, with the agenda, the platform and the time.
• Second call on a different calendar day from the first (art. 66 disp. att., fourth comma).
• A secretary and a chair named, because the verbale needs both.
• A way to know who is present and what millesimi they represent, written down as the meeting goes.
• Written proxies collected and checked against the one-fifth cap where it applies.
• Verbale sent to the administrator and to every condòmino by the notice channels.

What Unitify does here, and what it does not

Unitify does not host the video call: you use the videoconference tool you already have. It has no qualified electronic signature. It keeps owners' details and contact channels up to date, lets you publish a copy of notices in the resident app, and runs surveys and votes in the app, which is useful for gathering positions before the meeting. An in-app vote is not the assembly and does not make it valid: that depends on convocation under art. 66 disp. att. and the quorums of art. 1136, and none of that moves into the app. The same goes for the consent of the majority: an app survey can give you evidence of owners' positions, but the Code does not say it counts as the consent, so keep it in writing as well.

If you run several condominiums and want the data ready before each convocation, see the Italy page or book a demo.