A general introduction to Space Law in Italy

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Introduction

Italy has a long tradition in space activity. Its history began in the immediate post-war period, thanks to the scientific and political links established with the United States at the end of the Second World War. The third nation in the world to launch a satellite with a national team, after the Soviet Union and the United States, in 1964, and the fifth nation in the world to put an object into orbit, Italy is a founding member of the European Space Agency (ESA). Italy is now ESA's third-largest contributor to mandatory programmes and the largest contributor to optional programmes, with €2.5 billion in the fields of telecommunications, space exploration, navigation and space transport.

The increasing importance of space policy and the growing role of Italy in this sector led the legislator to create the Italian Space Agency (ASI) in 1988. Drawing from best international practice, the ASI launched a broad programme of exploration in the various fields of space research and international collaboration with the world's most significant research and space agencies, which continue to this day. Italy plays a leading role in the most important manned space project to date, the International Space Station (ISS),¹ which serves as a strategic multilateral platform for industrial and technological development projects. Italy's contributions to the ISS are substantial in terms of the provision of personnel and scientific knowledge, as well as the construction of approximately 50 per cent of its infrastructure.

Italy has always played a significant role in space activities, in cooperation with other international powers, as well as on its own, reaching levels of excellence, as demonstrated by COSMO-SkyMed,² the first space Earth observation programme for dual applications (civil and military), which was conceived and financed by the ASI, and the PRISMA satellite, a hyperspectral Earth observation system.³

Thanks to its space industrial chain, Italy ensures the production of all components of ground and space segments, making it one of the few countries in the world with a complete space value chain.

In addition to the major players on the international markets, the Italian industrial landscape includes a vibrant and broad community of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), such as start-ups and spin-offs, which together represent an excellent potential for growth in the space economy era.⁴ The global space economy was worth US$570 billion in 2023,⁵ with projections indicating it could exceed US$1 trillion by 2040.⁶

With an industry of approximately 300 companies (90 per cent of which are SMEs),⁷ a related sector of 4,000 companies and 12 technological districts at regional level,⁸ Italy recognises that its robust industrial fabric can help it yield significant results through the cross-fertilisation of terrestrial and space technologies.

The aim is to make the knowledge and technologies developed in space projects accessible to commercial, industrial, social and research sectors other than those from which they originate.

To achieve this goal, Italy has earmarked €4.1 billion for space-related projects in 2021–2026, excluding special projects; €2.3 billion of this will come from the National Plan for Recovery and Resilience (PNRR).⁹ Public investment is expected to reach €7 billion by 2027.¹⁰

This financial commitment reflects Italy's broader strategy to consolidate its leadership in the space domain, which is increasingly recognised as a strategic pillar of national industrial policy.

In line with this objective, Italy has taken decisive steps to modernise its regulatory framework by enacting Law No. 1415 on the space economy (the Italian Space Law),¹¹ which was approved by the Italian Senate on 11 June 2025.

As the country's first comprehensive legal framework dedicated to space activities, the Italian Space Law marks a pivotal milestone. It establishes clear rules governing access to outer space by operators, acknowledging space as a strategic intersection of geopolitical, economic, scientific and military interests, and aims to stimulate investment in the emerging space economy.

The objectives of the Law include promoting investment, enhancing national competition, and fostering scientific research and expertise in an increasingly strategic sector. The Italian Space Law also fills a gap in the national legal framework in line with the provisions of the Treaty on Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies 1967 (the Outer Space Treaty). This will enable Italy to prepare for the European Union's implementation of sector regulation.

As officially acknowledged by the Council of Europe at the joint EU–ESA Space Council meeting in May 2024,¹² space is a cornerstone of Europe's global engagement, strengthening the European economy's position on the world stage and serving as a key element of European strategic autonomy within an open economic framework. It is imperative to exploit the potential of the space sector in the context of rapid global commercialisation and increasing global competition. This can be achieved by integrating space-based solutions more firmly into non-space sectors and vice versa.

To achieve strategic objectives relating to the support of trade, innovation and economic growth, the European Council emphasises the central role of a regulation that:

1. ensures the safety of satellite traffic, effectively addressing the increasing risk of collisions and damage by space debris;
2. ensures the coherent protection of EU and national space infrastructures and assets against harmful threats (notably cyberattacks); and
3. guarantees the long-term sustainability of space operations, thus ensuring the ability of the EU to rely on space as an important enabler of services and economic growth.

Demonstrating the importance of the space economy within the European framework, the European Commission published the draft EU Space Act on 25 June 2025, which aims to harmonise space regulation across Member States.