Italy: he wins 500,000 euros in the lottery but can’t access the money due to lack of documents.

Imagbe Ehizomwengie, a 36-year-old Nigerian living illegally in Italy, won 500,000 euros in the Italian lottery, but was unable to cash in his winnings as he couldn’t open a bank account without a residence permit. However, the winner eventually secured a residence permit this week, following a legal procedure before a court in Ancona, in the Marche region, according to the British newspaper The Guardian, which reported on the case.

Having arrived in Italy in 2016 after being held captive for two years in Libya, Ehizomwengie’s request for special protection had been denied. Without a residence permit, he lived as a street vendor and occasionally bought scratch cards. His lottery win put him in an administrative deadlock: without a bank account, he couldn’t access the money; without proven financial independence, he couldn’t obtain a residence permit.

His lawyer, Andrea Palazzeschi, managed to unlock some of the funds, allowing the winner to acquire a business selling African products, Mama Africa, in Falconara Marittima, near Ancona. This venture provided him with the professional and financial stability necessary to file for regularization. The Ancona court ordered the issuance of a residence permit, deeming that the applicant had mastered Italian and had a stable situation.

The lawyer emphasized that his client did not obtain his residence permit because of his winnings, but because he had demonstrated that he met the required integration conditions. Ehizomwengie told the Guardian that this permit meant more to him than his lottery win, adding that he wanted to work and contribute to Italian society.

This case illustrates the administrative blockages faced by irregular migrants in European countries, where the lack of a residence permit prohibits access to banking services and, consequently, any form of regularization based on financial autonomy.