Italian Republic Repubblica Italiana (Italian) Flag Emblem Anthem: Il Canto degli Italiani (Italian) "The Song of the Italians '' Location of Italy (dark green) -- in Europe (light green & dark grey) -- in the European Union (light green) -- (Legend) Capital and largest city Rome 41 ° 54 ′ N 12 ° 29 ′ E ﻿ / ﻿ 41.900 ° N 12.483 ° E ﻿ / 41.900; 12.483 Official languages Italian Native languages see full list Religion 83.3 % Christians 12.4 % irreligious 3.7 % Muslims 0.2 % Buddhists 0.1 % Hindus 0.3 % other religions Demonym Italian Government Unitary constitutional parliamentary republic President Sergio Mattarella Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni President of the Senate Elisabetta Casellati President of the Chamber of Deputies Roberto Fico Legislature Parliament Upper house Senate of the Republic Lower house Chamber of Deputies Formation Unification 17 March 1861 Republic 2 June 1946 Founded the EEC (now the European Union) 1 January 1958 Area Total 301,338 km (116,347 sq mi) (71st) Water (%) 2.4 Population 2016 estimate 60,589,445 (23rd) Density 201.3 / km (521.4 / sq mi) (63rd) GDP (PPP) 2016 estimate Total $2.233 trillion (12th) Per capita $36,823 (32nd) GDP (nominal) 2018 estimate Total 2.050 trillion (9th) Per capita $33,700 (27th) Gini (2016) 33.1 medium HDI (2015) 0.887 very high 26th Currency Euro (€) (EUR) Time zone CET (UTC + 1) Summer (DST) CEST (UTC + 2) Date format dd / mm / yyyy (AD) Drives on the right Calling code + 39 ISO 3166 code IT Internet TLD. it German is co-official in South Tyrol; French is co-official in the Aosta Valley; Slovene is co-official in the province of Trieste and the province of Gorizia; Ladin is co-official in South Tyrol, in Trentino and in other northern areas. Before 2002, the Italian lira. The euro is accepted in Campione d'Italia but its official currency is the Swiss franc. To call Campione d'Italia, it is necessary to use the Swiss code + 41. The. eu domain is also used, as it is shared with other European Union member states.
when did italy become part of the european union
1 January 1958