The scheme will offer people between €10,000 ($A16,000) and €30,000 ($A48,000) to purchase a home in the rural villages.

The 'Residency in the mountains 2024' scheme will provide applicants with the money to buy a house in one of the region's 119 mountain towns with a population of less than 5,000.

Many of Italy's rural towns and villages are struggling with dwindling populations and abandoned houses as more and more people move to larger cities for job opportunities.

Tuscany's regional vice president, Stefania Saccardi, said the mountains are "territories of unique beauty with villages to be rediscovered which, however, suffer from depopulation."

"Deciding to live in one of these municipalities is therefore a challenge and an opportunity, especially for young people, and the chance for a new life choice."

The scheme is open to Italian and EU citizens, with strict parameters in place for applicants who are not EU citizens.

Conditions for non-EU citizens include holding a residence permit lasting at least 10 years and being a registered resident of an Italian town or city that is not categorised as a mountain community by the Italian National Institute of Statistics.

A full list of the included towns can be found on the Tuscany Region website, where applications for the scheme can be submitted before 27 July.