The Italian tax system provides for numerous tax regimes dedicated to people who decide to move to Italy to work or live.
For example, if professors and researchers, currently residing abroad, decide to move to Italy, they can benefit from fiscal incentives for the income generated in Italy.
A tax incentive is also in place for so-called “impatriates” workers. They are:
- graduates who have worked abroad
- students who have obtained an academic qualification abroad
- managers and workers with high qualifications and specializations.
Moreover, a tax regime for new residents is dedicated to who move to Italy regardless a specific work activity. High-net-worth individuals moving their tax residence to Italy are enabled to apply a substitute tax to their foreign income, amounting to €100,000 for each fiscal year, in lieu of the Italian Income Tax.
The possible beneficiaries are workers who:
• Have not been resident in Italy in the 2 years prior to the transfer.
• Establish a new fiscal residence in Italy, which must be maintained for at least 2 years.
• They carry out their work activity (salaried or self-employed work or business activity) prevalently in Italy.
EU citizens, or non-EU citizens, are also eligible, provided that they come from a country that has a treaty against double taxation or an agreement for the exchange of tax information with Italy. They must meet the following requirements:
• Have a university degree and have been continuously employed or self-employed or engaged in business activities outside of Italy for the past 2 years
• Have continuously carried out study activities outside Italy for at least 24 months, obtaining a degree or a postgraduate specialization.
The benefits for these subjects are constituted by a fiscal facilitation linked to the detaxation of taxable income. The IRPEF taxable income related to employee, self-employed or business is taxed at 30% for 5 years. Moreover, if the residence is taken in one of the regions of Southern Italy (Abruzzo, Molise, Campania, Puglia, Calabria, Basilicata, Sardinia, Sicily) is taxed at 10%.
The benefit is extended for a further 5 years, up to 10 years from the transfer of residence in Italy, if the worker alternatively:
• Has at least one dependent minor child
• Becomes the owner of at least one residential property unit in Italy.
The extension of a further 5 years allows for a 50% taxation of taxable income.
