Tax in Italy for newcomers – IRPEF 2026, the impatriate regime and the flat tax
Last updated 25 September 2026Rules checked every MondayOfficial sourcesSources & methodology →
Italy cut its middle income tax rate to 33 per cent for 2026 and raised the flat tax for wealthy newcomers to €300,000. Here is when you become tax resident, what the impatriate regime can save you, and how to bring your belongings and pets without paying duty.
If you move to Italy in 2026, several tax rules are new. A new test for tax residence has applied since 1 January 2024, and the impatriate regime was rewritten for moves from tax year 2024. The 2026 Budget Law cut the middle rate of IRPEF (personal income tax) from 35 to 33 per cent and raised the flat tax for wealthy new residents to €300,000 a year.
A new income tax code, legislative decree 117/2026, applies only from 1 January 2027. IRPEF is national; the surcharges on top of it differ by region and comune (municipality).
When do you become tax resident in Italy?
Under the national test, you are tax resident if, for most of the tax year – at least 183 days, or 184 in a leap year – your habitual residence or domicile is in Italy, you are physically present, counting fractions of days, or you are registered as a resident with the anagrafe (registry office), unless you prove the registration does not match reality. Domicile is where your personal and family life is centred.
Italy does not split the tax year on arrival or departure, except under its tax treaties with Switzerland and Germany. Residents pay IRPEF on worldwide income; non-residents only on Italian income, without family deductions unless at least 75 per cent of their income is earned here.
How much is IRPEF in 2026?
| Band or surcharge | Rate 2026 |
|---|---|
| Taxable income up to €28,000 | 23 per cent |
| €28,000 to €50,000 | 33 per cent, down from 35 |
| Above €50,000 | 43 per cent |
| Total income above €200,000 | The benefit of the 2026 cut is neutralised |
| Regional surcharge | 1.23 per cent; regions may add up to 2.1 points (0.5 in special-statute regions, Trento and Bolzano) |
| Municipal surcharge | Optional, set by each comune: up to 0.8 per cent, or 0.9 per cent in Rome |
Source: the Agenzia delle Entrate and the Ministry of Economy and Finance, read 23 September 2026.
Both surcharges go to the region and comune of your tax domicile on 1 January. Employees get a tax credit, the detrazione per lavoro dipendente: €1,955 on income up to €15,000, tapering to zero at €50,000.
On top, the pension contribution for employees is 33 per cent of pay, split between you and your employer, which pays it all to INPS (the national social security institute) and deducts your share. Freelancers without a professional pension fund pay 26.07 per cent to the INPS Gestione separata in 2026.
Does the impatriate regime apply to you?
The impatriate regime is for people who move their tax residence to Italy from tax year 2024 to work here. Only 50 per cent of employment and professional income earned in Italy is taxed, up to €600,000 a year – 40 per cent if you move with a minor child, or have or adopt one during the regime. It covers the year of the move and the next four tax years.
You must not have been tax resident in Italy in the three previous tax years – six with the same employer or group, seven if you worked for it in Italy – and you must work mainly in Italy and hold a high qualification or specialisation. Leave before four years and the benefit is clawed back with interest. Italians count years in AIRE, the register of Italians abroad, as years abroad.
Returning researchers and lecturers have their own regime (see the table below). The English page of the Agenzia delle Entrate (Revenue Agency) on relief for newcomers, from March 2022, is out of date.
Which flat tax in Italy fits you – €300,000 or 7 per cent?
The flat tax for new residents is a fixed €300,000 a year on foreign income, plus €50,000 per family member, for moves from 1 January 2026; for moves after 10 August 2024 it was €200,000. You must not have been tax resident in Italy in nine of the previous ten years. You opt in on the tax return for the year of the move or the next, and can ask for an interpello (advance ruling) first.
The 7 per cent regime is regional by design: it is for foreign pensioners who move to a comune of up to 30,000 inhabitants – 20,000 until 7 April 2026 – in Sicily, Calabria, Sardinia, Campania, Basilicata, Abruzzo, Molise or Puglia, or certain earthquake-area comuni. You need five years without Italian tax residence, and must come from a country with administrative cooperation agreements with Italy.
| Regime | For | What you pay | How long |
|---|---|---|---|
| Impatriate regime | Qualified workers moving from 2024 | IRPEF on 50 per cent of work income (40 with a minor child), up to €600,000 | Year of the move plus 4 |
| Returning researchers | 2 continuous years of research or teaching abroad | IRPEF on 10 per cent of pay | Year of the move plus 5, or longer |
| Flat tax for new residents | Not resident in 9 of the previous 10 years | €300,000 a year on foreign income, €50,000 per family member | Up to 15 years |
| 7 per cent regime | Foreign pensioners in small southern comuni | 7 per cent on all foreign income | 9 tax years |
Source: the Agenzia delle Entrate and Normattiva, read 23 September 2026.
How do you file and pay tax in Italy?
Employees and pensioners can file form 730, and the employer then adjusts the tax through payroll from July; everyone else, including non-residents, files Redditi PF. The free precompilata (pre-completed return) opens with SPID (public digital identity system), the CIE (electronic identity card) or the CNS (national services card). You pay by form F24.
| Deadline | What |
|---|---|
| 30 June | Balance for the previous year and first advance – or within 30 days with a 0.40 per cent surcharge |
| 30 September | Form 730 for the previous year |
| 31 October | Form Redditi PF, online |
| 30 November | Second or single advance; Redditi PF by post for non-residents abroad |
Source: the Agenzia delle Entrate, read 23 September 2026.
Can you bring your belongings and pets without paying duty?
Between EU countries there are no customs formalities, except for excise goods such as tobacco and alcohol above guide quantities, but cash of €10,000 or more must be declared whenever you enter or leave Italy. From outside the EU, the ADM (customs and monopolies agency) lets you import belongings free of duty and VAT when you move your residence.
| Rule | What applies |
|---|---|
| Previous home | Outside the EU for at least 12 consecutive months |
| Your goods | Owned and used there for at least 6 months, for the same use in Italy |
| Deadline | Declare within 12 months of settling – or clear them earlier against a guarantee if you move within 6 months |
| Forms | F-01A without a guarantee, F-01B with one |
| Excluded | Alcohol, tobacco, commercial vehicles, professional equipment other than portable tools |
Source: the Agenzia delle Dogane e dei Monopoli, read 23 September 2026.
Each qualifying family member has their own allowance. Dogs, cats and ferrets need a microchip (or a legible tattoo from before 3 July 2011), and at most five travel with you per journey. Italy admits none under 12 weeks without a rabies vaccination, or aged 12 to 16 weeks whose vaccination is not yet valid; a first vaccination is valid after 21 days. In the EU, pets travel on an EU pet passport. From elsewhere, they need an animal health certificate, for several countries a rabies antibody test 3 months before travel, and a designated point of entry. Register your dog in the anagrafe canina (dog register) through a vet.
What to do now
| Step | What | When |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Count your days in Italy | Before you register with the anagrafe |
| 2 | Check which special regime fits you | Before you move your tax residence |
| 3 | Get your codice fiscale (tax code), then SPID or CIE (parts 3 and 4) | In your first weeks |
| 4 | List belongings with proof of use; choose form F-01A or F-01B | Within 12 months of settling |
| 5 | Microchip and vaccinate pets | At least 21 days before travel |
| 6 | File form 730 or Redditi PF | By 30 September or 31 October of the next year |
Source: the Agenzia delle Entrate, the ADM and the Ministry of Health, read 23 September 2026.
Official sources
The official pages this guide is based on, read 23 September 2026. Links open the authority’s own website.
- Agenzia delle Entrate (English pages, Your Europe) · agenziaentrate.gov.it
- Normattiva (official law database) · normattiva.it
- Normattiva (official law database) · normattiva.it
- Agenzia delle Entrate (English pages, Your Europe) · agenziaentrate.gov.it
- Ministero dell'Economia e delle Finanze (MEF) - Principali misure della legge di bilancio 2026 · mef.gov.it
- Normattiva (official law database) · normattiva.it
- MEF - Dipartimento delle Finanze · finanze.gov.it
- MEF - Dipartimento delle Finanze · finanze.gov.it
- INPS · inps.it
- INPS · inps.it
- Agenzia delle Entrate · agenziaentrate.gov.it
- Agenzia delle Entrate (English pages, Your Europe) · agenziaentrate.gov.it
- Agenzia delle Entrate · agenziaentrate.gov.it
- Agenzia delle Entrate · agenziaentrate.gov.it
- Agenzia delle Entrate · agenziaentrate.gov.it
- Agenzia delle Entrate · agenziaentrate.gov.it
- Agenzia delle Entrate · agenziaentrate.gov.it
- Agenzia delle Entrate (English pages, Your Europe) · agenziaentrate.gov.it
- Agenzia delle Entrate (English pages, Your Europe) · agenziaentrate.gov.it
- Agenzia delle Entrate · agenziaentrate.gov.it
- Agenzia delle Dogane e dei Monopoli (ADM) · adm.gov.it
- Agenzia delle Dogane e dei Monopoli (ADM) · adm.gov.it
- Agenzia delle Dogane e dei Monopoli (ADM) · adm.gov.it
- Ministero della Salute · salute.gov.it
- Ministero della Salute · salute.gov.it
- Ministero della Salute · salute.gov.it
Relocate in Europe provides general information, not legal or financial advice for your individual situation. Check with the authority named above before you act – rules change, and your case may differ.