Italy

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Business Environment

Business Practices

General information: Doing Business in Italy
Italian culture and customs
Opening hours and days: Saturday and Sunday closed, or only Sunday and Monday morning for trade.

Public holidays

New Year's Day	1 January
Epiphany	6 January
Easter Sunday and Monday	First Sunday after the first full moon of spring
Liberation Day (National holiday)	25 April
Workers' day	1 May
Assumption	15 August
All Saints	1 November
Immaculate Conception	8 December
Christmas and St Stephen's Day	25 and 26 December
Summer holidays	Second and third week of August

Holiday compensation: When a public holiday falls on a Sunday, some shops are closed the Monday after.

Accounting Rules

Tax year: The tax year begins on 1 January and finishes on 31 December of the same year.
Accounting standards: Since November 2001, the organization in charge of the harmonization and control of accounting standards has been the Italian Accounting Organization (Organismo Italiano di Contabilità - OIC). The OIC replaces the "Commissione Paritetica per la Statuizione dei Principi Contabili", a commission controlled by the Italian competent accounting body and which has published 30 accounting standards. Italian accounting standards do not have force of law.
Accounting regulation bodies: OIC
Accounting reports: Italian companies must draw up in their financial statements the following documents:
- the balance sheet;
- the profit and loss accounts;
- the notes to the accounts;
- the annual report.
Publication requirements: The annual report, the audit report, the financial statements and a copy of the minutes of the AGM must be filed with the company register 30 days after the AGM, and this filing must also be published in the official gazette of joint-stock companies (BURSAL).
Unlimited liability companies are not obliged to publish their accounts.
Companies listed on the Stock Exchange must draw up quarterly financial statements.
Unlimited liability companies (SNC, SAS) only have to draw up a balance sheet and a profit and loss account, with no obligatory form.
Small companies are authorized to draw up financial statements in a shorter form.
Professional accountancy bodies: CNDCEC
INRC
Certification and auditing: The Civil Code obliges limited liability companies whose capital is more than 120,000 EUR to appoint, at the AGM (Assemblea dei soci) an audit committee (collegio sindicale) of three to five members who give an account of their audit in an annual report included in the financial statements of the company. This committee is appointed for three years and may be prolonged indefinitely. Since 2004, a "collegio sindicale" must contain at least one revisore contabile. The law does not impose any particular model of presentation of the audit report.
Companies listed on the Stock Exchange must have their accounts audited by external independent auditors (società di revisione).

The National Committee for companies and the Stock Exchange is an independent administrative authority whose role is to protect investors.
Accounting news: OIC news
Fiscooggi.it, Italian tax agency publications
Fiscoetasse.it

Tax Rates

Consumption taxes

Nature of the tax: IVA (Imposta sul Valore Aggiunto)
Tax rate: 20%. IVA is charged on assets and services in Italy as well as on imports into Italy.
Reduced tax rate: There are reduced rates of VAT of 4% and 10% on basic products.
A rate of 10% is applied to some foodstuffs, live animals, some fuel supplies, catering, transport and housing.
A rate of 4% is applied to some foodstuffs, imports of agricultural products, medical supplies, books and magazines.
Other consumption taxes: Other taxes are determined at the national or local level such as taxes on tobacco, petrol, alcohol, oil, etc.

Corporate taxes

Company tax: 27.5%
The calculation is different for banks, insurance companies and other financial intermediaries.
Tax rate for foreign companies: Resident companies are taxed on the basis of their global revenue. Non-resident companies are taxed on the basis of their income earned in Italy.
Capital gains taxation: The combined tax rate on corporate profits is 31.4%.
Main allowable deductions and tax credit: Research expenses. Royalties on intellectual property such as patents and trademarks. Expenses for advertising and entertainments.
Other corporate taxes: The Municipal Tax is levied on real estate property.

Individual taxes

Tax rate

The income tax rate	Progressive up to 43%:
EUR 0 - 15,000	23%
EUR 15,001 - 28,000	27%
EUR 28,001 - 55,000	38%
EUR 55,001 - 75,000	41%
EUR 75,001 and over	43%

Allowable deductions and tax credit: Maintenance allowance; university expenses; medical expenses (if they are over 129 EUR); dependent elderly or disabled persons; etc.
Special expatriate tax regime: Expatriates living in Italy will be classified as Resident or Non-Resident. Non-residents are only taxed on income and gains arising in Italy, compared to worldwide income and gains for residents. Individuals are considered residents if:
- for a period of 183 days they are registered with the registry office of the Population Registry (Anagrafe);
- for a period of 183 days has their principal place of business or residence in Italy;
- for a period of 183 days has his centre of vital interest (i.e. his family) in Italy.

Double taxation treaties

Countries with whom a double taxation treaty have been signed: See the Ministry of Finance website
Whithholding taxes: Dividends: 12.5%; Interest: 12.5%/27%; Royalties: 15% if resident and 22.5%/30% if no resident.

Sources of fiscal information

Tax Authorities: Italian tax agency
Other domestic resources: Finanzelavoro.it

Intellectual Property

National organizations: Italian Bureau for Patents and Trademarks (the official agency for the protection of intellectual property in Italy).
Copyright SIAE (Società Italiana degli Autori ed Editori : Italian Society for Authors and Editors).
Regional organizations: For the protection of patents: the European Patent Office
Governing trademarks, designs and models: the Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market.
International membership: Member of the WIPO
Signatory to the Paris Convention for the Protection of Intellectual Property
Membership to the TRIPS agreement - Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS)

National regulation and international agreements

Type of property and law	Validity	International agreements signed
Patent 1939 law on patents	period of validity: 20 years	Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) Strasbourg agreement concerning the International Patent Classification
Trademark 1939 law on models	period of validity: 10 years	Trademark law treaty Nice agreement Protocol relating to the Madrid Agreement
Design Law on designs	initial period of validity: 15 years
Copyright 2000 copyright law		Berne convention Convention for the Protection of Producers of Phonograms against unauthorized duplication of their phonograms Rome convention for the protection of performers, producers of phonograms and Broadcasting organizations WIPO copyright treaty WIPO performances and Phonograms treaty
Industrial Models 1939 law on industrial designs	initial period of validity: 15 years

Legal Framework

Independence of justice: Yes
Equal treatment of nationals and foreigners: In the legal texts, there is no discrimination against foreigners. In practice, however, there is some discrimination.
The language of justice: Italian
Recourse to an interpreter
Sources of the law and legal similarities: The Italian Civil Code was created on the basis of Roman law modified by the Napoleonic Code. It is also modelled on German law. The highest law is the Constitution.
Checking national laws online: The constitution in 5 languages
Codes in Italian

Standards

National standards organizations: Italian Standardization Organization (Ente Nazionale Italiano di Unificazione, UNI)
Italian Electrotechnical Committee (CEI)
Integration in the international standards network: International Organization for Standardization (ISO)
International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC)
International Telecommunications Union (ITU)
European Committee for Standardization (CEN)
European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization (CENELEC)
Classification of standards: Italian standards are called UNI. Those of the electrotechnical sector are called CEI.
Online consultation of standards: The UNI catalog
The CEI catalog
The ISO catalog
Certification organizations: Italian accreditation federation (SINCERT-FIDEA)
Association of independent test and certification laboratories (ALPI)
National system for laboratory accreditation (SINAL)
Calibration Service (SIT)

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