In this chapter
01Before you sell, you need to be able to invoice
This guide is for anyone who is starting to work on their own or opening a business in Italy: the Partita IVA is the Italian VAT number, and the rules described here are Italian rules. There is always one precise moment: the first real customer asks for an invoice. Until that day the business was a project, a website under construction, a few trial jobs for friends. From that day on it is an economic activity, and the State wants to know who you are, what you do and under which rules you pay. The Partita IVA is exactly that: the number by which the Agenzia delle Entrate (the Italian Revenue Agency) recognizes you as self-employed.
Opening one is free and quick. Choosing it well is another story, because that choice determines for years how much you pay in taxes, how much you pay in contributions, what you write on your invoices and which deadlines are on your calendar. This guide lines up the questions to ask yourself, with the rules in force in 2026, and a calculator to see the numbers for your own case.
The first question is not about tax: what work do you do?
The tax and social security systems think in categories. Even before the tax regime, what matters is which of these three families your activity falls into:
- Business (impresa): you sell goods or services by organizing a commercial or craft activity. The shop, the e-commerce site, the hairdresser, the plumber, someone who builds websites and software as a craft business. You register in the Registro delle imprese (companies register) of the Chamber of Commerce and, for social security, with the Gestione artigiani (craftspeople) or the Gestione commercianti (retailers) of INPS, the Italian national social security institute.
- Profession with an albo: lawyers, architects, engineers, accountants (commercialisti), psychologists, doctors and the other professions organized in orders. You do not go to the Chamber of Commerce, and you pay your contributions into the pension fund of your profession.
- Profession without an albo: consultants, trainers, graphic designers, translators, web designers, copywriters, most of the jobs born with digital. You do not go to the Chamber of Commerce, and you pay your contributions into the Gestione Separata of INPS.
The line between “business” and “profession” is not always clear-cut: someone who develops websites, for example, can do it as a professional or as a craft business, depending on how the work is organized. It is the first thing to clarify with your accountant, because it changes the contribution fund and therefore a major part of your costs.
The second question: flat-rate or ordinary?
Once the type of activity is clear, you choose the tax regime, meaning the rules by which your taxes are calculated. For anyone starting out there are two paths:
- the flat-rate regime (regime forfettario), designed for small businesses: taxes calculated simply on a fixed percentage of revenue, no VAT on invoices, few formalities;
- the ordinary regime (for individuals, often in its “simplified” form): you pay progressive income tax (IRPEF) and local surcharges on your real income, meaning revenue minus documented costs, and you charge VAT.
For the great majority of people opening a Partita IVA as individuals, the flat-rate regime is the natural starting point, and that is why it takes up the central part of this chapter. The ordinary regime becomes worthwhile, or mandatory, in specific cases covered further on.
02The flat-rate regime, rule by rule
The forfettario is governed by Law 190 of 2014 (article 1, paragraphs 54 to 89), amended several times over the years. The rules in force in 2026 can be summarized in four blocks: who can join, how much you pay, what changes on the invoice, when you leave.
Who can join: the requirements
To apply the flat-rate regime in 2026 you must meet these limits, with reference to the previous year:
- revenue or fees not exceeding €85,000;
- spending on employees, collaborators and similar not exceeding €20,000 gross;
- if you also have a salaried job or a pension, income from that job not exceeding €35,000. The threshold, previously €30,000, was raised by the 2025 budget law and confirmed for 2026 by the 2026 budget law; the limit does not count if the employment relationship has ended.
Then there are the grounds for exclusion, which apply even if the numbers are in order. The most common:
- holding a stake in partnerships, professional associations or family businesses;
- controlling, directly or indirectly, an Srl (limited liability company) carrying out an activity related to yours;
- working mainly for your current employer or for one from the two previous years (or for parties connected to them): this is the rule that prevents turning an employee into a “convenience” Partita IVA;
- not being resident in Italy (except in particular cases) or using special VAT schemes.
How much you pay: the substitute tax
Instead of IRPEF, the regional and municipal surcharges and IRAP (the regional business tax), the flat-rate regime pays a single 15% substitute tax (imposta sostitutiva). For anyone starting a new business, the rate drops to 5% for the starting year and the four following years, if three conditions are met:
- in the three previous years you have not carried out an artistic, professional or business activity, not even in association or as part of a family business;
- the new activity is not simply a continuation of work previously done as an employee or self-employed (except for the mandatory traineeship period for a profession);
- if you take over someone else's business, its revenue for the previous year is within the regime's limit.
The profitability coefficient: what you pay taxes on
In the flat-rate regime you do not deduct costs. The law assumes that part of what you collect goes on expenses, and makes you pay tax and contributions only on the remaining part. That part is called taxable income, and you get it by multiplying revenue by the profitability coefficient (coefficiente di redditività) of your activity group, set out in annex 4 of Law 190/2014:
| Activity group | ATECO codes (divisions) | Coefficient |
|---|---|---|
| Food and beverage industries | 10, 11 | 40% |
| Wholesale and retail trade | 45; 46.2 to 46.9; 47.1 to 47.7; 47.9 | 40% |
| Street trading of food and beverages | 47.81 | 40% |
| Street trading of other products | 47.82, 47.89 | 54% |
| Construction and real estate activities | 41 to 43; 68 | 86% |
| Trade intermediaries | 46.1 | 62% |
| Accommodation and food services | 55, 56 | 40% |
| Professional, scientific, technical, health, education, financial and insurance services | 64 to 66; 69 to 75; 85; 86 to 88 | 78% |
| Other economic activities | all others | 67% |
An example: a consultant (coefficient 78%) who collects €30,000 has a taxable income of €23,400. A shop (40%) with the same takings has €12,000. The low coefficient for trade recognizes that those who sell goods spend a large part of their takings buying them.
Don't get this wrong
The ATECO code (the Italian classification of economic activities) is chosen when you open, and it determines the coefficient. Since 2025 the new ATECO 2025 classification has been in use, and it changed some codes: before opening, check the exact code for your activity and the group it belongs to. If you carry out several activities with different coefficients, each must be kept separate.
Quiz
Have you understood how the flat-rate regime is calculated?
Four questions, one right answer each.
What is the substitute tax calculated on?
In the flat-rate regime real costs are not deducted: what counts is the coefficient set by law. The social security contributions paid are subtracted from the result.
A professional without an albo collects €40,000. What is their taxable income?
Professional activities have a 78% coefficient: 40,000 × 78% = €31,200.
How long does the 5% rate last?
It is a relief for new businesses: five tax periods, then the rate becomes 15%.
Revenue reaches €92,000. What happens?
Between €85,000 and €100,000 you leave from the following year. Above €100,000 you leave immediately.
03The flat-rate invoice: VAT, withholding, stamp duty and electronic format
A flat-rate taxpayer's invoice is simpler than that of an ordinary business, but it has precise rules. Getting a wording wrong is no tragedy; getting the stamp duty or the format wrong is, because penalties follow.
No VAT on the invoice
The flat-rate taxpayer does not charge VAT to customers and, as a result, does not deduct the VAT paid on purchases: that becomes a cost. The invoice states that the transaction is carried out under the flat-rate regime, with the reference to the law (article 1, paragraphs 54-89, of Law 190/2014). For those selling to private individuals it is a concrete commercial advantage: for the same net price, the customer pays less.
No withholding tax
When a professional invoices a company or another professional (a “withholding agent”, sostituto d'imposta), the customer normally withholds 20% of the fee as withholding tax (ritenuta d'acconto) and pays it to the State on the professional's behalf, as provided by article 25 of Presidential Decree (DPR) 600/1973. For those under the flat-rate regime this does not happen: paragraph 67 of Law 190/2014 states that flat-rate taxpayers' fees are not subject to withholding. It must be written on the invoice, so the customer knows they have to pay the full amount.
Withholding tax also comes up in another situation, which concerns people who do not yet have a Partita IVA: occasional work (prestazione occasionale). Anyone who works occasionally for a company, without regularity, receives their fee with 20% withheld. It is a useful bridge for first trials, not a lasting solution: once the work becomes regular, you need a Partita IVA.
The €2 stamp duty
Invoices without VAT for an amount above €77.47 must carry the €2 stamp duty (imposta di bollo). With electronic invoicing the stamp is “virtual”: you flag it in the file and pay it with the F24 payment form, adding up the invoices for the period. Many flat-rate taxpayers charge it to the customer on the invoice; in that case, according to the Agenzia delle Entrate, the amount is part of revenue.
Only electronic invoices, flat-rate taxpayers included
For years flat-rate taxpayers were exempt from electronic invoicing. Decree-Law 36 of 2022 removed the exemption in two stages: from July 1, 2022 for those who had exceeded €25,000 in revenue, and from January 1, 2024 for everyone. Today every invoice to Italian customers goes through the Sistema di Interscambio (SdI), the exchange system of the Agenzia delle Entrate.
To issue electronic invoices you can use the free service of the Agenzia delle Entrate, in the “Fatture e Corrispettivi” portal, or invoicing software. The same portal offers free digital preservation of invoices: you sign up once, and it saves you from having to store the files by hand. One rule of prudence still applies: keep your own copy of the XML files as well, somewhere other than the computer you work on. How to set up a backup that works I explain in the chapter on business backup and the 3-2-1 rule. Note that the receiving channel is the recipient code (codice destinatario) or the PEC, the Italian certified email address.
True or false?
Five myths about the Partita IVA
For each statement, choose whether it is true or false.
A flat-rate taxpayer can deduct computer and car expenses.
In the flat-rate regime costs are not deducted: the profitability coefficient accounts for them, and it is the same for everyone in the same activity.
A company paying a flat-rate taxpayer does not have to withhold tax.
Paragraph 67 of Law 190/2014 says so: flat-rate taxpayers' fees are not subject to withholding, and this must be written on the invoice.
With only a few customers, a flat-rate taxpayer can still issue paper invoices.
Since January 1, 2024 electronic invoicing has been mandatory for all flat-rate taxpayers, whatever their turnover.
Craftspeople pay the minimum contributions even if they earn nothing in a year.
The craftspeople and retailers funds have a fixed annual minimum contribution, due regardless of income. The Gestione Separata does not.
Once you exceed €85,000 you leave the flat-rate regime immediately.
Between €85,000 and €100,000 you leave from the following year. Immediate exit only applies above €100,000.
04Social security: how much you pay toward your pension
Taxes are only part of the bill. The other part, often larger, is social security contributions: the money you pay toward your future pension and for some protections (maternity, sickness). The flat-rate regime does not change the contribution rules, it only changes the base they are calculated on: the income obtained with the coefficient. And this is where the three families from the beginning truly part ways.
The INPS Gestione Separata
For professionals without an albo and without other social security coverage, the 2026 rate is 26.07% of income, made up of 25% for the pension, 0.72% for maternity, sickness and other protections, and 0.35% for ISCRO, the allowance for self-employed people going through a sharp drop in income. Those already retired or enrolled in another mandatory scheme pay 24%. This was set by INPS in circular no. 8 of February 3, 2026.
Two numbers to know: the 2026 minimum threshold (minimale) is €18,808, the income needed to have a full year of contributions recognized for pension purposes; the maximum threshold (massimale) is €122,295, beyond which you no longer pay. Below the minimum threshold there is nothing to top up: you pay on your actual income, and the year is recognized proportionally.
Professionals in the Gestione Separata can charge the customer a 4% surcharge (rivalsa) on the fee, as a contribution. It is an option, not an obligation, and for a flat-rate taxpayer that amount is part of revenue.
Craftspeople and retailers
For sole proprietorships, contributions work in two parts. There is a minimum contribution, due even with zero income, calculated on the minimum threshold of €18,808: for 2026 it is €4,521.36 a year for craftspeople and €4,611.64 for retailers, payable in four installments. On income above the minimum threshold, 24% (craftspeople) or 24.48% (retailers) is added, up to €56,224; beyond that figure the rate rises by one point. These are the values in INPS circular no. 14 of February 9, 2026.
Those under the flat-rate regime can request a 35% reduction in contributions, provided for by the same Law 190/2014. It is not automatic: you request it from INPS once, through the Cassetto previdenziale (the online social security account), and it applies as long as you stay in the regime. For those opening a business the request must be made straight away, at registration; for those already registered there is an annual deadline set by INPS. The discount also reduces your future pension proportionally: it is a choice, not a gift.
The professional funds
Lawyers, engineers and architects, accountants, doctors, psychologists, surveyors and the other professions with an albo pay into their own fund (for example Cassa Forense, Inarcassa, the accountants' fund, ENPAM, ENPAP, the surveyors' fund). Each has its own rules, with a personal contribution (contributo soggettivo) on income, a supplementary contribution (contributo integrativo) charged to the customer on the invoice, and often minimums and reductions for the first years. There is no rule valid for all of them: you read the rules of your own fund, which are published on its website.
Words from this chapter
The vocabulary of opening a Partita IVA
Tap a card to flip it.
05From turnover to net: the calculation that really matters
“How much do I keep?” is the right question, and the answer does not come from taking a percentage off turnover. In the flat-rate regime the calculation follows a precise cascade, always in the same order:
- revenue collected during the year (the flat-rate regime works on a cash basis: what counts is when you collect, not when you invoice);
- multiplied by the coefficient: this is the gross taxable income;
- the social security contributions are calculated on that income;
- the contributions paid are subtracted from the income: this is the tax base;
- the substitute tax of 5% or 15% is applied to the base;
- what remains, once contributions and tax are taken off revenue, is the net before expenses. The real expenses of your business still have to be taken off, because in the flat-rate regime they do not reduce taxes but they still come out of your pocket.
Imagine two people opening a Partita IVA on the same day, both with €30,000 in takings in the first year. The first is a translator working from her kitchen table: she spends little, and with the 78% coefficient and the Gestione Separata she keeps the figure in the plate. The second opens a small online ceramics shop: the coefficient is 40%, so he pays tax on only €12,000, but as a retailer he pays the minimum contribution even if his income is low, and he still has to buy the goods. Same turnover, two completely different bills. Which side are you on?
The calculator below runs the same cascade with your numbers. Change the revenue, the activity, the rate and the fund: the lines update immediately. It saves nothing and sends nothing anywhere: the calculations happen only in your browser.
Calculator
How much you keep under the flat-rate regime
Simplified estimate with 2026 values: it treats the year's contributions as deductible in the same year, does not account for advance and balance payments or the professional funds, and does not subtract the real expenses of your business. For craftspeople and retailers it applies the minimum contribution on the €18,808 minimum threshold and the rates up to €56,224, plus one point beyond. It is meant to help you get your bearings, not to file your tax return.
Don't get this wrong
In the first year you pay no advance payments, but in the second year the balance for the first arrives together with the advance payments for the second, for both tax and contributions. That is the moment many people find themselves short of cash. The practical rule: every month, set aside on a separate account the share of taxes and contributions the calculator shows you.
06When the flat-rate regime is not worth it, or not allowed
The flat-rate regime is simple and often advantageous, but it is not always the best choice. There are cases in which the ordinary regime saves you money, and cases in which it is mandatory.
The flat-rate regime pays off when
- real expenses are lower than those the coefficient assumes;
- customers are mostly private individuals, for whom the absence of VAT is a price advantage;
- you are starting from scratch and are entitled to the 5% rate;
- you want light administration.
The ordinary regime is worth considering when
- real expenses are high (goods, machinery, rent, staff) and exceed the assumed share;
- you expect major investments, with VAT to recover;
- almost all customers are companies, for whom VAT is not a burden;
- you exceed the regime's limits, or there is a ground for exclusion.
A typical case is the shop itself: a business with rent, a stockroom and an employee can have real costs well above the 60% assumed by the 40% coefficient, and the €20,000 limit for staff is reached quickly. When fixed costs enter the picture, the numbers must be redone from scratch, and that is the subject of the next chapter.
07The minimum tools to start, legally and well
Opening a Partita IVA is a form; working with a Partita IVA takes a few more tools. Here are the essential ones, in the order you need them.
1
Digital identity
SPID or CIE (the Italian digital identity and electronic ID card): you need them to access the services of the Agenzia delle Entrate, INPS and the Cassetto previdenziale.
2
Opening
A professional files form AA9/12 with the Agenzia delle Entrate; a business uses the Comunicazione Unica (single filing), which also covers the Chamber of Commerce and INPS.
3
PEC
Certified email (posta elettronica certificata) is mandatory for businesses and for professionals registered with an albo, and it is useful for everyone to receive official communications.
4
Separate account
Not always mandatory for those working as individuals, but essential to keep the business's money apart from your personal money.
5
Invoicing
The free service of the Agenzia delle Entrate or a software program, plus signing up for digital preservation.
6
Online presence
A website, even of just a few pages, and an email on your own domain: they are the business card the customer checks before writing to you.
The last two points seem less “bureaucratic”, but they are the ones the customer sees. A Partita IVA in good standing with a free email address and no website conveys less trust than it deserves. What to write in your email signature (Partita IVA, registered office, PEC) and how to configure your email so it does not end up in spam I explain in the chapter on professional business email. And if your website collects contacts or bookings, remember that it needs a correct privacy notice: the chapter on GDPR and cookies explains what is really required.
Test yourself
Are you ready to open?
08And then? The dilemma of the street-front shop
Many businesses are born online: a website, a portal, a few customers found through word of mouth and social media. With the Partita IVA open and the accounts in order, sooner or later the bigger question arrives: should you also open a shop, a studio, a physical storefront? It is a step that changes everything covered in this chapter: rent and utilities arrive, perhaps an employee, a stockroom, the paperwork of the municipality, and with them fixed costs that a flat-rate coefficient does not even imagine.
If that is your next step, the next chapter is devoted to how to decide: from online to a physical shop, with the risks, the choice of location and the strategies for connecting the storefront to digital. And before signing any contract, for premises as for a website, it is worth reading the chapter on what to check before you sign too.
You open a Partita IVA in a day. The way you open it stays with you for years.Zenith Develop
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to open a Partita IVA?
Opening it with the Agenzia delle Entrate is free. Businesses also pay the costs of registering with the Chamber of Commerce (fees and the annual duty) and, if they get assistance, the professional's fee. After opening, the real costs are contributions, tax and the accountant.
Can I have a flat-rate Partita IVA and also be an employee?
Yes, if in 2025 your income from employment did not exceed €35,000 (the threshold valid for 2026) and if you do not work mainly for your current employer or for the one from the two previous years. The limit does not count if the employment relationship has ended.
Is everyone who opens a Partita IVA entitled to the 5% rate?
No. You are entitled to it only if in the three previous years you did not carry out business, artistic or professional activities and if the new activity is not a continuation of work previously done as an employee or self-employed. It lasts for the starting year and the four following years.
Can I deduct expenses under the flat-rate regime?
No. Real expenses do not reduce taxes: the law considers them already included in the profitability coefficient. Only the mandatory social security contributions paid are subtracted.
Do I also have to issue electronic invoices to private individuals?
Yes, invoices to private individuals are also issued electronically through the SdI; you can give the private customer a PDF or paper copy, and they will find it anyway in their reserved area of the Agenzia delle Entrate.
What happens if I exceed €85,000 in revenue?
If you stay within €100,000, you finish the year in the flat-rate regime and move to the ordinary regime from the following year. Above €100,000 you leave immediately and VAT applies from the very transaction that crosses the threshold.
Sources
- Normattiva, Law no. 190 of December 23, 2014 (in Italian): article 1, paragraphs 54-89 (flat-rate regime), paragraph 67 (no withholding tax), paragraph 77 (35% contribution reduction) and annex 4 (profitability coefficients).
- QuotidianoPiù, “Flat-rate regime 2026: the 35,000 euro threshold confirmed” (in Italian): the 2026 budget law (Law 199/2025, art. 1, paragraph 27) and the threshold for employment income.
- INPS, “Gestione Separata: contribution rates for 2026” (in Italian), circular no. 8 of February 3, 2026; the breakdown of the rates (25% + 0.72% + 0.35%), the minimum and the maximum threshold is reported by Informazione Fiscale (in Italian).
- Eutekne, “Craftspeople and retailers: contribution values for 2026” (in Italian): the values of INPS circular no. 14 of February 9, 2026 (minimum threshold, minimum contributions, rates, €56,224 band).
- Normattiva, Decree-Law no. 36 of April 30, 2022 (in Italian), article 18: the electronic invoicing requirement extended to flat-rate taxpayers, for everyone from January 1, 2024.
- Normattiva, Presidential Decree (DPR) no. 600 of September 29, 1973 (in Italian), article 25: the 20% withholding tax on professionals' fees.
- Agenzia delle Entrate, “Electronic invoicing” section (in Italian): the free services for preparing, sending and preserving electronic invoices.
Chapter updated October 2026, with the rules and values in force for 2026. It is an informational guide written by someone who designs software for professionals and businesses: tax and social security rules change every year and every situation has its own details, so before opening, check your case with an accountant (commercialista).