Italy is working on changes to its proposed exit tax, Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti told business groups in Rome on November 13, according to Reuters, citing meeting participants. The promise of edits has arrived; the fine print hasn’t. Source
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s 2027 draft budget envisages a 26% levy on unrealised capital gains for individuals holding financial investments worth at least €800,000 who transfer their tax domicile abroad. These are paper investment gains that haven’t been realised through a sale. Source
The €800,000 threshold concerns the value of investments, not the gains. The 26% would apply to those gains; this isn’t a proposal to take a quarter of everything in the account. Source
A tax on leaving, a worry about arriving
Wealth advisers warn that the exit tax could undermine Italy’s appeal to their clients, reversing efforts by Meloni’s predecessors to attract affluent newcomers through tax incentives, Reuters reports. A charge on the way out could complicate the sales pitch on the way in. Source
Advocates of wealth taxes point to growing inequality, with top earners becoming richer while real wages stagnate for low- and middle-income workers, Reuters reports. Source
Deputy Economy Minister Maurizio Leo had said on November 5 that the government was “open to changes,” according to The Economist. Source
Business groups want more than adjustments. PMI.it reported on November 13 that they were seeking the measure’s elimination, while Giorgetti told participants the government was preparing a modification. Source
Who the earlier draft would cover
In its November 3 account of the earlier draft, the Financial Times reported that the levy would cover people who had been Italian tax residents for six of the 10 years before departure. It also cited lawyers who said the proposal needed clarification about its interaction with existing tax incentives and whether it covered Italian or worldwide assets. Giorgetti did not say whether the amendments would change that residency rule or clarify which assets would be covered. Source Source
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