The “Relaunch” Decree has been extended until September 16th. 

Dettaglio di una penna su un blocco note a spirale, pianificazione e appunti.

The March, April, and May payments suspended by the “Cura Italia” and “Liquidity” Decrees have been postponed to September 16, 2020, either in a single payment or in four equal installments. This is the provision of a provision included in the so-called “Relaunch” Decree, which is intended to revive the Italian economy, which has been severely impacted by the crisis triggered by the Coronavirus epidemic. In truth, the new provision does not contain any new changes beyond what was already known about the entities affected by the previous suspensions. It merely postpones the payment deadline until after the summer, for which it is possible to appoint a dedicated F24 form to the firm . This, however, does not diminish the appeal of this provision, which will undoubtedly provide greater respite for businesses and self-employed workers, allowing them to catch their breath during the slow but no longer postponable resumption of activity. To better understand the impact of the new provision, it is first necessary to identify the affected deadlines.

What is suspended

Generally speaking, albeit with some small distinctions, both the “Cura Italia” decree and the “Liquidity” decree have suspended the payment:

  1. withholding taxes on income from employment and similar (articles  23  and  24 , Presidential Decree no. 600/1973);
  2. of the regional and municipal IRPEF surcharges;
  3. of VAT;
  4. of social security and welfare contributions;
  5. of INAIL.

Furthermore, another common factor concerns beneficiaries: only those with tax domicile, registered office, or operational headquarters in Italy can benefit from the suspension. 

Suspensions provided for by the “Liquidity” decree

The first set of deadlines to be postponed to September 16th is Article 18   of Legislative Decree no. 23/2020.

This law provides for the suspension of the aforementioned taxes and contributions, relating to the months of April and May, with payment by June 30th (in a single solution or in 5 installments) for companies and professionals with 2019 revenues or fees:

  • not exceeding 50 million euros: if they record a decrease in turnover or fees in the months of March and April 2020, compared to March and April 2019, of at least 33%;
  • exceeding 50 million euros: if they record a decrease in turnover or fees in the months of March and April 2020, compared to March and April 2019, of at least 50%.

The above suspensions apply, without taking into account 2019 revenues, also to:

  • to those who started the activity after March 31, 2019;
  • to entities with tax domicile or registered or operational headquarters in the provinces of Bergamo, Brescia, Cremona, Lodi, and Piacenza, provided, however, that they have suffered a 33% drop in turnover in the above-mentioned months.

The suspension also affects  non-commercial entities , including third sector entities and civilly recognized religious entities, which carry out institutional activities of general interest that are not carried out as businesses.

Furthermore, Article 19  of the Decree provides that for individuals who have their tax domicile, registered office or operational headquarters in the territory of the State with revenues or compensation not exceeding €400,000 in the 2019 tax period,  the revenues and compensation received in the period between 17 March 2020 and 31 May 2020 may not be subject to withholding taxes provided for self-employed income (  Articles  25  and  25-bis , Presidential Decree no. 600/1973, therefore reference is made to  professionals  and  commercial agents and representatives ), by the withholding agent provided that in the previous month they have not incurred expenses for dependent or similar work services.

In this case, the interested party, by providing the substitute with a specific self-certification attesting to the aforementioned requirements, could pay the withholdings not applied by the substitute in a single payment by July 31, 2020 or by instalments of up to 5 equal monthly instalments starting from July 2020, without applying penalties and interest.

Sospensioni previste dal decreto “Cura Italia” 

In addition to these suspensions, a few weeks earlier, with  Legislative Decree no. 18/2020  (converted, with amendments, by  Law no. 27/2020 ), some initial extensions had been arranged which affected, with a few exceptions which will be discussed shortly, the payments for the month of March.

Specifically, it was established that for individuals carrying out business, artistic, or professional activities that have their tax domicile, registered office, or operational headquarters in Italy and whose revenues or fees do not exceed €2 million in the 2019 tax period, payments  of the above-mentioned taxes and contributions  due between March 8, 2020, and March 31, 2020, are suspended. These payments must be made, without penalties or interest, in a single payment by May 31, 2020 (or, more precisely, June 1, considering that May 31 falls on a Sunday) or in installments of up to five equal monthly installments starting in May 2020.

The  VAT suspension  applies, regardless of the volume of revenue or compensation received, to individuals carrying out business, artistic, or professional activities who have their tax domicile, registered office, or operational headquarters in the Provinces of Bergamo, Brescia, Cremona, Lodi, and Piacenza.

Instead, for individuals who have their tax domicile, registered office, or operational headquarters in the municipalities of the first red zone ( Annex 1  to the Prime Ministerial Decree of March 1, 2020), payments suspended pursuant to the  Finance Ministerial Decree of February 24, 2020,  had to be made, without the application of penalties and interest, in a single solution by May 31, 2020, or in installments up to a maximum of 5 equal monthly installments starting from May 2020.

Furthermore, some specific rules had been foreseen   , namely:

  • for the month of April 2020, for the sectors most affected by the ongoing health emergency (listed in art. 8 , Legislative Decree no. 9/2020 and art . 61 , Legislative Decree no. 18/2020), the suspension of withholding tax and contribution payments and of VAT from 1 to 31 March 2020, with payment to be made by 1 June 2020 in a single payment or in 5 monthly installments;
  • For the month of May 2020, for amateur sports associations, the suspension of withholdings and contributions, with payments to be made by June 30, 2020, in a single solution or in 5 monthly installments. 

What does the new law provide ?

Come accennato, con il decreto “Rilancio” non si modifica in alcun modo l’impianto normativo dei decreti precedenti.

Ciò che viene disposto è un “semplice” posticipo di tutti gli adempimenti (o meglio, versamenti) sopra elencati ad un’unica data di scadenza, fissata per il 16 settembre 2020.

Entro tale data, pertanto, occorrerà versare il dovuto in unica soluzione oppure optando per la rateazione in quattro rate mensili di pari importo.