Italian VAT registrations and returns for businesses that like great customer service.

Q: What is the VAT rate in Italy?

Italy has four VAT rates: Standard: 22%, Reduced 1: 10%, Reduced 2: 5%, and Super Reduced: 4%.

Q: How long does it take to get a VAT number in Italy?

Once your application has been received, it takes Agenzia delle Entrate an average of 4–6 weeks to process your VAT registration.

Get Registered for IOSS, Fast

You’re ready to sell to customers in the Czech Republic? Don’t wait any longer, start your IOSS registration now. We can get you your IOSS number in as little as three working days.

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Baba, USA

Italy

Currency	Euro (EUR, €)
Languages	Italian, English
Largest Marketplace	Amazon.it
Most Popular Product Category	Fashion
Tax Authority	Agenzia delle Entrate /Revenue Agency Czech Republic
VAT Rates	Standard – 22%
	Reduced 1 – 10%
	Reduced 2 – 5%
	Super Reduced – 4%

Value Added Tax in Italian is Imposta sul Valore Aggiunto (IVA). The last time the standard rate changed in Italy was 2013, when it went up 1% to 22%.

Latest Italian VAT News

06 June 2025

Italy mandated e-invoicing for all B2C transactions in 2025.

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06 June 2025

- Agenzia delle Entrate streamlined OSS registration for small businesses.

Do I need to register for VAT in Italy?

Whether you need to register for VAT in Italy depends on a lot of variables

Where you’re based
Who your customers are
What you’re selling
Where you’re selling it
And if you’re selling goods, where they are when they’re sold

The quickest way to get an answer to this question is to ask someone. Book a call with a member of our team and tell them about your business. They’ll help you work out if you need to register for anything (for free).

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My B2C business is based outside the EU

Whether you need to register for VAT in Italy depends on where your goods are, and where you’re selling them.

When you own the sales channel, you have more work to do to be VAT compliant.

You have to register for VAT in any EU country where you’re storing goods. Storing goods in Italy? You’ll need to register there. If your goods are warehoused elsewhere in the EU and being sold to customers in Italy, you have two options:

Which is better for your business will depend on your current set up and plans for the future. You can always ask us if you’re not sure which you need.

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Importing goods to Italy

Are your goods outside the EU when your customer buys them? You have three options:

Ship your goods to Italy Delivered at Place (DAP)

An IOSS registration allows you to import goods with an intrinsic value of EUR 150 or less to customers all over the EU – not just Italy.

If your average Italian customer is ordering goods worth more than EUR 150, registering for VAT might be more efficient.

You can also ship your goods to Italy DAP. Shipping DAP puts the responsibility for Import fees, duties and VAT on your customer. We really only recommend doing this if you have one-off or infrequent high-value sales to Ireland. Shipping DAP is generally a worse experience for your customers. It increases cart abandonment and reduces repeat customers.

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Get an IOSS number in 3 days

We can get your IOSS number to you in as little as three working days. Start your registration now and start shipping to Italy next week.

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Selling goods through an online
marketplace

Online marketplaces like Amazon or eBay are responsible for collecting and remitting the VAT on certain sales on their platforms.

Marketplaces are responsible for the VAT when:

You, the seller, are based outside the EU
The sale is B2C
The goods are shipped from outside the EU in shipments with an intrinsic value of EUR 150 or less
Or the goods are in the EU at the point of sale

For example, you’re an Amazon seller based in Canada. Your stock is in your warehouse in Edmonton, AB. Your customer in Italy orders a EUR100 hat from you. Amazon charges your customer Italian VAT and remits it to Agenzia delle Entrate.

You’ll still need to register for VAT if your goods are stored in the EU (if you’re using Amazon FBA, for example).

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If you’re shipping an order with an intrinsic value of more than EUR 150 to Italy, you have two options:

Ship the order DAP

VAT for Amazon Pan-EU

Every day we help Amazon sellers expand their businesses into Europe through Pan-EU FBA. We take care of VAT registrations and returns, so they can concentrate on getting more sales.

Get Pan-EU VAT sorted by the team known for its excellent customer service.

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Selling Digital Services and Digital Goods to Italy

For VAT purposes, the EU considered everything that’s not a physical object, a service. Digital services are a category of services that are defined by being “electronically supplied”. That covers things like eBooks, PDFs of sewing patterns, on-demand video courses and tickets to livestreams. If you’re in Canada or the USA, you’ll probably know these things as “Digital Goods”

Determining whether your services are “electronically supplied” can be complicated and has big consequences – if they’re not, you don’t need to register for anything. We recommend you talk to an expert if you’re selling digital services. Just so you don’t end up paying VAT you don’t have to.

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My B2C business is based in the EU

This information assumes you’re not based in Italy.

Selling Goods

Being based in the EU, you can make up to 10,000 EUR in sales to other EU countries before you have to register for anything. That depends, however, on where your goods are when your customer makes their purchase.

My Goods are in Italy

Storing goods in the Italy a “taxable supply”. You’ll need to register for VAT in Italy for One Stop Shop (OSS) in the country where you’re based.

My Goods are in the EU, but not in Italy

If you hold stock in the country where you’re based you can choose to either register for VAT in Italy, or for OSS.

Storing goods in another country creates a VAT obligation. For example, if you store goods in Germany and sell them to Italy, you have a VAT obligation in both countries. You can register for VAT in both countries or skip the individual registrations and just register for OSS

My goods are outside the EU

You have three options when your goods are outside the EU at the point of sale:

Register for VAT in Italy
Register for Import One Stop Shop (IOSS)
Make your customer the Importer of Record
Making your customer the Importer of Record will mean their order gets hold at customs until they’ve paid any duty and VAT due. If they don’t pay in time, the order will get sent back to you.

Selling Services from the EU to Italy

In the EU, anything that’s not a physical object is considered a service. It covers everything from catering services to digital downloads. Selling services to consumers in other EU countries requires you to register for OSS
You can register for with your local tax authority.

Feeling Confused? Take the EU VAT Quiz

We don’t blame you. There are a lot of variables. Find out in less than a minute if you need to register in the EU and what for – IOSS, OSS, Non-Union OSS or VAT.

Take the Quiz

VAT on Sales to Italian Businesses

When your customers are other businesses, your VAT obligations change. You might still have to register for VAT (if you store goods in Italy, for example) but in many cases the VAT is your customer’s obligation.

I’m based outside the EU and selling B2B to Italy

If you’re based outside the EU and your customer is VAT registered, the reverse charge mechanism often applies. You include “reverse charge mechanism” on the invoice, and they account for it on their VAT return.

I’m based in the EU and selling B2B to Italy

Generally, B2B sales between EU states are zero-rated if both you and your customer are VAT registered. Selling to a business in Italy from another EU country doesn’t necessarily require you to be registered there. However, you do have to:
· Be VAT registered where you’re based
· Add the transaction to your EC Sales List
· Verify your buyer’s VAT number on VIES

Make B2B simpler with expert advice

Cross-border B2B sales are deceptively complicated. Get expert advice before you start, so you don’t get caught having to pay backdated VAT and penalties.

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How do I register for VAT in Italy?

You have to be registered for VAT in Italy before you start selling to Italian customers. Plus, to do any business in Italy you need an Italian VAT number.

If you’re not an Italian resident, or established in the EU or UK, you’ll need a fiscal representative to register. You’ll need to gather some documents for your application:

A copy of your business’s articles of association

An extract from the trade register in the country where your business is based

A VAT certificate showing you’re registered in the country where your business is based

The power of attorney granted to your fiscal representative

Proof that you’re doing business in Italy – this could be invoices or a contract, for example

Some of these documents might need to be translated into Italian. If they do, they have to be Sworn Translations, so you won’t be able to do these yourself. If you’re using a fiscal representative, they might be able to have it done for you.

On average it takes between four to six weeks for registrations to be completed once everything’s been submitted.

Once you’re registered, you’ll be given your Italian VAT number. It’s an 11-digit number that you need to show on your invoices and any commercial documents you make or receive whilst doing business in Italy.

VAT Essentials: Italy

Get all the Italian VAT information you need to start selling in our downloadable guide.

Download the ebook

Italian VAT Returns

In Italy, VAT returns are usually submitted annually. They have to be filed online, either by you or your representative. If you’ve made a mistake on your return, or have forgotten something, you can correct it by resubmitting it.

In certain circumstances, you might not have to submit a VAT return, even though you’re VAT registered. For example, if you’re covered by a special scheme like the flat-rate scheme.

Quarterly and monthly VAT returns are available, but only if your turnover in the last calendar year didn’t exceed:

€400,000 if you’re self-employed or a service business
€700,000 if you’re any other business

Intrastat Thresholds Italy

Intrastat is a statistical report used by the EU to collect and analyse data on the movement of goods between EU Member States. The thresholds for filing Intrastat reports in Italy are:

Arrivals: EUR 350,000 in goods, EUR 100,000 in services
Dispatches: EUR 100,000

Intrastat reports are really different to VAT returns. They’re transactional, reported by SKU and they require so much extra data - like weight, commodity codes and net sales value. They're the kind of thing that only gets easier to do with practice. We’ve had tonnes of practice, so why not let us do it for you?

Get Support with Intrastat

Italian Invoice Requirements

In general, Italian invoices follow the EU VAT Directive structure. They need to include:

The date (if the transaction date is different to the date the invoice was issued, include that too)

A unique number

Your VAT number

The full address of both you and your customer

A full description of the goods or services

The quantity and unit price, if they apply

Details of any discounts you may have applied

The net taxable value, and the gross amount of the invoice

The VAT rate you applied and the amount of VAT

VAT Refunds Italy

If you buy something from an Italian supplier, or import goods into Italy, you’ll be charged input VAT. You can claim input VAT back on your Italian VAT return. When you have more input VAT than output VAT, the excess is automatically carried forward as credit.

It’s difficult to get a VAT refund in Italy. You’re only a refund in the following situations:

You have overpaid VAT and indicate on your return that is the case
The amount of credit you have is more than EUR 2,582,28
You’ve been in credit for the last three years
You’re ceasing business in Italy

If you manage to fulfil any of those conditions, you can request the refund either through your annual return or a separate form.

Get Support with Refunds

Refunds when you’re not VAT registered in Italy

If you’re not registered for VAT in Italy, you can still get a VAT refund. How you do it depends on whether you’re based in the EU or not.

Businesses based in the EU can use their national tax authority’s online portal to use the EU Refund Directive. Once the claim has been processed, Agenzia delle Entrate will refund you the money.

If you’re not based in the EU, you’ll need to use the 13th Directive.

13th Directive VAT Refunds in Italy

To apply, the country where you’re based must have a reciprocity agreement with Italy. The current list is:

Israel
Norway
Switzerland
The United Kingdom

You can only claim for a period of three months or a year. If you’re claiming for three months, the minimum amount you can claim is EUR 400. If you claim for the whole year, the minimum decreases to EUR 50. You have until the 30th of Semptember the year following the refund period to make your claim. For example, the deadline to refund VAT paid in April 2024 is September 2025.

In our experience, 13th Directive refunds in Italy are admin and time intensive. It can take four or five years to get your money back. If you’d like a refund but don’t want to spend time chasing it, we can handle it for you.

Get Support with Intrastat

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Italy VAT FAQs

How do I get an EORI number?

We can get you an EORI number and help you decide which country you should register in. We’ll need some details about your business, so book a call and we’ll get things started.

How do I get an EORI number

What’s the cost of an EORI number?

EORI number processing time:

We can get you an EORI number and help you decide which country you should register in. We’ll need some details about your business, so book a call and we’ll get things started.

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